Making Your Mail Work for You -- The Letter

I’ve already written quite a bit on the blog about how to write various direct mail letters, including Acquisition/Prospecting, Renewal, Appeal and Acknowledgement letters. But today, I want to take a moment to remind you to always consider the ultimate purposes of each letter you send out.

What’s that? There’s more than one purpose?

Depending on the type of letter, you may want to:

• Ask for money. Not all letters that you send to your donors will – or should – have an overt ask for money, but many will. So make sure you call attention to that ask. Highlight it by indenting the paragraph, underlining the ask, or bolding the type.
• Thank your donor! Every letter should include a show of gratitude – for their loyalty, their generosity, and their steadfast support.
• Educate and inform your donor about your issues, your organization or the people that you help. Your donors want to know where their money is going, so put that in your letters. Tell them what you’re accomplishing with their help, let them know about new issues that have arisen since you wrote them last, tell them how they can do more.
• Reaffirm your story. Each time you write to your donor, you want to tell them your story. Remind them why they gave to you in the first place. (And if you don’t have a story yet, get one!)
• Introduce key players. Are you getting a new executive director? Has a prominent celebrity thrown his or her weight behind your cause? Mention that in your letter.
• Hail your victories and cite the battles still to come. Letting your donors know about the victories you’ve won is another way to let them see what they help you accomplish. And telling them about the fights ahead reminds them why it’s so important to keep giving.

You may be wondering just how many people read every magic word of prose you put in these letters. Well, probably not many. Certainly not everyone. So focus on the things you know they’ll look at.

The Johnson Box and the PS nearly always get read, so make sure those two parts of your letter really shine. No Johnson Box? That first paragraph better be a grabber. If you can afford it, personalize your letter. Everyone likes to see their name, and if you get them to read the salutation, they just might keep on reading.

If there are critical points within the body copy of your letter that you want your donors to read, make sure to catch their eyes. Print a paragraph in color, if you can. Try a handwritten note, gripping headlines, bolding, underlines or italics…anything to make those important parts stand out. But do make sure they are important. You’ll lose credibility with your donors if you call their attention to boring copy!

Most importantly, your letter is there to bond your donor to your organization…and to point them to the next component, the Reply Form.

Writing for Activist Causes: A Call to Action

So for in this series Tips for Writing for Activist Organizations, I’ve talked about choosing a compelling issue and crafting a comprehensive strategy for addressing that issue. Today, I want to talk about the third component of successful activist copy: the Call to Action.

Unless you’ve been (understandably) shying away from the news lately, you’ve probably noticed there’s an election coming up. Last week, President Obama went on a base-rallying tour, hoping to galvanize Democrats into voting in the mid-term elections.

Amidst all of his talking points about the economy, health care and criticism of the Republicans, the President delivered a strong, to-the-point call to action: If you want to continue building the movement we started in 2008, vote for Democrats in November.

Obviously, I don’t know how well this call to action worked yet. But it does seem to be energizing at least a core group of Democrats and Obama supporters.

And that’s what activist organizations want to do when they're communicating with their donors. If you’re presenting your issue in a compelling manner, with a comprehensive strategy, your donors are going to be so excited about what you’re doing that they will be compelled to act immediately. And if you’re smart, you’ll drive that action.

• I love a good Petition or Postcard to the President, Congress, head of a corporation or other recognizable official-type person. They're easy for the donor -- simply sign and return -- and a great way for you to show those leaders how much support there is for your issue.
• A boycott, while harder to organize and follow through on, can also be extremely effective. Donors love knowing they're a part of a larger movement fighting for positive change. 
• Put your call to action in pledge form, so the donor has something to sign and return – hopefully, along with a check.
• Add a deadline -- nothing gets people moving faster than a time-limited offer.
• Offer a little something extra for their support. An issue-specific decal saying that the donor took action could provide that extra motivation to act -- and act now.

Even better, these are all actions you can hearken back to when you write your acknowledgements, telling the donors how many petitions you collected, the initial impact of their boycott, or a story about seeing your decal out in the world making a difference.

More questions about writing for an activist organization? Post them below, and I’ll answer next week!

Five Great Fundraising Posts

In my ongoing effort to stay sharp, I spend a lot of time reading what other people have to say about direct mail fundraising. I love hearing others’ perspectives and discovering new ways to think about what I do. I wanted to share a few articles with you -- articles I wish I'd thought to write! -- that can help inspire and inform your fundraising.

Ever wondered why nonprofit direct mail packages look like they do? Here’s a helpful comparison of fundraising mail vs. other types of direct mail from Adams & Hussey. 

I’ve written about using emotion and passion in your fundraising before. But here’s a great article from Contributions Magazine that lays it all out for you. 

I wrote a whole series on appeal letters, but if you want another excellent summary of the things you need to address in your fundraising appeal, check out this article by Katya Andresen and Julie Stofer. 

I just blogged on why you should always remember to thank your donors, but here's another simple – but very effective – reminder of the importance of acknowledgements. 

I also really loved these tips from Karen Zapp on reviving a flagging direct mail program. 

What books, articles or sites inspire you? I’d love to hear about them in the comments section!

Mind Your Manners: Acknowledgements

Everybody talks about how important acknowledgements are. It seems to be generally understood that if someone is generous enough to give you a donation, the least you can do is thank them.

So why are so many organizations so bad at it?

I can’t tell you how many times a client has said to me, “But it’s so expensive to send a thank you letter for every gift!” Or even better, “But it’s so much work!”

I’m sorry, but I don’t accept that excuse from my 7-year-old, so I’m certainly not going to accept it from an organization I give money to.

In fact, I’d go so far as to say that you can’t afford NOT to send acknowledgements.

My old boss used to preach to all of her clients about the importance of including a reply envelope in acknowledgements, saying, “There’s no better time to get another gift from a donor than when they’re in the ‘rosy glow’ of having just given.”

But even if they don’t give again right away, your acknowledgement is a critical tool for future giving.

Done correctly, an acknowledgement does three things:

1. It thanks the donor for their support.
2. It tells the donor what that support has accomplished so far.
3. It tells the donor what their continued support can accomplish in the future.

Many of my current clients also put information about planned giving and sustainer programs into their acknowledgement letters, too. They’re great vehicles for getting the word out about other ways to give to the organization.

But however you thank them, make sure you do thank your donors. As Mal Warwick says, “If you run a responsive donor-acknowledgement program, you’ll gain a competitive advantage that will pay off in higher renewal rates and greater loyalty.”

And who doesn’t want higher renewal rates and greater loyalty?