You’ve written an appeal that needs to go out the door yesterday. But you’ve been hearing all this news about being “donor-centered,” using “neuroscience,” and all those other buzzwords—and you’re not sure your letter measures up. While it’s always better to study up before writing your appeal, I … [Read more...]
Building a Better Thank You Letter, Part II
Organization-Centered to Donor-Centered Last week, we looked at how I edited the opening of a good thank you letter to make it better. This week, we’ll look at the body of the letter and how to describe organizational accomplishments in donor-centered terms. In donor-centered fundraising, it's not … [Read more...]
Building a Better Thank You Letter, Part I
An organization’s executive director asked me to review a letter he planned to send to major donors. This was a thank you letter at the turn of the new year to thank the previous year’s donors, not a letter in response to any specific gift. That’s a terrific way to show appreciation for donors. It … [Read more...]