Thank you note writing

Don’t Blow Your Post-Holiday Opportunity to Thank Your Nonprofit Supporters

Thank you note writingFor good things once a year is not enough. Why do so many of us only eat turkey once a year?  Or pumpkin pie? I’ve no idea! It’s surely not rational. These are special foods we value and take great delight in. Yet we get into a bad habit of thinking on auto pilot. If it’s not Thanksgiving, the idea of roasting a turkey or making cranberry sauce doesn’t even enter most or our heads. And egg nog, hot mulled cider, panettone and stollen are mostly Christmas things. And then there are the once-a-year only potato latkes. Why are we missing out on an opportunity for greater joy and satisfaction?

When things are good, they bear repeating.

And this is most certainly the case with expressing gratitude to your valued supporters!

It’s not rational to thank your donors only annually.  They keep you going all year long. They deserve your gratitude all year long as well.

What better time to thank supporters than right now, and all through the coming weeks, after a holiday season filled with gratitude?

The much-anticipated “holiday season” is pretty much over. There’s a natural let-down for many.  Wouldn’t it be lovely for your donors and volunteers to get a call from their favorite charity? A call that simply expresses gratitude? 
            “Joe, how was your holiday? I just called because, in thinking over the past few days about all for which I’m grateful, I realized I’m grateful for you and all you do to make our community a more caring place. I just wanted you to know how much your support is appreciated. Thanks so much, and may the new year bring many blessings.”
My hunch is there’s nothing better you could do with your time today. Or early next week if you’re taking some personal (or shopping the sales?) time today.

All the “strategies” in the world can’t substitute for a genuine, personal connection that comes from the heart.

Connect!  Express your thanks! Don’t let weeks and months go by. Don’t wait until you’ve got a perfectly crafted letter, email or insert piece. That’s called procrastination, or “letting perfect be the enemy of the good.” Sometimes, timing is everything.
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Wishing you a prosperous new year

How to Help Donors Give Astutely Before Year-End

Wishing you a prosperous new year

Do you want to risk not receiving generous gifts you could have otherwise received, just because you failed to go the extra mile to share relevant, useful and even critical information? Or because you just did the most basic things, failing to do what would have made your communications really stand out?

The Genuine Job of the Philanthropy Facilitator

Your job as a philanthropy facilitator is to do everything in your power to make giving to you as easy, joyful and rewarding as possible.

Everything.

Do you?

Doing everything means

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14 Last-Minute Strategies to Boost Year-End Fundraising

Painting of baby in fetal position

Arrgh! Too crowded! Too competitive! Too much noise! I’m curling into a fetal position until it’s over!

Do you have that year-end feeling? You know, the one many fundraisers get around this time of year?

Kind of frenetic? Anxious? Stressed?

You’re not alone.

The average nonprofit receives 26 – 30% of all donations in December. And 10% arrive in the last three days of the year!  So, yeah, it’s really busy.  And a lot is on the line.

I was talking with one of my clients, who apologized for acting so frantic and rushed.  She said:

“Do you remember having that feeling? Did you get it when you used to work in the trenches? That worry that maybe you won’t hit your numbers? That people won’t give as much as they gave last year? That some of your major donors won’t renew. That maybe you’re not sending enough emails? That you’ll wake up on January 1st and be in BIG trouble?”

Oh, yeah. That feeling…

Of course I’ve felt it!  But over the years I’ve learned a few tricks to help overcome that feeling.

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Silhoette of person with light sabers

May the Force Be With You: Underused Year-End Fundraising Tweak

Silhoette of person with light sabersWhat if I told you there’s a teensy little digital upsell that could skyrocket your year-end fundraising results?  Would that be of interest?

Darn rootin’-tootin’!

Okay. Here’s something you still have time to do. It has to do with your website, so consider looping in whoever is responsible for that part of your year-end marketing and fundraising strategy.

First, let’s look at a typical Donation Landing Page with a call to action via some compelling text, maybe a photo, and a big, bold “Donate” button. Hopefully you’ve optimized it for mobile too.  And, no matter what device your donor uses to access the page, they’re able to complete their gift with no more than two clicks.

Check, check, check, check and check.

You’re well on the way (or not quite) to getting some nice traction for your campaign.

But… don’t stop there!

Because you can significantly boost your results if you add one simple thing.

I like to think of it as “the force.”

It’s not a light saber, but it’s similarly luminous.

It’s called a…

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