STOP Leaving So Much Money on Your Table
Fundraisers talk a lot about asking. Now, as year-end gifts arrive, let’s turn to the equally important task of thanking. In fact, this may be even more important than the ask.
If you ask well you get one gift. If you thank well, you may receive a lifetime of gifts.
Alas, this is where too many organizations go astray.
Below, more or less, is a real “thank you” I received.
Member # 83,457
Dear Friend,
On behalf of the board of our charity, thank you so much for your gift. It means a lot and will help us continue to fulfill our mission. Welcome!
As you know, we helped a lot of people last year. And the needs are even greater this year. We expect to have a large deficit by the end of this year, unless the economy turns around or we’re able to raise more money from people like you. So please spread the word.
P.S. Since the needs are so great, you may want to consider becoming a monthly donor. We’ve enclosed an envelope for your convenience.
Kind of ugh.
What do you think Miss Manners would say about this?
Miss Manners would say:
1. Always address your friend by their given name.
A thank you is not a form letter. Including my member number?! Personalization is meaningful and connecting. “Dear Friend” is detached.
2. Include a specific description of the gift your friend gave you.
A thank you should show the giver how much you know and appreciate them and their giving. “Your gift” doesn’t even remind people what they gave you, making them wonder if you really even know.
3. Describe how you’ll use the gift.
Let the giver know why you loved the gift so much. How did it “help,” and what will you use it for? Specifically. Make sure your description of the use matches the donor’s intent.
4. Use “I”.
The letter is coming from you; not from “we,” not from “us,” not from “our,” and not from the name of your organization.
5. Do not be rude and describe how you could’ve used more.
This is not the time or place to talk about your needs. It’s especially not the time to talk about your financial situation! In fact, Miss Manners identifies “blatant greed” as the most serious etiquette problem in the United States.
6. Do not solicit your next gift.
The thank you should be pure – especially if this is the first gift you’ve ever received from this individual (which appears true here, based on the “Welcome!” in the first paragraph).
Appreciation is a Two-Way Street
If you want supporters to appreciate you, you must appreciate them.
How do you feel when someone opens up a gift you thoughtfully selected for them, and then fails to comment on the gift? You wonder if they appreciated it, or if they thought it was too little, too much, or simply not what they wanted or needed.
I have one friend who does this every year. I give her the gift, she walks away to put it under her tree, and then I never hear back as to whether she liked it. I chalk this up to “Oh, that’s her,” but it does definitely subtract from my joy in making the gift. I’ve know her forever, so I continue giving. But, were she a charity, I would probably have stopped. With a friend, the connection is pre-existing.
With a nonprofit, it’s on the organization to build the connection.
“Thank you” Jump Starts the Connection Process
Miss Manners wasn’t a development professional, but she knew her stuff!
According to Penelope Burk, author of “Donor-Centered Fundraising,” “46 percent of donors decide to stop giving for reasons that are tied to lack of meaningful information or to a feeling that their giving is not appreciated.”
Saying thank you in a prompt, personal and creative way might be the single most important tool you have in your fundraising toolbox. Prompt means striving for 48-hour turnaround. Personal means using the donor’s name and referencing the specific purpose of their gift. Creative means doing something a bit unexpected. Consider a brief, warm thank-you video from your staff. Include handwritten notes from people who were helped, or from volunteers. If you’re thanking an event donor, include a snapshot taken of them at the event. Remind people of how they felt when they made the gift.
A thank you is your opportunity to (1) reinforce for donors the fact they made a good decision, and (2) rekindle your donor’s thrill of giving.
The Gift is Often a “Test”
Sometimes when Grandma gave us a birthday gift she was testing us.
How much gratitude would we show? If we didn’t show enough, we might not get as good a gift next year – if at all.
Donors can be just like grandma.
The first gift, especially, is a bit of a trial balloon. It’s a symbol of how the donor feels about us, or how the donor might feel about us some day if properly stewarded. It is an opening.
It is up to you to make sure the donor doesn’t feel the door is slammed shut in their face. Warmly welcome them in. Invite them to do something fun with you. For example, a thank you letter can include a P.S. letting them know about upcoming free events. Or it can simply say you’ll be in touch soon with more news about the meaningful impact of their gift.
The connection building process continues forever, and that’s the real work of fundraising.
Otherwise, the gifts stop coming.
Want to Avoid Thank You Blunders This Year?
If you’re serious about donor retention you may want to get my Special Guide: How to Cultivate an Attitude of Gratitude — Everything You Need to Know About Donor Retention. It’s a handy no-nonsense guide on how to put gratitude into practice on a daily basis. Templates, checklists, samples, creative ideas, links to tools and resources – it’s all there. Including ‘Creative Ways to Thank Your Donors’ – with more than 70 specific ideas for you to steal! For what you get, I think you’ll find it to be a bargain. And if it’s not, you can always tell me. I’m pretty nice about these things. To your success!
