Fundraising Do’s vs. Don’ts: Online Memorial Donation Example

Here comes my occasional “Do’s vs. Don’ts” feature, where I share with you something arriving in my mailbox that seems a good ‘teaching opportunity.’

Today we’re going to review an online appeal to make a memorial donation.

It arrived as an email. There’s (1) a subject line, (2) an opening line, (3) the email itself, and (4) what happens if/when you click through and are transported to the donation landing page.

We’ll take a look at the various elements; then assess what works/doesn’t work.

SUBJECT LINE: Watch Now: Celebration of Life Honoring the Legacy of …

OPENING: Watch the Celebration of Life Honoring the Legacy of…

BODY of the email included:

• • Header with organization’s logo, name, tagline and contact info

  • Headshot of the founder

  • Speaker’s program

  • Link to YouTube video

  • A “Donate Here” bar, at the bottom of the email, to honor the Founder’s “visionary legacy” through establishment of a new endowment fund

My Initial Experience

The email was from an organization named as a memorial beneficiary of their founder. This is an organization with which I’m familiar. I’m not sure if I’ve ever donated to them, but I clearly signed up for their mailing list.

The video I was invited to watch was of the Memorial Service that had occurred two days earlier.

I was delighted to receive this, as I knew the deceased and had truly wanted to attend the memorial but couldn’t make it due to a conflict.

The email also included a link to make a donation to a special new endowment fund set up in the Founder’s honor.

I clicked on the link, fully intending to donate.

I was also hoping I would have the opportunity to notify a family member of the gift.

I clicked on $50, because it was the pre-selected option.

This is what the donation landing page looked like:

Would this inspire you to give?

If so, why?

If not, why not?

Think about this for a few minutes before you read on for my answer.

1. What’s right?
2. What’s just okay?
3. What’s not okay?

Have you jotted down your answers?

Go ahead. I’ll wait.

I promise you’ll learn a LOT more this way. We learn best by doing.

Seriously, I mean it.

Okay… here’s what happened for me.

My Follow-Through Experience

Once I clicked on the Donate Button and was taken to the donation page, I had an experience that was fraught with friction.

Maybe not everyone would react this way, but I’m sure I’m not the only one.

And this means they most likely lost donations.

This makes me sad.

But let’s begin with the good news.

What’s right

The headline definitely drew me in.

Since I want to watch the service, this message was donor-centered rather than organization-centered. They could have led with “You still have time to donate.” They knew better.

The link to the video was easy to use.

It began playing immediately. It wasn’t edited. I was able to appreciate the whole experience – as if I’d been there.

The headshot of the Founder was appropriate.

I didn’t show it to you for privacy reasons, but it induced a bit of nostalgia — seldom a bad thing.  This person was a genuine role model. My heart swelled, putting me in a generous mood.

The speakers’ program was appreciated.

The list of speakers was impressive, including people who were quite well known in both the local and broader community. And if I’d wanted to fast-forward to particular sections of the service, this offered a roadmap.

The “donate here” bar was well placed.

It was the bottom of the email, which I found tasteful.  Some folks might counsel it should be “above the scroll,” but for a memorial like this I thought it was better to lead with the video and program.  And they covered their bases by including an additional link to the XXX Endowment Fund right before the speakers’ program.

The option to give once or monthly is good.

You should always offer a monthly option, as this is the best way to retain donors. Usually, I counsel making the monthly option most prominent to increase donor retention.  But, since this is a memorial gift (likely one time), highlighting this option makes sense.

What’s just okay

The logo, tagline and contact info.

This neither added nor subtracted.  It happens to take up a lot of space, and be a bit difficult to read. I might have shortened it, or at the least put the contact info at the bottom.

Also, I’d recommend adding a tax identification number for those folks who might want to donate through a donor advised fund (DAF).

The pre-selected $50 amount.

It isn’t defaulted to either the minimum or maximum, so that’s good practice. Though, honestly, without this I probably would have given $100. But, since it seemed they were content with $50, and that was the easiest course of action, it’s the path I took.

It’s generally recommended you pick one of your middle two suggested amounts. Here, I think picking $100 would have been worth a try. Or maybe even an A/B test. [Learn more about gift arrays and pre-selects here.]

The monthly giving option gift array.

To realistically mirror the pre-selected annual choice of $50, the monthly option should begin with something that would be similar when multiplied by 12 (e.g. $5 x 12 = $60). This would be a true upgrade opportunity. The only realistic option a donor has here is to fill in $5 the “custom” amount box. But this requires them to do math – which could stop some donors in their tracks, causing them to “abandon cart.” Note if I’d wanted to make a $100 gift, then the $10 option would upgrade me by $20 ($10 x 12 = $120).

What’s not okay

Friction inducing opportunity to “log in?”

Huh?  I had no idea what I’d be logging in to.  Or what the benefits of logging in might be. So, this slowed me down a bit. Was there something I was supposed to do that I wasn’t doing?

Friction inducing option to “Round Up?”

Huh?  I had zero idea what this was.  Ever curious, I clicked on it – which, of course, unnecessarily slowed me down again.  I found out it meant: Connect a debit/credit card to round-up your purchases to the next dollar and donate your change. Clearly this was a form intended for a different use. I wasn’t purchasing anything. And, to my knowledge, this organization doesn’t sell anything (I went to their website to check).

Friction inducing lack of payment options.

Anyone looking for PayPal, Stipe, Apple Pay, Venmo, Google Pay could not have found their preferred options here. Also, with DAF giving on the rise, this is more important than ever. If you make it difficult, would-be donors will put your appeal aside for later. Guess what I did?  “Abandoned cart.”

Final Thoughts

I’m wondering what their primary desired action response (DAR) was.

This email did create goodwill.

And if getting me to watch the video is what they were after, mission accomplished.

I plan to watch the video, and I appreciate the opportunity.

I might even go back later to donate – I intend to — but this form didn’t meet my needs.

There was too much friction induced at multiple points along the way.

I thought: “I’ll come back later.”

Do you want to rely on your donor remembering to come back?

If the primary DAR was a donation, this was a “fail.”

Okay, maybe not a total fail.  I’m being a little bit hard here.  I’m sure they received donations.  I’m also sure that money was left on the table.

P.S.  It’s been a week since I drafted this post, and I haven’t gone back to make a donation yet. Best of intentions aside. Sigh…  Maybe I’ll do it later today.

Want More Help with Your Fundraising Appeals?

You may find my Anatomy of a Fundraising Appeal Letter + Sample Template.useful. It’s a simple, incredibly thorough, 62-page step-by-step guide to crafting a killer appeal letter or email appeal. If you speak straight to the heart – and to your donor’s passions — you’ll raise more money.

All Clairification materials come with a 30-day, no-questions-asked, 100% refund guarantee. If you’re not happy, I’m not happy.

Please note: Today’s example includes both “do’s” and “don’ts.” Hopefully I’ve not offended. Please know I always come from a place of love, and don’t mean to shame anyone. As with almost anything you can think of, there’s good AND bad in the examples I share. We learn both from mistakes and stellar efforts. Our own, and others.  Kudos to all who put things out there and make an effort. The only way you learn is by trying. If I ever use you as an example, and you disagree or want to clarify, feel free to contact me directly.