Have you started your year-end fundraising letter yet?

Fiscal people can do funny things to the way we measure time. In our organization, our year-end was September 26 this year. Many schools and colleges work on a July-June calendar. Others end their year in February for a March start.

But for our donors, year-end will always be December 31. And statistically, people tend to be the most generous leading up to year end.

So now is the time to start crafting your year-end appeal.

I’ve been at this a long time, but I’m still surprised at how long the direct mail process takes. I’d love to be able to write one letter and have it sent to my donors the next day. But it doesn’t work like that.

First you need to know who you’re sending to

Our database folks can really slice and dice our constituents. When I say, “I dunno. I want everyone to get the year-end appeal,” they start asking questions.

• “Does everyone including people that have given this year?”
• “Even if they’ve given to a capital project, do you want them to get this annual fund appeal?”
• “Do you want employees to get the same letters as everyone else?”
• “Board members?”
• “Major donors?”

And you know, they’re right. These are questions you need to consider.

Then you need to write your letters. Depending on how many groups you ended up with (employee/non-employee, etc.), you’ll need to craft the letter. Here are some things to consider:

• What’s your theme? Bragging about past accomplishments? Listing future funding focueses? Answering questions people are asking?
• Who should sign it? Should this come from the director of development? The CEO? The board chair? A volunteer? Answering this will help you write in the right “voice.”
• How long will it be? Many try one-side of one page to help reduce costs. But studies more often show that 2-page out performs 1-page and 4-page letters out perform 2-page. Of course, you’ll need to test this for yourself.
• What will your P.S. be? This is the most important part of your letter, as it’s the most read part after the address. When do you want the gift by? How much are you asking? What is your call to action?
• What should the buckslip look like? Every direct mail piece needs a reply device. How will yours look? Will it be a tear off piece of paper? Will it be filled out with the donor’s address and name? Are you going to also customize the ask amounts based on the donor?
• What kind of return envelope will you use? Will you make them put a stamp on it? Or will you use a business reply indicia?

Third work out the details with your direct mail house

• Find out how long the mailing will take once they get the copy. I continue to be amazed that they often need weeks of lead time. But they do have other clients to work in too…
• Be sure to mutually agree on addressing options. My vendor keeps wanting me to save money. Normally that would be nice. But it always seems to result in my donors’ addresses being surrounded by weird numbers, letters, and barcodes. Yuck. I want my fundraising letter to look like a real piece of mail, not something that would be stuffed into a junk mail file.
• And be sure to get printed proofs before they do the mass mailing. I also continue to be amazed at how many ways they can screw up a perfectly simple letter. (At least it seems simple to me!) Direct mail houses seem particularly challenged on font size and margins. They seem to want to make the fonts and margins really tiny, but people do better with 12 or 13 point font and lots of white space.

Hopefully these pointers will get you off to a great start for your year-end fundraising appeal.

Remember, there’s nothing compassionate about not asking!

Marc A. Pitman is the author of Ask Without Fear! And an executive coach to nonprofit leaders. An expert in helping people identify their natural abilities, he’s committed to providing down-to-earth information that will decrease stress and put the “fun” back into fundraising!
If you’re interested in having Marc speak to your organization, or in learning more about his coaching and training services, he can be reached at: http://www.FundraisingCoach.com.

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How a major gift is defined depends on your organization. It might be $500 or $5,000 or somewhere in between. Typically, we think of a major gift as cash, but it could be an annuity, stock or something else. The defining characteristic is that it is a “Stop And Think” gift. The donor has put some thought into it.

Create a cultivation plan for your major donors and work it. Examine the ways you are communicating with them. Do you send them a newsletter of some kind? Do you provide them with a name and phone number and invite them to call you? Have you invited them for a tour of your organization? Have you learned all you can about them including their interests and their reasons for giving? Knowing all you can about a potential major donor will help you develop the best strategy for cultivating them and asking for the next gift. The better prepared you are when it comes to the Ask, the more likely you are to get the gift.

Build a relationship with your major donors by getting personal. Get to know them. Send handwritten note cards or better yet, call them just to thank them! Find out about their families, their hobbies and what other charities they support. And, most importantly, find out why they support YOU!

Involve your Board. Do any of your Board members know any of your major donors? If so, they can likely provide valuable information or assist in cultivation.

Make sure you have some kind of tracking system in place to keep up with all this data.

Beware of cultivating a donor for too long. Don’t spend so much time trying to gather every possible bit of information that you never get around to making the Ask. You’ll know when you have enough information and the time is right. Don’t procrastinate about it either. If you get scared and put it off, you are losing an opportunity. What’s more, you are denying your donor the chance to participate in your organization’s mission.

Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get the twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

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A Capital Campaign is a special kind of fundraising campaign that raises money for capital items like buildings, equipment, and vehicles. It can take several months to several years to conduct a Capital Campaign from start to finish. Here are some basic steps involved in a Capital Campaign.

1. Conduct Feasibility Study. In this preliminary stage, an independent third party conducts interviews with various donors and community leaders to see if they would support a capital campaign for the organization. You can glean a lot of good information from these interviews.

2. Identify Campaign Leadership. A Campaign Chair and committee are selected, usually from the organization’s Board of Directors and prominent community leaders.

3. Develop Case Statement. This is a document that answers the questions of how much money is needed, how it will be used, why it is needed, etc. It can be a brochure or a multiple-page document.

4. Develop a Gift Table. A Gift Table is a tool for identifying the number of gifts and gift amounts that will be needed to complete the campaign. This also helps to estimate how many donor prospects are needed and at what levels.

5. Train the Board. The entire Board will need to participate in the Capital Campaign. Good training will help everyone feel comfortable in identifying prospects, ranking them, and making an Ask for a gift.

6. Identify the Prospects. This activity is done with Board, staff, specific donors and community leaders. It’s a discussion of various donors done in a confidential setting to estimate the likelihood of giving of various donor prospects.

7. Conduct the Campaign. Execute the plan! Cultivate the donor prospects, make the Asks, steward the gifts, thank the donors, etc.

8. Celebrate! Remember to celebrate the efforts of the individuals involved in the campaign and the generosity of the community.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards. Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get her twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

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If the thought of asking someone face-to-face for a donation scares you, terrifies, or paralyzes you, you’re not alone. Lots of people would rather do most anything else than ask someone for a donation!

But it doesn’t have to be that way. If you understand where your fear is coming from, you are well on your way to overcoming it. And it CAN be conquered!!

o Fear is about uncertainty. When we don’t know what might happen in a particular situation, we tend to get scared and hold back. When you ask someone for money, you don’t know what will happen and your mind starts to fill in the blanks for you. “This person will think I’m a pest” or “They won’t like me anymore” might be the stinkin’ thinkin’ going on inside your head. Acknowledging this is the first step in getting it out of your way.

o Diffuse the power of the fear by thinking through the consequences. What’s the worst thing that can happen if you ask for a gift? Will the donor laugh at you? Will they kick you out of their office? Probably not. More than likely, the worst thing that will happen is that they will say “No” to your request. If that happens, can you survive it? (I’m thinking you will.)

o Fire up your passion. Remember why you said “Yes” to the organization in the first place. Something compelled you to agree to fundraise for this particular cause at this particular time. Know this: when you step through your fear and share the burning beliefs of your heart, you will be furthering your organization’s mission. For example, when I worked at the local Food Bank, I knew that when I did my job, people ate. It was that simple to me. And that helped me be strong to do the things I was timid about doing. Deep in my heart, hunger was and still is an important issue. When I plugged into that, it helped me overcome my fears around fundraising.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards. Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get her twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

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Have you ever wondered how often you can ask a donor for a gift without annoying them or causing them to stop giving entirely? If you have, good for you for being sensitive to your donors’ wants and needs.

Usually when someone brings up this topic, it’s out of fear – fear that if you ask a donor too many times for support they will stop giving. It’s kind of funny really – we have some self-imposed ceiling on the number of times we can ask a donor for support, and we arbitrarily set this ceiling without input from the donor. Most of the time, we don’t even know exactly how many times we can ask a donor before it becomes annoying. We operate from this vague notion of “too many” to describe it.

Here’s the truth: you can usually ask a donor for support several times during the year without offending the donor provided that you have a real need.

When you ask a donor for a gift, make sure there is a real need, like a piece of critical equipment or support for a particular program. Keeping the lights on or paying salaries won’t cut it. You need a compelling reason that will resonate with your donors. A crisis appeal or reducing the debt on your building are not usually a good idea either. Your donor will respond to these kinds of needs once in a while, but what they really want to support is continuation or expansion of a program that delivers tangible benefits. Donors want to know that their gift is being used to change lives.

If you’ve done a good job of building a relationship with your donors and you practice donor-centered fundraising, your donor will support you as often as they can and as often as you ask. If your organization is one of your donor’s favorites (and if you’re doing your job well, it should be), they WANT to support you and see you be successful. They care about your mission and are willing to help you with the resources you need.

Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get the twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

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Many nonprofits have a fundraising event that includes a silent auction. And it’s easy to understand why. A silent auction is pretty easy to organize and adds a revenue stream to an event, making it more profitable. Plus, silent auctions are fun for event attendees.

If you have a silent auction in your future, here are 5 tips for making it successful:

1. Get items that people can’t easily get. Offer unique, handmade items or experiences that attendees can’t get anywhere else. Keep in mind what your audience will find interesting. Lunch or dinner with a local celebrity usually makes a good auction item. Or a chance to sit in the broadcast booth at a sporting event might be a hit at your event. Just stay tuned to the interests of your guests.

2. Group items together into packages. Instead of having too many small items, group several items together into a package. Put them in an attractive basket with beautiful wrapping, and you’ll have an eye-catching display item that will bring more money than the individual items alone would bring.

3. Display your items attractively. Make sure your tables look nice. Add a nice tablecloth if you can. The more visually inviting your items are, the more likely people will be to bid.

4. Make sure you have plenty of ink pens and test them all beforehand to make sure they work. This seems kind of silly, but it’s really important. You don’t want event attendees to have trouble bidding because of old pens that have run out of ink!

5. Give attendees plenty of warning before you close the auction. Let them know when they have 15 minutes left, 10 minutes left, and 5 minutes left. This will help increase the excitement and prompt lots of last-minute bidding.

After your event, have a wrap-up meeting with your event committee or volunteers to talk about what went well and what needs improvement for next time.

And don’t forget to thank everyone – item donors, attendees, bidders, and volunteers. Sincere appreciation will help set up your next silent auction for success!

Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get the twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

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Have you gotten lazy with your donor relations efforts? If you’re like the rest of us, you probably have. We start out being so excited about stewarding donors and building relationships, but over time, it’s easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day activities and we forget to keep our eye on the prize.

If you’re ready to get back to the basics of good donor relations, try these three ideas to help you breathe some new life into your fundraising efforts.

1. Tell your donors how you will use their money. This is critical. Make sure the donor knows how you plan to use the donation he or she just sent you. Text like “Your gift will ensure that 15 children will go to summer camp for one week” makes the process of donating more real and tangible to the donor.

2. Add personal notes to Thank You letters. This can bring big rewards in terms of stewarding donors! Taking a few minutes of a busy day to go through a stack of letters may seem like a chore, but trust me – donors who get a Thank You letter with a personal note will be thrilled that you took the time to personally acknowledge their gift.

3. Invite donors for a tour of your facility. Always include in your letter an offer for a guided tour of your facility or program site (if appropriate). You may never have anyone take you up on this, but they will remember that you offered. You will probably get a few people who want to visit you. Seeing firsthand the work that you do may make all the difference in the world to a particular donor.

Always remember that your donors are your most important asset. Without them, you’d have no fundraising program. Do everything you can to take care of them and your efforts will be rewarded.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards. Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get her twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

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Communicating with your donors is critical to building relationships with them. Make sure that what you send them is interesting and meaningful to THEM (not you). They want to read stories about people you’ve helped or how your organization has made an impact in the community.

In addition to content, you want to use design elements that make your newsletter and other communication pieces easy to read. Remember, if something looks hard to read, most people won’t put in the effort. They’re too busy.

Here are some tips for keeping your materials easy to read:

1. Use lots of white space. Don’t put too much text on one page. If you are trying to cram too much into your newsletter, shave some of it off and save it for another issue. Less text is better.

2. Use plenty of good photos with captions. Make sure that the reader can see the eyes of the person or people in your photos. Group shots are not effective. And put captions with your photos so your reader knows what she’s looking at.

3. Make your piece scannable. Your donors will read your materials like they read the newspaper. They will scan it and if they see something interesting, they’ll take a closer look.

4. Write good, compelling headlines for your stories. Remember that your donor will only read the story if the headline draws her in.

5. Use a large enough font. Many donors have a tough time reading anything less than 12 point. Also, don’t an unusual font. Stick to something plain and simple.

6. Use black text on a white background for maximum readability. Colored text is hard to read. Inverted text (white text on a black background) is very hard to read.

7. Write simply. Use short, simple sentences. Be concise and Avoid jargon or acronyms that your donor may not be familiar with.

Use these tips and you’ll be on your way to easy-to-read fundraising materials and deeper relationships with your donors.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach, consultant, trainer, and author. She shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards. Learn more about successful fundraising materials and get free fundraising tips in her e-zine “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” on her website at http://www.getfullyfunded.com.

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If you want to get serious about raising money for your organization and fully fund your organization’s mission, you must start with your passion for your cause.

You need to have a heart full of fire for your organization’s mission and the people you serve. You’ll find that it’s easier to draw others in when you can speak from your heart about why your organization’s work is so important. People like to get on board with a cause that is strongly championed by those closest to it.

Enthusiasm is contagious. The more vibrant you are about your organization’s mission, the more others will get excited about it too and want to support it.

As a passionate fundraiser, be ready to tell stories about those whose lives are being changed by your organization. A passionate story will always engage the listener or reader.

If you don’t fully believe in the work your nonprofit is doing, why should anyone else?

So what if you aren’t passionate about your organization? Here are some tips for helping you find it.

• Think about what you like most about the work your organization does. Is it feeding people? Is it taking care of homeless animals? The clearer you can be, the better.

• How would you feel if the organization suddenly ceased to exist? Would it be okay with you for people to go hungry or for animals to be homeless?

• If it were up to you to be the Ambassador to the World for your organization, what would you say? How would you present the cause to the world?

Make sure to guard your passion. Don’t let your concern for your cause become routine or boring, because that’s when your flame will start to die. Only with your passion flaming bright will you attract others to your cause.

Want to learn more about fully funding your nonprofit organization? Get practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising at http://www.getfullyfunded.com.

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards.

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

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Thanking and acknowledging donors is probably the most important job you have as a fundraiser. There are lots of ways you can express yourself and let donors know how much you appreciate them.

Thank Donors Promptly and Sincerely. Get your Thank You letters out pronto! Shoot for 48 hours if you can. By sending a letter quickly, your donors will know that you place importance on appreciation.

Add Personal Notes to the Letters. Have your Executive Director or President go through the letters and add personal notes. This can bring big rewards in terms of stewarding donors! Taking a few minutes of a busy day to go through a stack of letters may seem like a chore to your boss, but trust me when I tell you that donors who get a Thank You letter with a personal note will be thrilled that the head staff person took the time to personally acknowledge his or her gift.

Make a Phone Call: Let donors know they are appreciated and tell them how their support has impacted your organization. You might say something like: “Because of your generosity, we were able to provide food for 30 additional families this month.”

Send a Note: Jot a quick note expressing your appreciation. A hand-written note will stand out amid the clutter of bills and other mail.

Just Say It: When you see your donors in the community, say the magic words. A little appreciation goes a long way.

Make sure to use your Attitude of Gratitude toward volunteers and in-kind donors too. They’ll all appreciate it!

(c) Sandy Rees, CFRE

Sandy Rees is a nonprofit fundraising coach and speaker who shows small nonprofit organizations how to raise more money, gain more supporters, and strengthen their Boards. Want more practical tips and ideas for successful fundraising? Get her twice-monthly “Bright Ideas for Fundraising” at http://www.getfullyfunded.com

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