Say thank you better: here are 16 ways

Photo credit: Hello Goodbye

Why don’t more nonprofits say thank you better?

It shouldn’t be hard to send a great gift acknowledgment. A sincere, emotional, meaningful thanks is a critical step in donor relations.

It’s also just plain polite.

Secure a gift then flub the thanks and you may have seen the last of that donor. Saying thank you well matters!

That’s why I chose the topic for this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival. And I’m thrilled to bring you some of the best ideas all in one place.

Ready to say thank you better? Dig in!

1. My friend Dennis Fischman offers the Ideal Thank You Letter with a great checklist for you of what to include.
2. Feeling stuck? Get started with Pamela Grow’s Donation Thank You Letter Template. Pam’s also shared some great examples of email thank you letters: You can never thank too much and Best nonprofit email thank you.
3. Janna Finch reminds us retention is about impact and gratitude: How to Turn One-Time Donors Into Repeat Donors.
4. How much attention do you pay to matching gift donations? How about thanking donors who go to the trouble? Mason Rainey writes that The Key to Repeat Matching Gifts is Acknowledgement.
5. This is so important – especially for those of you with a less-than-enthusiastic board when it comes to fundraising. Amy Eisenstein shows us how to turn board members into a thank you army with The Simplest Way to Get Your Board Members to Help with Fundraising.
6. We’re often focused on donors, but how much thought have you given to your volunteers? Lacey Helmig, Communications and Media Coordinator, Youth Volunteer Corps, shares 10 Ways to Thank Youth Volunteers.
7. Want to be sure you do something well? You have to have a plan! Ann Green offers Why You Need A Thank You Plan.
8. Shanon Doolittle knows her way around donor love! Donor, I Just Called To Say I Love You.
9. Are your middle donors feeling forgotten? Leslie Allen shares Inspiring Your Middle Donor with Major Thanks to help you make sure they feel recognized.
10. Joanne Fritz always has great advice. She offers two for you about thanking donors: 5 Thank You Letters Donors Will Love and Donors and Volunteers Love a Handwritten Thank You. (I couldn’t agree more with that!)
11. Julia Campbell reminds us that time is also a gift – and that it’s not all about the Benjamins – in her piece, Nonprofit giving is about more than just money.
12. My friend Beth Ann Locke is really good at saying thank you. She’s put her best posts together for you in Appreciation, Gratitude and Thanks. Enjoy!
13. Looking for some ideas that are a little more creative? Randy Hawthorne at NonProfit Hub has got some good ones – and all very doable! Six Ways to Give Big Thanks to Big Donors.
14. How often do you think “What can we do to delight our donors today?” If you can create more of an organization-wide gratitude culture you’ll also improve donor retention by leaps and bounds. Claire Axelrad suggests five ways for everyone in your organization to come together to thank your donors: 5 Ways to Revolutionize Your Nonprofit Culture to Stop Losing Donors.
15. Lori Jacobwith shares her ideas to build on your donor relationships: Donor Thank You’s: 5 Simple Things to Do to Cause Deeper Engagement With Your Supporters.
16. When the subject is thank you, Lisa Sargent is a must. And she came through with these riches for you: How to write a better thank-you letter and why it matters, on the wonderful Pamela Grow’s site, How hopeFound says Thank you and Sample thank-you letters for you to swipe, before and after (on SOFII). She also shares the following to help you with a tricky type of thank you (both on SOFII as well): In lieu of flowers and Sample In-Memoriam thank-you letters.

Want to join the Carnival?

Claire Axelrad hosts next month and she’ll be covering everything about major gifts. Prospecting, Cultivating, Stewarding, Asking.

So get ready to share your best. Want to know how? Here’s Claire’s post.