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Say thank you like you mean it

Don’t settle for a boring, emotion-free thank you. I picked up my mail the other day and opened an envelope from a well-respected advocacy organization. It was an acknowledgment of my recent gift. And it was so disappointing! Mentally, I went through a list of failures in one letter: My husband’s name was spelled incorrectly. […]

Filed Under: Annual Giving, Blog, Donor communications, Thanks Tagged With: donor retention, Donors, Fundraising, Nonprofit, thank you letters, Thanks

Your killer advantage: great customer service

A customer service story Do your donors feel like this? The other night, my husband called my cell phone. “Are you home?” he asked, puzzled. “Yes”, I answered, just as confused. Apparently, he’d been trying our home line and getting no answer. I checked, and yes, our line was dead. I tried to call AT&T, […]

Filed Under: Annual Giving, Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: Customer service, donor retention, Donors, Nonprofit, relationships, writing for donors

The royal we

Do you see a lot of the “royal we” in your mailbox? Know what I mean? “XYZ has been successfully helping [poor, hungry, sick] people for more than 30 years. During that time, we have blah, blah, blah. We have been recognized by Charity Navigator for our excellent finances. We have been celebrated by our […]

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: appeal writing, direct mail, Nonprofit

I can’t thank you enough! (Or can I?)

Can you thank someone too much? I wrote (ok, ranted) about the things I wish we fundraisers wouldn’t do. A commenter asked a question I’ve asked myself over the years. I thought I’d explore it a little further today. The question was basically “how can you say thank you to donors, over and over again, […]

Filed Under: Blog, Thanks Tagged With: donor care, donor relations, donor retention, donor-focused, gratitude, stewardship, thank you letters

The power of one

You’ve probably been hearing the story of young Sarah Murnaghan, the 10-year-old girl with end-stage cystic fibrosis. She’s in desperate need of a lung transplant. Without one, she isn’t likely to survive the next couple of weeks. But transplant rules don’t allow her to move to the front of the line – before adults and […]

Filed Under: Annual Giving, Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: appeal writing, direct mail, Donors, Fundraising

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