Hands-On Fundraising

Donor communications | Annual Giving | Fundraising Plans

  • About
  • Blog
  • Praise
  • Services
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Blog / Letters are people too

Letters are people too

Uniformed Letter Carrier with Child in Mailbag
Who’s in your mailbox? (Photo credit: Smithsonian Institution)

Have you ever noticed distinct personalities in the nonprofit letters you get? I find myself imaging organizational personas as I read.

Here are a few.

Let’s imagine a party. Glass in hand, you mingle with the crowd. Who do you meet?

In the center of the room is the Lord-Of-All-He-Surveys. A letter from him often reads something like:

“Our organization is pleased to celebrate the wonderful work we have done in the community. In our nearly 500 years, we have truly earned the esteem of our colleagues, who look to us as leaders in our field. Our… “

Amazingly enough, this guy has people gathered around him. I’m not sure why. Not my type, that’s for sure!

Then there’s Mousy Girl, sitting in the corner, looking sort of sad. You know you ought to be nice and say hello. But when you do, she mumbles a sentence or two, then tails off before actually saying anything. You can almost hear her thinking, “Oh, never mind me”. It’s a shame. You rarely hear from her – maybe once a year. So you don’t know much about her. And you probably never will unless you really work at it.

Watch out for the dreaded Suction Cup – he’s at 12 o’clock and headed your way! If you pay him any mind at all, he’ll stick to you ferociously. Which might sound nice except he hasn’t got anything to say that you want to hear. He’s blissfully oblivious to that. You made the mistake of responding one time. Now you hear from him at least once a week. It’s always urgent and never interesting. He calls you “friend”. As in “Dear Friend”.

You fantasize about fixing him up with someone else…

…Maybe with the Bill Collector. He doesn’t so much talk with you as make demands. And he doesn’t understand why you never respond. The thing is, he often has interesting things to say. At first he was quite charming. But now you only hear from him when he wants money. “Thanks for your past support. But we won’t close our budget without another gift. Send it today!”

And there she is! Across the room you spot the person you’ve been looking for. Your Bestie. She’s chatty and warm and so easy to talk to. You bonded from the start. She’s genuinely interested in you – and of course, that makes her fascinating.

When you met, you found yourself listening – spellbound – as she shared a problem that was really bothering her. It was such a great story. It made you want to help. In fact, you couldn’t stop thinking about the problem. When you found a way to help her, you felt great. And when she called the next day, full of surprise and gratitude – well, you knew you’d be friends for a long time.

She makes you feel like a hero. Who could resist?

…………

What’s your organization’s persona? Who do you see in your mailbox?

Share your personas in the comments!

Share this:

  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: appeal writing, direct mail, Donors, Nonprofit, relationships Leave a Comment

Fundraising advice served fresh to your inbox

Get yours here:

Comments

  1. Nonprofit with Balls says

    March 12, 2013 at 10:52 pm

    Is Drunk Uncle a category of nonprofit letters…?

    Reply
  2. Mary Cahalane says

    March 13, 2013 at 9:59 am

    LOL! Vu, that might make a very interesting letter… I’ll let you try that one first, though. Let me know what the response is like. 🙂

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. A Letter in the Mailbox | Asha's Blog says:
    March 14, 2013 at 6:20 pm

    […] Letters are people too (mcahalane2.wordpress.com) […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply to A Letter in the Mailbox | Asha's Blog Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Fundraising advice served fresh to your inbox

Get yours here:

Search

Recent Posts

  • Happiness is the gift you give
  • Are you for real?
  • Why you should care about ALL your donors
  • And This Little Nonprofit Cried ‘We We We’ All The Way To Bankruptcy
  • 6 Ways to Grow Engagement for your Faith-Based Group
small divider

Recognized by:

Best Fundraising Blogs for 2019: Future Fundraising Now

Top 75 Fundraising Websites And Blogs To Follow in 2019: Feedspot

The Best Fundraising Blogs of 2019: Garecht Fundraising Associates

50 Nonprofit Blogs You Need To Follow Right Now: Wild Apricot

Work with me!

Let's talk about how I can help your organization raise more money.

Contact

  • Annual Giving
  • Donor communications
  • Fundraising plans

Copyright © 2019 · Mary Cahalane · Hands-On Fundraising · P.O. Box 183 · Plantsville, CT 06479

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.