We spend a lot of time thinking about how to raise more money. We labor over the appeal: the language, the images, the right ask. And then, too often, we treat the thank you as an afterthought. It’s really not that hard to write a good, emotional thank you letter. No harder than it is […]
When your goals matter. And when they don’t.
I’ll bet your inbox looked like mine as 2017 came to an end. So many emails and letters – from organizations you support and sometimes from those you barely know. But every time I saw an appeal (email or direct mail) based on the organization’s fundraising goals, I wanted to cry. So in case you’ve […]
Are you settling for a lazy year-end fundraising message?
How are you handling your end of year appeals online? A look at my Facebook feed shows many examples of organizations making the most of the year’s end. The messaging isn’t always as good as the causes, however. Here are some that caught my eye – and why I think they hit or missed. Great […]
How to wreck your fundraising appeal
Or why your statistics don’t work There are plenty of appeals landing in my mailbox and inbox. I’ll bet it’s the same for you. I often open them, hoping to be moved, or learn something new. And you know, there’s one characteristic that unites too many of the appeals. They’re all head and no heart. They’re […]
Warning: bad mail coming to a box near you
Do people actually go for this stuff? Every once in a while, I just can’t take it anymore. So you’ve been warned: rant ahead. The carrier envelope It came in a larger than usual 9 x 6 envelope. So far, so good. Then things went right off the rails. “Important Reminder!” the envelope screamed. (Important to whom?) […]