What is an appeal letter for? What’s the reason appeal letters exist?
(I ask this because if you know more about what a tool actually is, you’re more likely to be successful using it.)
An appeal letter is not for the donor to “learn more about the nonprofit.” All the donors receiving the appeal already gave to the organization. They already know enough to have donated. They don’t need to know more. Don’t preach to choir.
Here’s my take, based on the appeals that are working the best for Better Fundraising’s clients: the job of an appeal letter is to let donors know about compelling work the nonprofit plans to in the next couple of months, and to invite the donor to get involved in that work by giving a gift today.
“Knowing more about your organization” is not stopping any of the donors receiving your mail from giving another gift.
What’s stopping them is the lack of a timely invitation to get involved in compelling work that’s happening soon.
Steven Screen is Co-Founder of The Better Fundraising Company and lead author of its blog. With over 30 years' fundraising experience, he gets energized by helping organizations understand how they can raise more money. He’s a second-generation fundraiser, a past winner of the Direct Mail Package of the Year, and data-driven.
- Steven Screen
- Steven Screen
- Steven Screen
- Steven Screen
