We want to help you create appeal letters that are accessible for your donors.
You may have heard that the average donor is a 65-year-old woman. She receives a LOT of mail. To get through it all, she’s scanning and in a hurry. But that doesn’t change the fact that she wants to make a difference.
The easier it is for a donor to read and understand your appeals, the more accessible your appeals are, and the more likely your donors are to give.
Here are some ways to make your appeals more accessible for your donors:
- Use font size 12 and up.
- Indent the beginning of each paragraph.
- Write in high-contrast colors (black text on white paper).
- Write at a middle-school grade level.
- Use underlines and bolded sentences to show donors the most important sentences. Each emphasized phrase should be understandable without reading the whole letter in case the highlighted sentences are the only ones she has time to read.
- Use a double-space after a period. It will be slightly easier for her to separate your sentences.
Writing accessible appeal letters will help more of your appeals get read, and show your donor the incredible difference she can make for your beneficiaries. But your donor won’t know the difference she can make if the appeal is written in small text she can’t read, or if it uses colors she can’t see clearly.
It’s little changes like this that will make your appeal letters accessible, and help you raise more money!
