Help Me Write: Fundraising Donation Request Letters

Donation request letters can be used as just one part of a fundraising campaign, or they can be the fundraising campaign in its entirety. Many organizations prefer to go the route of fundraising entirely through donation request letters because they

Require few volunteers, but reach a large number of potential donors
Directly target interested donors and supporters
Are easily managed
Involve little (monetary) investment
Are a way to run a relatively quick fundraising campaign, while providing a means for continued financial support as well

However, there is something of a downside to running a fundraising campaign through donation requests; the biggest drawback is that people today are inundated with mail and emails, and have little time to read it all; what's more, when they do open an unsolicited letter, they will often only skim it to find out if it is something they are interested in reading in-depth.

These hurdles can hinder your efforts some, but there are also ways to overcome them. Your best tool is the donation request letter itself. By being clear and concise, yet informative, you set yourself up for the best response to your donation request campaign. Following are the best tips regarding what to include in your donation request letter.

Identify yourself and make it obvious.
If readers don't see a name or organization they know right off, they will write you off as just more junk mail.

Start with some good news, and keep your tone positive, while still communicating your need.
For example, you might start off with how far your organization has come, or how much good you were able to do with the funds raised last year. Continue to talk about how much more you could do if you just had the financial resources to do so.

Be specific with your needs.
State a dollar-figure goal for your campaign. You might even say how far away from that goal you are. You might also suggest donation amounts, (such as $5, $10, $50, $100, etc.); always state that any donation will be accepted and appreciated.

Outline a plan of action.
Tell donors specifically what you plan to do with their money so they know it is not being thrown to the wind.

Remind donors that they are your only income for the project (or at least this specific phase of it).

Repeat yourself. Ask for donations at least three times in your letter; these should come at the beginning, middle, and end of your letter so that people who are just skimming will catch on somewhere.

Be conversational. You are a human asking another human for money; make the donor feel that they are being talked to personally, not that they are an unknown money bag. Include personal quotations from people who have benefited from your fundraising in some way, or people who are in need and will be served by your efforts.

When you keep in mind the lives of your busy donors, and keep your 'eye on the prize', you will easily be able to craft a hard-hitting, productive donation request letter. By using these suggestions as your guide, your letter will be personal, informative, compassionate, and it will produce results, netting you big returns for your investment in time and energy.

This is an article created by the FundraisingIP.com Editorial Team. For more fundraising ideas and fundraiser help, go to our article directory at FundraisingIP.com/articles.

fundraisingarticle

More Articles From - Home | Writing Fundraising Letters | Donation Request Letter

Fundraisers
Fundraising Ideas
About Us
Add Your Company
Contact Us

E-mail Article

Popular Fundraisers:

Lollipops - suckers
FastTrackFundraising - variety
MagFundraising - magazines
Funding Factory - ink cartridges