Thank You Letters – A
Fundraising Courtesy Fundamental by Karen Zapp
I’m old school. I believe in saying please, thank you,
excuse me, you’re welcome, and so on.
And speaking as a donor, I like to have my gifts to nonprofit organizations recognized.
Simply stated: Please tell me “thank
you.”
This presents you – the charitable organization – with a few
appreciable challenges. First you need a system in place to send out thank
you letters. And
second you must get it done quickly. I don’t diminish the effort
and logistics involved in either of these challenges.
But again, speaking strictly as a donor ... they don’t matter to those
of us writing the checks. As stated several times in an older movie starring
Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson (“Strategic Air Command”): “Don’t
tell me your little problems. I’m
only interested in results.”
That sounds cold; but it is reality.
A common trend among many recent studies is the number of donors sending
you money is declining ... but the average gift is higher. The bottom
line varies with the majority of nonprofits gaining in overall revenue received.
Others are holding steady and unfortunately some lost ground.
In all cases it means donor cultivation is more important than
ever! And saying “thank you” is a big part of effective donor cultivation.
Making the decision to cut costs by eliminating thank you letters is really
cutting your revenue. Even with the ongoing increases in postage rates, I don’t believe
you can afford this cost cutting strategy. Oh, and please don’t send out
generic pre-printed postcards either. Definitely not a courteous gesture.
Your thank you letter doesn’t have to be long or elaborate. Just make
certain you ...
Say thank you for their gift of $xx.
Get it to them QUICKLY. This means the donor
receives it within 1 or 2 weeks of when you got their check.
Remind them why they gave. Perhaps mention
something from the letter they responded to. You’re reassuring
them they made a wise decision and you’re eliminating
any “buyer’s remorse.”
This letter absolutely must be warm and friendly.
Think of the sweetest and dearest person you know. Imagine
they just sent you a nice gift and now you’re writing
to thank this dear, sweet person.
Of course praise is always appropriate. Comment
on how vital they are. Mention their wonderful impact on your
work – what’s possible because of them.
I recommend giving them a progress update if
possible. Tell them more about what has happened as a result
of their gift. If you reached a specific goal – say so.
Let them know the great things they’ve done (i.e., the
donor).
You need to thank them again. This can be done
at the end of the letter or possibly in the P.S.
Depending on the size of the gift you could make a really strong impression on
your donor with a phone call. It’s worth every second of your time. This
added personal touch is not only a classy way to say thank you, it’s
definitely old school courtesy.
Or perhaps for larger gifts add a handwritten sentence or two on the letter.
A special note of thanks for their thoughtfulness and generosity. And I don’t
mean a simulated script by the print shop. But a note written by an actual human
with pen in hand.
Finally, I'd be happy to write a thank you letter for you. Or perhaps you prefer to have me critique a letter you've already written. Just drop me a line and we'll take it from there:
resources[AT SIGN]pkscribe[DOT]com.
