harris why aren't you asking for year end gifts?

D O N N A A N N H A R R I S

H E R I T A G E C O N S U L T I N G I N C .

Why aren’t you asking for year end gifts?

©2013 Donna Ann Harris

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Agenda

Why do it?

10 step process

3 different types Multi-channel appeal

2 letters, 10 emails

Online only appeal 10 emails

Last week of the year appeal 5 emails

Calendar: when to send letters, emails, thank you’s ©2013 Donna Ann Harris

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Ten Fund Raising Facts for Year -end Giving See handout


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So are you convinced yet?


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3 Types of Year End Appeals

Multi-Channel

Online Only

Last Week


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10 Step Multi Channel Appeal

1. Set a goal, create a campaign theme, think multi-channel giving

2. Clean up your mailing lists

3. Take online gifts. Where is your website’s Donate Now button?

4. Test your donation page now

5. Revise your giving levels, ask for recurring gifts, simple forms


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10 Step Multi Channel Appeal

6. Create compelling stories, photos and letters and the weekly countdown

7. Thank you, thank you, thank you

8. Automate thanks and tweet about gifts

9. Reinforce your campaign with traditional PR, Matching Gifts and Donor lists, and

10. Don’t take Christmas week off!


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1. Set a goal, create a simple campaign theme & think multi-

channel giving


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1A. Set a realistic goal

Stretch goal for this year-end campaign

Over and above regular donations

Spirit of the season

Gifts at holidays

Specific monetary goal

Specific number of people goal


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1B. Ten compelling stories & photos

Stories about your impact downtown

Need 10 of these

2-3 paragraphs

1 story per message

BRAG

Use stats

Creating memories

People you HELP

Highlight a few merchants

Tell about a family at an event

MAKE IT ABOUT PEOPLE

HAPPY PEOPLE HAVING HAPPY TIMES


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1C. Think multi-channel

E-mail, direct mail, phone calls, Facebook and Twitter, b

Multi channel = more money than one channel alone.

Coordinate with an online campaign

Reinforce message with PR

Mention website donation page everywhere


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2. Clean up your mailing lists


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2A. Size up your mailing lists

Email and regular mailing lists

Which one is larger, fresher or more complete.

Use both for your year-end campaign


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2B. Segment your mailing list

Identify lapsed members

Create 2013 End Of Year Mailing.

Eliminate pledges


2C. Take DONORS off your lists

WHO ARE YOUR DONORS?

Remove them from mailing list

Make a new DONOR list.

Solicited in person ONLY!

Never solicit DONORS through direct mail or email.


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2D. Personalize & Clean up

How many first and last names to personalize any solicitation.

Add more names if you know

How many names?

No name? Dear Friend


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2f. Clean up your email list & add new names, addresses

Purge the hard bounces

Look at soft bounces eliminate any that bounce that twice.

Add any new emails NOW

Find new names form raffle tickets, signup sheets from events, and other sources.


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3. Take online gifts, your website’s Donate Now button &

review your home page


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3A. Take online gifts on web site

Use Donate Now

Network for Good

PayPal or other service.

Make it easy to give.

Talk to your webmaster and add this functionality today.


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3b. Donate Now button on your home page

OBVIOUS?

Click to donate

HOME PAGE IS BEST

Make it easy to see.


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3C. Make the Donate Now

button BIG

Donate Now button is easy to spot

MUST BE ON HOME PAGE

DO NOT have link to a place further into your web page.


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Donate NOW

4. Test your donation page today


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4A. Test Your Donation Landing Page

TEST IT –a lot!

Get real feedback

Easy to find?

Collecting the right info?

Glitches? Frustrations?

Get a thank you ASAP?

FIX NOW

If it is not easy, your supporters may decide to give elsewhere.


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4B. Make it easy to give

80% of all donations are still checks

Have organization’s

address on all correspondence

Direct mail needs an envelope

Green envelope?

Business reply mail (BRM) indicia


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5. Revise your giving levels, ask for recurring gifts, create simple

forms


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5A. Simple Donation Form

Keep it simple

Don’t ask for more info

Is form easy?

Easy to set up a recurring payment ?

Able to send a message? someone else’s honor?

Photo/caption to reinforce good you do

Caption: a specific reason to donate


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5B. Link to the Donate Now button page only

Direct mail links to DONATE NOW ONLY

Call to action

Donate!


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6. 10 Compelling stories, photos & letters and the weekly countdown


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6A. Write your first appeal letter today

Identify 10 messages (multi channel)

Write the first today

Include one story

A compelling quote

Amazing statistics from this year.

Long letters—two to four pages-- work better


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6B. Addressing party for direct mail

Personalize letters if you can

Hand sign, with a note

Mary Jones volunteer

Create a connection with donor

LONG LETTERS WORK BETTER


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6C. Write Compelling letters

See outline

Tell about specific but general programs that meet the Mission,

Seek unrestricted gifts NOT PROJECT GIFTS

Tell about tax deductibility deadline is near

Ask again for the gift in the last paragraph.

Create urgency—Dec. 31 deadline


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6D. Make impact VERY clear

Use colorful charts and graphs

Show your impact on downtown

Direct mail and e-newsletters.

Use your reinvestment stats to impress.

HAPPY PEOPLE IN PHOTOS

Not just empty streets and buildings.


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6E. Create a handsome letter

Does not have to be a traditional letter

Use a photo or two

Personalize the letter with the person’s name with mail merge

Personalize email newsletter program.

Make it seasonal, and celebrate holidays.


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7. Thank you, thank you, thank you


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7A. Write a thank you letter NOW

Everyone gets thanked—a lot!

No matter how the $ came

Online people get a paper thank you

You are collecting email addresses right?

Letter not a receipt

Out in a week


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7B. Three times, three ways

Thank your donor at least three times –

1. when they complete a donation (online)

2. when they get your email receipt (online, or paper)

3. Paper thank-you in the mail within a week.


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7c. Send thank yous letter fast

Volunteer to do nothing but send thank you

Send batches once a week

Every week during 6 weeks appeal

More help needed LAST WEEK OF YEAR


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8. Automate and Tweet about it


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8A. Automate thank you emails

Automate thank you for on line gifts

Send receipts out once a week

Send thank you letters once a week

Permit donor to return to home page after donation to learn more

Tell them about next event coming up


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8b. Tweet about it

Install social media links on donation page

Easy Tweet /FB on donation page

Test links on the Thank You page and website

Helps spread your message through the donor’s social network.

Might bring more donations from their friends.


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8c. Send hand written cards to 2013 DONORS

Send thank you cards out during Thanks-giving week.


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8D. Make Appointments with donors

Divide up the personal contacts between Board members and key committee chairs.

Peer asking is best

Start making calls for appointments the Monday after Thanksgiving

Ask to talk about the year-end campaign

No direct mail letter or e-blasts.

Contact in person only

YOU KNOW ALL OF THESE PEOPLE!


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9. Reinforce your campaign with traditional PR, matching gifts and

donor lists


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9A. Use PR tools to reinforce your relevance

What you accomplished this year

Use other PR tools

Speak to civic groups.

Hang a banner across the street

Write a press release, especially to local papers.

Send an e-alert or special mini-newsletter about your campaign to your mailing lists.

Nice photos help


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9b. Challenge gifts are highly appealing

Consider Board member challenge gifts just for the year-end appeal

Match any new or increased donations

Double (or triple) gifts

Last minute, over goal


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9c. Show campaign progress

Keep your web site up to date on your campaign progress and your gifts to date.


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9d. List your donors

Show list of all donors on web site

Dealing with Anonymous

Sort by size of gift—include amount

Largest ones on top

“List in formation”


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10. Don’t take Christmas week off


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10A. Office has to be open

The crush of gifts

Automate thank yous for online gifts

Need to deposit any checks before by 12/31

Email gifts will come in at the very last minute, so automating thank you letters helps.

IRS rules about postmarked by December 31

Talk to accountant about gifts postmarked by 12/31


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10B. Email reminders last week of Dec

December 31, BIGGEST DAY is a Tuesday this year.

Some may take a long holiday

Send emails on Tues 12/24, Fri 12/27, Mon 12/29 and on Tues 12/31


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10C. Peaking Giving times on 12/31

The Network for Good says the peak giving time on that day is 12 noon to 7 p.m. in your time zone.

Office should be open, be at the computer, answering the phone, or opening the mail (and making bank deposits), or you will miss out!

Email gifts will come in at the very last minute, so automating thank you letters helps.


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10D. Celebrate! and then take a vacation!

Take a rest on 1/1 and the week after

Publicize your successful campaign

Tell everyone how you did

More checks after 1/1

Confirm thank you notes go out to ALL


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10E. Publish success!

Show your goal

How are you doing?

Publish year-end donors list

Use next newsletter eblast, other PR


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Pick the campaign that works for you


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Calendar and Types of Campaigns

Multi-Channel Appeal

Online Only Appeal

Last Week Appeal

You pick which appeal works for you based on timing, your access to volunteers


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Multi channel Appeal—mechanics

Clean online and mailing lists essential

Costs for postage, letters, envelopes, mail house 2 direct mail letters

One direct mail letter on or before November 18

Another direct mail letter on December 16

10 emails over 6 weeks 5 emails in the last week of the year


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Mailing list mechanics

Got a gift? Remove from mailing list (and email list)

Send thank you immediately

If no response, second direct mail letter Dec. 16

Get a gift from second letter, remove from email list

Include a reply envelope (or biz reply envelope) in both

Make it easy to give


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Online Appeal Only--mechanics

Starts right after Thanksgiving

No letters, postage etc.

Clean email lists are essential

10 emails total

5 emails the last week of the year


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Online Only Appeal mechanics

Weekly eblast to mailing list

New story each mailing

Send early in the day (between 9AM and 11AM)

Send on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.

Get a gift? Remove from email mail list

Automate thank you emails

Send thank you note that week

Five emails the last week of the year


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Last Week Appeal mechanics

Last two days of the year generated more than one third of all online gifts in December

Excessive?

More emails=more donations

Remove gift givers from email list.


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Last week appeal

For the true procrastinator.

Send at least three , better yet 5 emails the last week.

Do a count down 12/24, 12/26, 12/27, 12/30 and 12/31

Talk about your goal and how close you are

Rush to the end

12/30 and 12/31 are last chance reminders

Over Goal? What else we can do!


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Show your progress

Keep a record of daily progress toward goal on home page

Traditional thermometer or other graphic device

Ask people to get you over the top


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Publish your Donor list

In January, publish all the names in a newsletter, on an eblast or in your paper newsltter

Organize by giving level—not alphabetically


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How to use the calendar


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Tell us how you did!


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What we covered

Why you should ask last 6 weeks of the year

10 step process

3 different types of appeals

Multi-channel appeal

Online only appeal

Last week of the year appeal

Calendar for when to send letters, emails, thank you’s


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Q and A


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See the blog post with all the links


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http://www.heritageconsultinginc.com/index.php?/main/downtown-revitalization-project-detail/year-end-fundraising-plan-three-blog-posts

























Thank you!

Donna Ann Harris

Heritage Consulting Inc.

422 South Camac Street

Philadelphia, PA 19147

215 546 1988

[email protected]

www.heritageconsutlinginc.com


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harris why aren't you asking for year end gifts?

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