Fundraising Letters!

Fundraising Letters!

"The primary purpose of a donation letter, or letter of donation, is to request that the addressee donate money to a specific cause. Donation letters are also known as fundraising letters."

After reading the anatomy of an effective fundraising letter I've learned of 3 different segments that are most important when writing a fundraising letter.

1. Capture Donor Attention by making the letter personal and avoid addressing the letter with "to whom is may concern", use "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Smith". Another good tip is to thanks the donor in the letter for past gifts to the organization.
2. Explain the Need by giving specific examples of where the donor money is going and who/what it is helping. Donors will give but by explaining the need it helps them relate to who/what they are helping.
3. Go for the Close by being as direct and upfront as possible. Ask a specific question about donating and donors will often follow through with a gift. 

After reading and analyzing the four examples of direct mail fundraising requests from 4 different non profit organizations I have come up with some conclusions. 

1. What do these letters have in common? All of the letters are clear, short and straight to the point. They give history of the organization and statistics from previous years which helps donors relate to the organization.  
2. What are the big differences? Down city design had pictures of their projects around the community and this shows donors where their money is going and what projects they're supporting. There are also pictures of youth which helps explain the need for donors and I thought this was awesome.
3. What tools do the organizations use to persuade the reader to donate? Two of the letters were addressed to specific people and that will help to capture a donors attention because of the personalization. Most of the letters gave a direct question at the end asking donors to donate and this shows that the organization is being upfront and direct. 
4. If you had $50.00 to donate to one of these organizations, which would you choose and why? If I had $50 I would choose to donate my money to Down City Design because it was the one that captured my attention the most. It gave history of the organization, I loved the pictures of the different projects and I also enjoyed the pictures of the youth around the community. The letter was short and to the point and if I donated I know where my money would be spent and I would love to see the progress this organization makes throughout the next year!