Write Effective Fundraising Letters By Being Conversational
(Includes Examples & Samples
I am doing what you do, sitting at my computer, trying to get my
thoughts out of my head and into a written form that will help
you make a decision. In this particular case, I am trying to
write a few intelligent remarks about sounding conversational on
paper. You know, how to write a fundraising letter that sounds
like it came from the mind of a person and not an institution.
I suppose the first thing I can tell you is that you should
write the way you talk, unless, of course, you talk in halting
sentences punctuated with "ya knows" and "like, you know what I
mean?" And if you usually write fundraising letters that are
signed by someone else, your executive director, for example,
then you need to write the way that person speaks.
The secret to sounding personal and conversational on paper is
to imaging that you are actually having a conversation with your
donor. A back-and-forth exchange where your donor asks questions
and you supply answers. That way, your letter sounds like it is
written by a living, breathing person, since it addresses issues
that are important to the donor, and does so in a warm, lively
style.
Which reminds me, try to keep your sentences short. Not like the
one that ended the last paragraph. What else can I tell you?
Rhetorical questions are one device at your disposal. Rhetorical
questions, as I am sure you know, are questions that are asked
for rhetorical effect, not expecting an answer. You can use one
or two in your letter if you like. Rhetorical questions create
the sense that a conversation is taking place between you and
your donor.
I don't have to tell you that another way to sound
conversational is to use the first person a lot. That means you
say, "Your gift today means a lot to me," instead of saying
"Your gift today means a lot to us," or, even worse, "A gift
from you designated towards our Annual Fund will be appreciated
at this time." Remember, people give to people, not to
establishments, so you want to sound like a person, not an
organization when you write your donor appeal letters.
I just thought of another one. Without being fake or insincere,
mention that you thought of your donor today, or yesterday, or
recently, showing that there is a relationship between the two
of you. Naturally, only say "I was thinking of you this morning"
if you actually were. Otherwise you will be making stuff up.
You may be relieved to know that that you can be colloquial,
too, which is a humdinger of a way to establish rapport and
sound genuine. If your donors know what a humdinger is, then by
all means throw one into your letters at least once a year. You
goal, if I may say so, is to sound authentic without being
overly familiar or coarse.
Another way to sound conversational is to be open in the way you
talk about things. Give your donors a glimpse into what life is
like at your organization. You probably want an example of what
I mean, so here it is (here are two examples, actually):
Institutional: "Your membership is about to expire."
Conversational: "I see from our records that your membership is
coming up for renewal soon."
Institutional: "Prayer meetings were held today at head office
about Hurricane Katrina." Conversational: "All of us here at the
office in London met this morning to pray for the victims of
Hurricane Katrina."
Another sure way of avoiding "bureaucratic-speak" is to say
everything in the active voice. Don't say "funds were raised"
when you can say "we raised funds." Avoid writing "100
scholarships will be created" when you can instead write "we
will create 100 scholarships." See the improvement? Passive
voice sounds institutional. Active voice sounds conversational.
I suppose if you went back to the start and began reading this
message again, you'd pick up a few methods that I did not
mention (using parentheses like this, for example, which look as
though you are lowering your voice and whispering a piece of
inside information to your donor). I hope that these tips help
you write effective fundraising letters. Ones that come from
your heart, and are effective mainly for that very reason.