How to Write Successful Fundraising Appeals / Edition 3

by Mal Warwick

Overview

How to Write Successful Fundraising Appeals

Now in a completely revised third edition, this classic book shows how to create winning appeals that will realize the full potential of direct mail and online fundraising. Written by fundraising guru Mal Warwick, with assistance from Eric Overman, this comprehensive resource gives nonprofit fundraising staff the information needed to write compelling fundraising appeals for any medium. If you follow Warwick’s guidelines, your direct mail and online fundraising campaigns will produce better results, year after year.

Written in an easy-to-read style, the book is filled with practical techniques, proven approaches, and illustrative examples of both successful and unsuccessful appeals based on the authors’ wealth of experience fundraising for hundreds of nonprofits. Step-by-step and appeal by appeal, the book shows how to navigate the fundraising appeal process with ease. To meet the demands of today’s socially connected donors, this new edition explains how to mesh today’s online technologies with direct mail to produce optimal fundraising results. You’ll learn how to use e-mail, websites, Facebook, Twitter, and mobile technology to recruit more donors and raise more money. The book includes current research on timely topics such as online vs. offline behavior, online giving statistics, demographics, and best practices in integrated fundraising.

If you’re a nonprofit professional eager to master the latest methods in fundraising, or simply need to write direct mail appeals for your organization, How to Write Successful Fundraising Appeals will help you hone your skills and create appeals that will hit the mark every time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118543665
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	06/24/2013
Series:	The Jossey-Bass Nonprofit Guidebook Series , #18
Edition description:	Revised
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 10.90(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Mal Warwick, consultant, author, and public speaker, is the founder and chair of Mal Warwick | Donordigital. Warwick has written or edited many books including Fundraising When Money is Tight, Revolution in the Mailbox, The Five Strategies for Fundraising Success, and Fundraising on the Internet. Find more information on Mal and his books at www.malwarwick.com and www.josseybass.com/go/warwick

Eric Overman is vice president of digital strategy at Donordigital. Prior to joining Donordigital, Eric was vice president of digital strategy at Grizzard Communications.

Table of Contents

Preface to the Third Edition ix

About the Author xiii

Introduction: Why You Should Read This Book 1

Part One Motivating Your Audience

1 Why People Respond to Fundraising Appeals 9

2 How a Fundraising Appeal Is Like a Personal Visit 21

3 What Donors Really Think about Fundraising Letters 35

4 Characteristics of an Effective Fundraising Appeal 41

5 A Leisurely Tour through One Successful Appeal 47

Part Two Your Plan of Action

6 What to Do Before You Write Any Fundraising Appeal 71

7 Eight Steps toward Successful Fundraising Appeals 85

8 The Cardinal Rules of Fundraising Letters 95

9 You’re Writing for Results—Not for a Pulitzer Prize 115

Part Three Customizing Your Appeal 10 Recruiting New Donors: Starting Intimate Conversations with Strangers 127

11 Recruiting New Supporters: Beginning the Cultivation Process Online 133

12 Welcoming New Donors: Treating People Like Part of the Family 141

13 Appealing for Special Gifts: Bringing Your Case Down to Earth 155

14 Asking for Year-End Contributions: Making the Most of the Holiday Spirit 167

15 Recruiting Monthly Sustainers: Offering Small Donors a Chance for Greater Impact 185

16 Soliciting High-Dollar Gifts: Framing the Case for Major Contributions 191

17 Going for Bigger Gifts: Persuading Donors to Make an Extra Commitment 203

18 Seeking Annual Gifts: Building Long-Term Loyalty, One Year at a Time 213

19 Thanking Your Donors: Friend-Raising before Fundraising 219

20 Promoting Legacy Gifts: Seeking the Ultimate Commitment 233

Part Four Reinforcing Your Appeal

21 Rounding Out Your Appeal with Online Media and More 245

22 Writing Online Appeals 261

23 The New Keys to Success in Fundraising Today 297

Part Five The Appeal Writer’s Toolbox

A Sample Multichannel Campaign Calendar 313

B Twenty Great E-mail Subject Lines 317

C Sixty Successful Outer-Envelope Teasers 319

D Fifty-Four Strong Leads for Fundraising Appeals 329

E Ninety Ways to Use the Word “You” in a Fundraising Appeal 331

F Sixty-Three Ways to Handle Awkward Copywriting Transitions 335

G Forty-One Powerful Ways to End a Fundraising Appeal 339

H Fifty-Eight Ways to Start a P.S. in a Fundraising Appeal 341

I Fifteen Ways How Not to Get Results 345

Index 353