Writing Great Fundraising Letters
Inspirational - Greatness Awaits: Recipes for fundraising success
Every great fundraiser possesses one great quality: the ability to write and speak in a way that elicits emotion, engenders trust and persuades people to take action.
According to Todd Baker, senior account executive for direct response firm Masterworks in Poulsbo, Washington, becoming a distinguished direct response fundraising writer is within your reach ... all you need is some encouragement and a friend to tell you the secret ingredients of persuasion.
Here's a Baker's Dozen of proven direct response writing techniques that will help you excel in communicating your cause.
- Explain the problem or opportunity;
- Communicate how "we" together can solve the problem;
- Detail the consequences of not acting;
- Present specifically how the reader can be involved;
- Write in a conversational style ... engage the reader from one person to another;
- Quantify your mission into a clear, understandable dollar amount ... the "offer";
- Repeat your offer multiple times throughout the letter;
- Focus less on your organization and how it accomplishes its work and more on the impact of the work itself. Eliminate "tion" words and concentrate on saving and changing lives;
- Speak to the reader as a person who you know shares your values and passion for the cause;
- Create a sense of urgency through your writing; this will help your letter become more persuasive;
- Craft your words in readable sentences by providing a good portion of white space, varying the length of paragraphs and using bold and underlining to emphasize powerful statements.
- Use handwritten comments in the margins to highlight specific thoughts and ideas.
- Include a P.S. that persuades your readers to take action or entices them to read the letter.
Questions? Email Todd Baker at tbaker@Masterworks.com
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