Fundraising isn’t easy. Try convincing a potential donor about your cause and why they should donate to it. You’ll know the effort it takes. Now imagine doing this through an email! How are you going to convince recipients to donate to your nonprofit? Well, as impossible as it may seem, your duty is to try to write a convincing email. Along with social media shares, personal visits, phone calls, networking, events, peer-to-peer fundraising, and others, a nonprofit fundraising email strategy is also a technique to raise funds for charity.
There are certain advantages to nonprofit fundraising email strategies, though.
It is a cost-effective fundraising technique. For every $1 spent on email marketing, the average ROI is $36.
And potential donors prefer to receive emails rather than in-person visits or phone calls. About 70% prefer to receive communication from nonprofits through emails.
And if you think that email isn’t the best way to communicate with potential donors, wait for it - The average online gift via email is higher compared to other channels. Yes, the average online donation received through social media is $72, and online advertising is $52, whereas it is $77 through emails.
So, if you are convinced to give it a try, start building your strategy today.
To help you with it, we have ten tips on how to write the perfect nonprofit fundraising email. Let’s go ahead and see some of our expert recommendations.
The first step in writing a perfect nonprofit fundraising email is to segment the audience list. Doing this helps you send personalized messages to different donor groups, making the email more relevant.
You can try creating segments based on past donations, age, interests, and engagement levels.
Once you have a donor segment ready, you can customize the content and information to where donors are on their journey, ensuring your communications are relevant and valuable to them.
The first piece of content a nonprofit email subscriber sees before opening the email is the subject line. Based on its effectiveness, the recipient may then decide if the email is worth opening or not.
Here are a few tips for writing a great subject line that helps you increase your fundraising email open rates-
Let’s see some good fundraising email subject line examples here for inspiration.
Remember, a good subject line is going to make your email stand out in the recipient’s inbox. So, ensure your subject line makes them open the email to read it.
The content inside is what will get you the funds. But pay attention to your email format. In a world of short attention spans and mobile users, a well-formatted fundraising email is crucial for engagement.
While there are fundraising email templates available online, it is necessary to establish a format or pattern to make a lasting impression and encourage donors to take action. Here are a few tips to achieve it-
Formatting your email content makes it optimized and easy to read for your email subscribers.
We have already mentioned adding nonprofit email subscriber names in the subject line. If that is not possible, you can use their names in the greeting. Personalizing the messages makes them feel valued and appreciated. Additionally, you can refer to their past contributions or actions to show that their contribution means a lot and that you recognize the impact it had on the cause.
For example, “Dear Sarah, Thanks to supporters like you, we've made significant strides in protecting the environment." Starting the email content with a greeting like this builds trust and encourages them to read more.
Narratives play a crucial role in communication, offering context, meaning, and purpose to our nonprofit's mission. By sharing stories in the email, we can foster empathy and connection, compelling more donors to be a part of our journey.
Begin your story with a captivating opening that piques the reader's curiosity or emotions. Grab their attention right from the start with a strong hook. For instance, you can introduce a relatable character or beneficiary who has been positively affected by your nonprofit’s work.
Some of the tips for crafting a compelling story are-
A story may seem strange as a part of your nonprofit fundraising email marketing strategy, but it helps donors see the challenges your beneficiaries face. It also helps them understand the context in which your nonprofit operates.
Avoid making the email solely about “YOU” and your organization; instead, emphasize the donor's role in creating change. Tailor your email to focus on the donor and how their support can make a difference.
So, how do you show the importance of donor support in your fundraising email? Here are some tips-
Emphasize the donor’s crucial role in creating positive change by focusing on them and their contribution. When this happens, it deepens their connection to your cause and inspires them to continue their support.
Images & Videos- Never underestimate their importance. Visuals in your fundraising email are a powerful way to engage the audience, showcase your nonprofit’s work, and build a stronger connection to the cause.
Let’s share some tips regarding using visuals in your nonprofit fundraising email-
And of course, it goes without saying that you need to use high-quality images and well-produced videos. Leverage the power of captivating visuals to get across your point. As they say, a single image is worth a thousand words.
The main purpose of your email is to compel the readers to take the desired action. A Call to Action (CTA) button on the nonprofit fundraising email will help you achieve it.
But there are certain rules you need to follow if you want readers to click through the CTA. Let’s have a look at it here-
Another point that we want to highlight here is to showcase the impact and benefit of their action. For instance, instead of just “Donate Now”, use the content beside the CTA as “Your $1000 Contribution can Feed 1 Hungry Mouth For A Month”, or “Your $500 Contribution Can Help Us Provide a Hearing Aid To 1 Needy Person”. This way, you let the reader know how their contribution will make a difference or how they'll be part of positive change. This style of CTA encourages them to donate to your cause.
Okay, your email content is amazing. But have you simplified the giving process? Any potential donor wouldn’t want the hassle of filling out a long donation form or a link that takes forever to load. So, how do you ensure that you make it simple and convenient for donors to give?
We’ll guide you on this-
Simplifying the donation process makes it easy for donors to give. You create a positive donation experience, increasing the likelihood of recurring support and fostering long-lasting relationships with your supporters.
All said and done, your efforts go down the drain if you don’t constantly monitor your email metrics. This gives you an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of your fundraising email campaign. Let us give you some tips to maximize its success.
Create A/B variations of your email and test for different elements such as subject lines, CTAs, or content. Compare the performance of these variations to determine which works out the best.
Assess how different segments of your audience respond to your emails. Evaluate whether certain segments have higher engagement rates or conversion rates, and tailor your content accordingly.
Keep a close eye on key email metrics, such as open rates, click-through rates (CTR), and conversion rates. These metrics provide valuable insights into how engaging and effective your emails are at driving action.
Use the data-driven insights gained from tracking and evaluation to continually refine your email strategy. Implement changes based on what has proven to be effective and experiment with new ideas.
A successful fundraising email strategy is one in which you learn from successes and failures. Analyze your emails that have performed very well and identify patterns that have contributed to their success. Similarly, dissect the emails that haven’t performed well to avoid repeating mistakes.
There’s more to nonprofit fundraising emails. These may seem insignificant, but, believe us, when properly implemented, they can give you effective results. Here they are-
A nonprofit fundraising email is definitely the best strategy to drive donations and foster long-term donor relationships. With the right strategies, your email campaigns can be a valuable addition to your fundraising program. So, why not write a perfect nonprofit fundraising email that helps you achieve your fundraising goals and helps potential donors make a positive impact on the world?