Thursday August 21- What gets read

Hi !

I don’t care if Monday’s blue: What’s cookin this week

In this week’s enews…

• Readers don’t have time

• Elements that must be in your year-end asks

• Learn from the good: How to roll out a big change

• Great post: How to maximize small donations

• Strategy Insider: Have you ever tried this exercise?

• An intervention of sorts

The solution to the Triple E (enews easter egg) from last week: Famous sections from MAD Magazine.

As summer turns to fall, you’re working very hard on the copy for your year-end campaign. Every word matters!

Or does it?

This week I want to focus on what the average reader looks at in your direct mail letters and emails. Spoiler alert: They may not be reading every word.

So what are they looking at? Let’s dive in so you know what your letters must include.

Tuesday’s gray and Wednesday too: No time 

The most recent stat I have is that the average read rate for an email is just below nine seconds.

Nine seconds.

That’s not a lot! Basically people are skimming and scanning. They have a lot to do and don’t have time for every email that lands in their inbox.

But then two weeks ago I saw a stat which will make things more complicated:

Based on heat map analysis of ecommerce emails, the top 30% of an email gets 90% of the attention.

In simpler terms: You BETTER get to the point quick or people will move on to the next email.

I can guarantee that this doesn’t just apply to ecommerce emails. It applies to the emails your nonprofit sends as well.

Wordy emails where the ask is buried in paragraph five won’t do well. You’re gonna have to move the ask up towards the top.

But that’s email. What about direct mail?

There are two sides to this:

1. Many people do skim and scan a direct mail appeal. But…

2. The average donor is over the age of 60. They read the letters they receive and they’re gonna take the time to read your direct mail ask, especially if it’s an organization they have a relationship with.

Doesn’t matter how people read your emails and letters. There are certain elements that your fundraising asks need to contain.

Thursday I don’t care about you: What your ask must include

Here are the elements your fundraising letters and emails should contain so people take notice.

1️⃣ Personalization: “Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” - Dale Carnegie

If you have the person’s first name, address them at the opening. People notice when their name is used and that helps keep their attention long enough for them to want to keep reading. Open your asks with Hi Susan, Dear Susan.

2️⃣ P.S.: People often read the P.S. in a fundraising letter. Eye-tracking studies have shown that even if they don’t go through the whole letter, they tend to read the P.S.

The P.S. should be a one sentence summary of the appeal. It should contain the problem and solution and create a sense of urgency.

3️⃣ Opening line/paragraph: Compelling. This is an area where you really need to work on making sure you bring someone into the story right away. The problem is presented. An emotional tug.

“It was late at night. Too late for visitors. But the banging on the front door was insistent. Startled, I threw on my robe and went to the door. What in the world was happening?”

“Maxine is a painter. She loves art. In her free time she composes poetry. Or at least she did until she unexpectedly found herself living on the streets of Tampa. Now her time is spent worrying about daily survival.”

4️⃣ Picture: You need a powerful picture that captures attention. In a letter you might add it in the upper right corner of the page. In an email you could use a banner or an attention grabbing image right at the top.

Just remember that since most people pay attention to the top 30%, the copy right below the image should relate to the person in the picture. Those two combined could be the 30% but can be enough to cause someone to keep skimming rather than deleting. (See number five in this post. So true!)

5️⃣ Problem + solution: Make it easy for readers to understand the problem you’re presenting and the solution (donating). Bold certain sentences or headings as people skimming will notice these.

Direct mail- make sure there’s an ask on the first page! Don’t bury it on the back side or page five of a long letter.

Email- Make sure there’s an ask early on in the email. Even if you put the CTA button towards the bottom, have text towards the beginning hyperlink to the donation page.

6️⃣ Amount + impact: Include in your letters and emails three specific amounts people can give to help AND include the impact of each. Help people decide quickly based not (just) on the amount but the impact. If there’s a matching campaign, make sure to stress that as that will cause more people to donate and give higher amounts.

Direct mail- If you’re including a reply card or tear off, list the amounts and impact.

Email- Use a graphic/image to show impact of requested amounts. (Example from Orbis below)

7️⃣ One to one: Your ask is a one-to-one communication piece. Make sure you include a signature: Headshot, name of person from your organization, their position and if possible, an e-signature.

I may have used this before but it’s worth sharing again. My friend Jim sent me this from Autism Ontario:

I LOVE the use of “stakeholder” in the signature! Adding “mom of two autistic youth” shows she herself has skin in the game. That can help seal the deal with a reader.

As you work on your year-end ask, check that these elements are present. It’s one of the ways to help you surpass your goals!

Monday you can hold your head: Get ready for change

In this section I will share with you something good being done by a nonprofit that you can learn from.

Last week I met with the CEO of a growing nonprofit. I’ve known about the work they do for almost five years. They have a very specific mission.

Recently they decided to expand the services they offer. They’re not moving in a different direction from their original mission; it’s adjacent. But it will be a change which they’ll need to explain to their supporters and audience.

There are times when your nonprofit is going to make a big change. That means ensuring you plan how to roll it out.

Next month the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is changing its name to Blood Cancer United. They sent me an email to not just inform me of the name change but explain why (very important!).

What I liked about their rollout is the landing page they shared to learn more.

• Right at the top they share their ambitious 2040 goal.

• They explain the reason for the change.

• They tell readers what’s changing and what isn’t (which answers a major pain point some supporters might have- if the name changes, will the organization’s mission, work and services change?)

• The page contains an FAQ to help people learn more.

Don’t just dump a major change on people. Prep them in advance so the transition is as seamless as possible.

Tuesday Wednesday stay in bed: A little of this and that

In this section I’m going to share with you great content I’ve picked out that you can learn from.

1. How to gather impact stories (4 A Good Cause)

2. Guide to donor segmentation (Donorly)

3. How to maximize small donations. MUST READ! (Hands On Fundraising)

4. Take the suck out of succession planning. I just finished dealing with an organization that needed to plan for a new CEO. This is a BIG issue facing the sector and one that needs to be discussed and planned for (Community Foundation)

5. 10 peer-to-peer fundraising mistakes and how to fix them (Nonprofit Hub)

Thursday watch the walls instead: Have you ever tried this?

In this section I’m going to share with you how I build strategies for nonprofits. Each week I’ll share another piece and over the coming months you’ll see how everything fits together.

This won’t come as a surprise but part of my deep dive analysis (which I do before building out a custom strategy) is learning about the mission.

• What is the mission

• What is the organization’s short and long-term vision

• How do they carry out their mission

• Are they achieving their stated goals

But that’s just a baseline. There’s something that interests me a lot more: Is everyone in the organization aligned with the mission statement? Do they even know what it is?

Here’s an exercise you can try at your organization (I’ve done this during trainings with both staff and Board members):

Ask everyone to write down on a piece of paper what the organization’s mission statement is. Check the submissions and see if most people got it right or the answers are all over the place.

Why is this important: If internally staff and Board aren’t on the same page about your mission, what happens externally?! You all serve as ambassadors for your nonprofit. You’re happy to share with people what you do and possibly interest them in getting involved.

But if the information you’re sharing isn’t what it should be, that’s gonna cause problems!

This is why during my deep dive I speak to staff and Board members to see if they know the mission or not. It’s critical to fundraising and marketing success.

So far I’ve shared with you my deep dive into fundraising, marketing, platforms, interviews, competition, the Board, grants, organizational processes, gratitude, content, staff, programs and mission. I got one more item to share with you before I wrap up this section of the enews.

It’s Friday I’m in love: A funny intervention

A little humor as you end your week. Enjoy this funny intervention!

I’ll be on vacay next Thursday. Back in two weeks. Have a great weekend!

🎶 I listened to collections of top hits from 1984 and 1989 while working on the enews. 80s all the time!