Fundraising: E-mail Appeals

You have been asked to prepare an e-mail so that supporters will visit your Web site and donate to your organization. You’ve written fundraising letters before, so this should be pretty simple right? Let’s take some time to learn what fundraising expert Mal Warwick has to say in the second edition of How to Write Fundraising Letters (Jossey-Bass 2008).

In a new chapter on online appeals, Warwick notes that there are similarities between writing a direct mail letter and composing e-mail solicitations. For example, in both cases, you want to connect with the reader personally by using “I” and “you.”

Warwick also helps you think about specific parts of the e-mail:

Subject Line: If you include the recipient's name in the subject line, would the person think it is junk mail?

Graphics: How will spam filters deal with the graphics in your e-mail?

Leading sentences: If recipients are using a “preview pane” in their e-mail client, is your lead engaging enough so that others will want to read the rest?

For more tips, stop by our library and browse How to Write Fundraising Letters. Be sure to look take a peek at Part 5 to learn about from Warwick’s toolbox, including ideas for “outer-envelope teasers” and suggestions on how to end a letter.