The 11 Commandments of Fundraising, Part 2
Make sure your donors know exactly what you want from them — and you'll improve the likelihood that they will respond accordingly.
Commandment No. 7: Thou shalt write like people speak
Why is it that when people's names go on a direct-mail letter or e-appeal, they want to sound like they studied in the school of Shakespearian speech? Why do some websites read like they were written by a committee? Long sentences, advanced vocabulary words, insider acronyms — what these all have in common is they get into our copy and can depress results. (The exception is direct mail to people who do speak like that — lawyers or English professors, for example. But for average people, heed this advice.)
Pamela Barden is an independent fundraising consultant focused on direct response. You can read more of her fundraising columns here.
