6 Ways to Strengthen the Heart of a Fundraising Letter
What is the heart of a letter? The ask. The call to action. The turning point at which you shift from getting your reader emotionally involved to asking her to send in a gift. Or sign a petition. Or volunteer. Or march in the streets. Or whatever.
We all know that if you don’t ask you won’t get. But asking alone is not enough. You have to give the reader urgent and compelling reasons to leave her comfortable chair and go do what you want her to. Here are six ideas:
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Willis Turner believes great writing has the power to change minds, save lives, and make people want to dance and sing. Willis is the creative director at Huntsinger & Jeffer. He worked as a lead writer and creative director in the traditional advertising world for more than 15 years before making the switch to fundraising 20 years ago. In his work with nonprofit organizations and associations, he has written thousands of appeals, renewals and acquisition communications for every medium. He creates direct-response campaigns, and collateral communications materials that get attention, tell powerful stories and persuade people to take action or make a donation.
