4 Keys to Communicating by Email with Your Major Donor Prospective Givers
I’ve said it often, “I’m a face-to-face kind of girl” meaning I would rather sit down with a prospective giver 
and have a personal conversation. However, in fostering the engagement that leads to major investment, email can be a useful part of the mix for many prospective givers of ALL ages. So, here are four simple keys to helping you use email productively with your major donors.
1. Relevance
Starting with the subject line and ending with the P.S., your emails must contain something highly relevant to your donor. This means mass approaches with major donors are not the way to go. Listen carefully to the biggest challenges, goals and dreams of your donors (from your personal visits) and send out a greeting that relates to these. Dan Kennedy, a communications master, said, “You must enter the conversation already happening in their mind!”
2. Specificity
Specific information with unique angles that relate to the donor’s area of giving, highlight progress made, demonstrate impact, or present an example of a process someone else used to present a major gift are thoughtful and helpful.
3. Authenticity
You need to be you. The donor has the relationship — with you and through you — to your organization. Share your excitement at reaching a giving level for a project and why the project will be so important to those you serve. Share a personal story (remember: Personal NOT private) occasionally. Your donors can find information anywhere — it’s your take on it and your leadership they crave. Your genuine excitement is contagious.
4. Action
No, you are not making an ask with email. You are enhancing the genuine relationship. Sure, you can certainly share a link back to your website. You may be asking them to consider a visit to your organization or attend an event. But, more important the action could be to simply THINK about your cause for a few moments, to FEEL the thanks you have for their connection with you, to CONSIDER how they might want to be more deeply engaged.
Email can be an easy way to continue the relationship — too easy. Be sure to re-read it, proof it and consider how the written words will be felt and understood by your major donors. Use these 4 keys consistently, and email can be a plus in the major donor relationship process and ultimately help grow the resources you have to accomplish your mission.
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© 2012 Marcy Heim and The Artful Asker LLC.
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? Please do! Just be sure to include this complete blurb with it:
Marcy Heim is a sought-after coach and trainer to fundraising leadership, staff and key volunteers who are transforming the world by encouraging philanthropy for their missions. She is a trusted authority in the development profession, who helps organizations and educational institutions uplevel their major gift programs through artful, long-term relationship building that dramatically increases fundraising success AND promotes increased staff job satisfaction. Her monthly Artful Action newsletter inspires leadership and staff to embrace the real power and joy of philanthropy. If you are ready to take your development efforts to the next level, you can sign up for a F.R.E.E. subscription at www.marcyheim.com.
