Five steps to writing more compelling fundraising emails

As a nonprofit, you likely don’t need to be sold on the importance of email. You know from experience the power email has to cultivate connections with your community.

So we’re going to dive straight into how to write better fundraising emails at your nonprofit, and we’ll break things into five easy tips:

1. You can only read an email that’s open
2. Keep it simple…
3. You had me at “hello”
4. Get to the point
5. Where does it all lead?

1. You can only read an email that’s open

It’s pretty obvious when you say it like that, but nobody reads an email they don’t open. And that means that your subject line is absolutely the most important part of your email.

If your recipient isn’t interested in the subject line, then there’s a large chance that whatever else you wrote won’t be read. And that’s a waste of your time. But it’s also a huge loss because people need to hear about your mission.

When crafting a subject line, it’s all about curiosity. 

People want to know what they’re getting into, but not too much! If you call it “July Newsletter,” nobody knows what they’re getting into, and they’re probably not all that excited about finding out either. They’ve read their fair share of newsletters before.

Two ways to gain those coveted opens: urgency and intrigue.

How about trying a subject line like "The clock is ticking—double your impact now!" or "A surprising way you can make an impact today."

People are total suckers for a deal. And they also hate not being in the know. Is it a little crafty? Sure, but there’s no penalty for being smart!

But now how do you measure what’s working and what isn’t? First of all, you’ve got to be measuring open rates to know if your subject lines are working. And because every nonprofit is different, there isn’t a one size fits all number. But here it is nonetheless: a 25% open rate is an excellent place to start.

2. Keep it simple…

Wikipedia explains it like this: “KISS, an acronym for ‘Keep it simple, stupid!’, is a design principle first noted by the U.S. Navy in 1960.” And I didn’t have the heart to call you stupid in the subheading.

But the crazy thing about this acronym is that it was invented before the smart phone. And phones have made the acronym 100 times more applicable.

Nobody’s trying to read James Joyce while flipping through their inbox. So get straight to the point, and don’t try to be too witty.

We prefer clear over clever and clean over cluttered every day. You and your friends might have some great inside jokes, but let your email recipients in on the joke by smacking them over the head with it.

Lay out your emails in short paragraphs (1 or 2 sentences — kind of like this blog!) and use bullet points and images when possible. It makes the text a lot easier to traverse.

3. You had me at “hello”

If we think of the subject line as the knock on the door, then the hook is the “hello.” Once someone opens that email, the clock’s ticking on making a first impression.

And that’s why the hook is so important.

In a thousand page novel, you might expect 100 pages of setup. But in a 200 word email, you probably have about two sentences. So make them count!

Three ways to get someone hooked:

1. Start with a story: Humans are wired to pay attention to stories. Begin with a compelling moment, quote, or scene that draws the reader in. For example: “Maria hadn’t expected to sleep in her car that night — but when the shelter reached capacity, she had nowhere else to go.”
2. Share a surprising statistic: Data can be powerful, especially when it’s unexpected and relevant. For instance: “Only 20% of donors give more than once.” A stat like this naturally prompts interest and evokes emotion.
3. Ask a question: In conversation, this is how we signal that it’s someone else’s turn to do the thinking. As a subject line, it can make a reader pause and engage. Something like “What inspired your last donation?” or “Have you ever seen your impact in action?”
   
   

4. Get to the point

In life, there’s often a lot of ambiguity about what our next step should be. Should we move to that city? Should we look for a new job? Do I want kids? What’s my purpose in life?

Sorry about the existential dread, which is exactly the opposite of what your email should be doing. Don’t leave them guessing. Come right out with it and give them a clear and compelling call to action (CTA).

A good CTA gets straight to the point. If you want them to donate, just say it. When they opened the email from you, they probably knew that you wanted a donation. You’ll come across as more honest if you simply make a clear and compelling ask.

Hubspot estimates that a clear CTA can lead to 371% more clicks! And if you’re looking for more examples of great CTAs, that link above has 49 more!

5. Where does it all lead?

Ok, this last one isn’t really about your email anymore, it’s about what comes next.

If someone does what you so clearly asked them to do in the CTA, where do they land? Does the link take them to where they thought they were going? 

If you asked for a donation, they should land on a page that allows them to make a donation. If you asked them to register for an upcoming event, it should be the registration page. Nobody wants to be led on a wild goose hunt. Take them straight to their destination.

And make sure that your visual branding is consistent across these pages. People want to be surprised by a captivating story or statistic. They want to see sign markers that tell them they’re in the right place.

Click send

Writing emails is hard. There isn’t a right answer when it comes to finding the next word in the sentence. So give yourself a little slack and don’t try to be the next James Joyce, especially since nobody enjoys reading that guy anyways.

Just put one foot in front of the other, click send, and then take stock of the results. Things won’t get better if you don’t know where you are today.

If you’re looking for a new email service provider to take your nonprofit email marketing to the next level, we’d love to talk! Feathr has partnered with nonprofits of all stripes to help them spread the message about their world-changing mission.

Set up a meeting today. We want to see your fundraising emails do even better this next year!