Hoht Rachmones!

I make a habit of reading every solicitation letter that I recieve. Everything from the No. 10 envelope to the reply card makes an impact on the reader, and so I find it fascinating to have look at what other mosdos are trying to capture the donors attention and money.

I recently received a beautifully done direct mail appeal from a prominent, local mosad. Everything was al osar - there was definitely a lot of money dropped on making sure that the envelopes, letter and reply card were professionally and beautifully done. I have no way of knowing what the returns were on this particular campaign, but I suspect they'll be mediocre.  

Why? No rachmones on the donor.

The appeal itself was huge blocks of text written in small font. There was some kind of inspirational story in there, together with some jive about guiding the next generation - I don't know... Well written, pretty, but also very hard on the eyes and a burden upon the reader. 

There are many practices and techniques that help to ensure readability in direct mail and other solicitation materials, but that's not what I'm hokking just now. My real point is that quality communication is more essential than ever, while quantity - especially in the Twitter age - is fast becoming harmful. Here's a few points to remember to have rachmones on your donors:

1. Be Concise : Time is valuable. When you communicate with donors about giving, always get to the point promptly. Long hakdomes do nothing for your presentation, and are almost always tiresome. Contrary to our intuition, lengthy presentations are less convincing that those that are concise and focused.

2. Be Clear: A solicitation is build upon two - and only two - elements: a need, and a solution. If you have ever received a gift from a donor, it is because that noble individual saw his gift as the means of satisfying a specific need. If both need and the solution are clear, then you have an effective presentation. If not, even those who might otherwise be inclined to give will back off. Klol gadol: A confused mind says no!

3. Talk Numbers: To make a request of your donor you use numbers, not words. The donor must understand clearly that you're expecting a gift of $10,000 - not "help to make this a reality" or to "do whatever you can" and so forth. I'll never forget how one mosad, honoring the grandchild of one of their biggest donors, asked that the donor "do what he feels is right," in regard to his Annual Dinner pledge. The previous year's 70k dropped to 30k. A solicitation that fails to mention a specific dollar amount will always bring disappointment. 

Doesn't fundraising already come with enough pressure?! Being clear and direct with donors will make fundraising a more enjoyable and profitable process. Umimai nafshoch?! If this donor is shayach to give to your mosad, the ariches is superfluous. And if not, why are you wasting his (and your) time?