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    Fundraising Emails for Non-Profits (Written by Professional Copywriters)

    email charity fundraising non profit donationsWe get a lot of non-profits asking for help. So here’s a bunch of email we just wrote for you, and some general guidelines. You are free to modify these templates if used for non-profit fundraising purposes.

    Recently, we had a couple of member area questions about copywriting for non-profits.

    Here's Erica asking for help writing an email template for a small non-profit:

    Here's Gabriel asking for help writing for a non-profit vs writing for a company:

    Most of us think about “business” and “non-profits” as polar opposites. But in reality, they share a lot of common ground - especially when it comes to asking for money:Businesses-non-profits-shared-copywritin

    You can use the same tools to create great emails for BOTH business sales and non-profit fundraising

    When you cut through the politics and identity issues, business and non-profit work both rely on your ability to convince people to hand their money over. 90% of the time, that comes down to copywriting. From my 5+ years in the non-profit world (The UN), here’s what I think works best:

    A Simple Donation Link or Button.
    Example: A simple PayPal button will do the trick.

    Regular Communication.
    Example: Your email list is the best asset you can develop.

    Case Studies + Stats.
    Example: Specific stories backed up with numbers.

    Social Proof.
    Example: Use logos of companies you’ve worked with or have donated.

    Great images.
    Example: Before/After photos of the project’s location and people involved.

    Private events for your donors and members.
    Example: An annual gala.

    Visual Counter To Show Progress
    Example: Progress To Our Goal of $5,000:

     $0       $1k       $2k       $3k       $4k       $5,000   

     

    Quick donation letter to an individual:

    This is an quick donation letter to an individual template.

      

     

    Quick donation letter to company:

    This is an quick donation letter to company template.

      

     

    End Of The Year Letter:

    This is a donation request you can send out at the end of a calendar year to try and get any excess charity budget a company has.

      

     

    The Seasonal Donation Request:

    This is an email template to send during specific seasons of fundraising.

      

     

    The "One Pager" Letter or Flyer:

    A "One Pager" is a type of letter or physical flyer you can post that fits on one sheet of paper. It should include all information on one side. The One Pager format is ideal for handing out physical flyers, or even posting on social media, as all the information is included. You can get copy and modify this one pager template.

    Link: Google Doc One Pager

      

     

    Big wins / success stories email:

    This is a success stories email template.

      

     

    Issue-specific deep dive email:

    This is an email template that focuses on a specific issue.

      

     

    Personal story about specific individual’s struggles:

    This is an email template telling about a specific struggle.

      

     

    Personal-level success story:

    This is an email template giving a success story from an individual.

      

     

    Donate request related to current events (FB post?):

    This is an email template revolving around a current event.

      

     

    “Where your money goes” email:

    This is an email template that informs the donors of where the money specifically goes. This helps them feel better knowing their donation actually goes towards the cause.

      

     

    Donate again request email:

    This is an email template asking donors to repeat their donation.

      

     

    Promoting a similar cause as the company:

    This is an email template that promotes a cause that's aligned with the donor.

      

     

    Asking for a modest amount of donation:

    This is an email template we wrote for Erica trying to raise $3,080 for a women in sciences organization.

    You can watch us write this live here:

    Here's one of the templates we ended up writing:

     

    Hope that gives you a leg up with your non-profit fundraising emails!

    Remember, there’s really not a big difference between great sales emails and great fundraising emails. You’re relying on the same copywriting principles for both.

    Here’s a quick list of the elements you can use in your emails to ethically and effectively convince people to donate money to your non-profit:

    A Simple Donation Link or Button.
    Example: A simple PayPal button will do the trick.

    Regular Communication.
    Example: Your email list is the best asset you can develop.

    Case Studies + Stats.
    Example: Specific stories backed up with numbers.

    Social Proof.
    Example: Use logos of companies you’ve worked with or have donated.

    Great images.
    Example: Before/After photos of the project’s location and people involved.

    Private events for your donors and members.
    Example: An annual gala.

    Visual Counter To Show Progress
    Example: Progress To Our Goal of $5,000:

     $0       $1k       $2k       $3k       $4k       $5,000  

     

    Hopefully this post has given you some ideas to go out bring in money that goes towards helping the world!  

    Good luck with your non-profit fundraising campaign!
    The Copywriting Course Team
    Copywriting Course

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