I can already hear you.
Mazarine, this isn’t a fundraising book!
Mazarine, this book looks like it’s just for the business world!
Mazarine, are you going to the dark side?
My answers to you are
1. Yes it is
2. Not only them
3. And NO.
What’s Cashvertising all about?
For a minute, let me tell you about the twinkie.
What about the twinkie?
Product: A twinkie
Feature: Four inches long. Filled with white icing.
Benefit: Can survive for years, put it in your nuclear bomb shelter!
OK are you with me?
Do you see why talking about the benefits rather than the features is a good thing for your nonprofit? There are dozens of shelters out there. Why should they give to your shelter? There are hundreds of environmental nonprofits. What makes yours special?
Your turn.
Product: Your nonprofit
Feature: Two 30 day shelters for homeless women
Benefit: We help take 2,000 people off the street each year.
OK, you have started to say what your nonprofit does, and why it’s important.
But what’s even better than thinking about your nonprofit in terms of benefits instead of features?
Examples versus Statistics
Which is more compelling to you?
Statistics: Last year we had 1000 volunteers, 356 crisis line calls, 3,000 people staying at our shelter, and 4 pets that we managed to find new homes for.
OR
Examples:
Janey is scared. Her boyfriend, Mike, is going out with his buddies tonight and she knows that when he comes rolling in, at midnight, he’s going to expect her to be ready for him. If she doesn’t “put out” as he calls it, he’ll smack her in the guts, and worse. It’s happened every month for the last three months and it doesn’t look like it’s going to get any better. Janey doesn’t have a place to go, no job, and there’s a little one on the way. What does she do?
A friend of hers gave her a number to call. She dials the number with shaking fingers. It’s almost time for Mike to come home. Janey hears a warm voice on the other end. She hangs up. Mike comes home and smacks her, even though she does what he wants. Janey starts to realize that there’s no escaping this violence, unless she does something. The next night, she calls the number again.
This time she breaks down in tears. But she manages to start to tell her story. The woman on the other end listens to her. She wants to help Janey. Can Janey meet her at the corner store?
They go there and talk quietly. Janey has some money with her, and leaves with the woman. When Mike gets back, he’ll be furious! she thinks. The next night she returns home. Mike has calmed down and everything’s okay for a couple months. He takes Janey out to ice cream and pays for some of the bills. Then the beatings start again. Janey calls our number one more time. We come and get her. She never goes back. And one more life is saved from violence. Last week, Janey’s baby Sam was born. Two lives are starting fresh, thanks to your help.
Which one makes you want to read all the way to the end?
3 tips to help you get more year end appeal donations
1. Tell a story and start in the subject line. Here’s a popular post where we talk about 18 good subject lines.
2. Make that story as compelling as possible, by sharing how people feel, what they think about, how they work against themselves, make us root for them.
3. Finally, tell the donor that you couldn’t have done it without them. Make your donor the missing piece that allows the hero or heroine to succeed.
These three things will help your nonprofit get more year end donations than that “letter from the executive director” or “year end fundraising email 2015” (I seriously got an email this month with that as the subject line!!!)
Best part is, this book, Cashvertising, is FULL of tips like this. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
If you’d rather not write your year end email yourself, I can help you.
We have a little bit of time left in 2015. That is why I am offering to help just FIVE nonprofits with their year end emails.
In 2014 I helped 5 nonprofits with their year end emails. They each made between $3,000-$5,000 (one made over $5,300!) with their year end emails, an increase in results for everyone.
Would you like to make more with your e-appeals at the end of December?
Our process
Here’s how I can help you make the most of your Year End Email:
1. You sign up by clicking here.
2. Then you email me your appeal letter, and
3. We have a quick phone conversation to talk about what you want your year end appeals to convey.
4. Within two weeks, I give you two emails to send at the end of the year.
5. You review and request changes.
6. I send you the second, final version of your emails, and
7. 3 potential subject lines for each email for you to choose from.
8. We have a final phonecall to wrap up, and I give you advice on when to send, based on your stats.
If you’d like to make the most of this most generous time of the year with two stellar year end emails, your investment is $600. This would be a bargain at twice the price.
