1. Thanking Donors Personal Visual impact Donor impact Clear result
When someone gives to your campaign, they should receive a response. Penn State sends a confirmation thanking your donor immediately after they make their gift, and your team or organization should send an or letter shortly following gifts. (Note: in all formal communications from Penn State to donors, we refer to their donations as “gifts” or “contributions.” This makes their support feel more personal, and we recommend that you adopt similar language when speaking directly to donors, be it in thank you messages or in solicitations).
It’s a good rule of thumb to send a thank you message in the same channel in which the gift was made. If a donor send a check in the mail, then you should send a thank you via mail. If the donor supports your cause through an online donation, then you should send them an . You can do general thank you and stewardship posts on social, on a blog, or by sending around videos via to supporters.
When a donor should be thanked.
Ideally a donor should be thanked right after they make a gift. However, if that is not possible, be sure to thank everyone a day or two after the campaign ends.
Number of updates a donor should receive.
Try to give at least 3 post-campaign updates. We recommend the day the campaign ends, a week after, and 1-2 months after when the impact has been reached. To create an even more meaningful experience, you can send donors an update six months or a year after the campaign ends.
How long you should wait before another ask is made.
A survey of nearly 3,000 donors found that 63% of donors preferred to wait at least seven months before being asked for another gift.
Personal
When sending thank you’s:
You want to personalize it so every individual donor feels appreciated
Let them know the impact they have had and the result and/or what you can do because of that impact
Also, use a visual! People like to see people, so include a picture of your campaign team – it makes it more personal and allows for the donor to feel more of a connection to you and your cause
Also, isn’t the only route – if it’s someone you know on a more personal basis, send them a hand-written thank you. Most often, these gestures are most appreciated and will create a loyal donor
Donors will receive a confirmation thanking them after they make their gift – but you will want to reach out to them directly to thank them as well
Ideally, you want to thank a donor the same day they make a gift – or at least 1-2 days after.
Thank donors again after your campaign has come to an end and show your appreciation for their support
You will also want to follow up with donors after the funds have been used – so send an update to show how their funds were used and include pictures!
Visual impact
Donor impact
Clear result