What is the role of sponsors? Is the money raised through sponsors only used to help reach the goal or can some funds be used to help with running the event?

Thanks you for your time,
Claudia Booker

First let’s clarify that by “sponsors” we are referring to companies who are recognized in an event program or other advertising. In that case companies will put the donation into the “advertising” category of their accounting. Because you are offering them advertising in exchange for the money, they generally cannot claim it as a charitable donation for tax & accounting purposes.  It would be best to consult with an accountant regarding more specifics about tax receipts.

Unless the donor specifies otherwise, all money that comes in for an event can be used for planning and running of the event.  Most people will assume that some of their money must go toward planning and overhead. However, many supporters also want assurance that the bulk of their gift goes toward your cause, and its programs, not administrative costs.

This is another way that corporate sponsors can help out.  If you can get a company to “underwrite” the cost of a certain aspect of the event, then individuals can make donations to the charity and know their gift is going toward mission.  For example, if you were hosting a walk-a-thon, the cost of the sound and timing equipment could be paid for by a particular company.  Your organization would recognize them through banners, recognition in flyers and publicity, as having donated this specifically.  Then when walkers get pledges or make personal donations, their gift goes toward the cause more directly.

6 Tips for Creating Successful Nonprofit/Business Partnerships from the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Stanford University

Fundraising Secret #14: Don’t be hard on local businesses from Fundraising Coach Marc Pitman

The Single Best Way to Turn Local Businesses into School Supporters from Jim Berigan of Top School Fundraisers

Small Business & Cause Related Marketing: Getting Started from Cause Marketing Forum

Is there a good list of the top corporate donors to non-profits? a great Q&A on Linked-In

How to Approach Corporate Sponsors by Amy Casey

Getting Corporate Sponsors from the Step by Step Fundraising Archives

The following is a list of ten reasons you should stay in contact with your existing donors, without hitting them up for another donation.

1. Birthday Wishes

You should make an effort to find out your donors’ birthdays. It shows that you are considerate and thoughtful when you remember them on that special day with a nice card. Set up a tickler in your appointment calendar to remind you at least two weeks in advance, so you have time to buy a card, write a short note, sign it, and mail it. To be better prepared, I suggest you buy a stash of cards and stick them in your desk drawer, so you’ve always got one handy. Also, a quick, handwritten note shows a great personal touch.

Along with the birthday cards, sympathy and congratulations notes are a nice gesture, as well. It is a good habit to scan your local paper for obituaries and announcements. In the case of a donor or a donor’s relative passing away, you will be alerted so you can send a sympathy card right away. You can also use this information to update your database.

If your donor gets his name or photo in the paper for a special award or a new position, remember to also send a note- this time for congratualtions.

2. Regular Updates on Your Organizational News

Do you produce a monthly or quarterly newsletter? Do you send out communications that are important to your families? If you do, you should consider including your donors on the mailing list. By receiving the regular newsletters, the donors can stay “in the loop” about what’s happening and feel included.

While this seems like this would be a no-brainer, I do think you should ask each individual donor if he would like to receive your newsletter in the mail (or by email). Some donors may feel that although they made a donation, they don’t want to be bothered on a continual basis. There are those kinds of donors out there. However, my experience is that the majority like to be kept up-to-date on issues concerning the organization they contributed to.

3. Advice on an Internal Matter

If a person is able to make a donation to your organization, chances are that that person has some wisdom and life experience. I have found that many donors like to be consulted for advice now and again. Be careful not to become a pest, but if you are facing a situation that needs careful deliberation, think about asking for some outside advice from your donor base. Most of the time, you can be sure that since they have already given you their money, they will also be willing to share some of their wisdom, as well. It goes a long way toward erasing any feelings a donor may have that you only care about their money.

You may want to consult your board of directors before sharing any sensitive issues with the donors. Be careful not to treat your advice request as a gossip session. This can turn donors right off.

4. Update on a Previous Contribution the Donor Made

Many times, an organization will receive a donation, the donation will be put to use, and the donor will never hear about the effects of the donation again. You have to remember that when your donor was thinking about whether or not he would donate to your group in the first place, he must have been excited by what you were planning or else he wouldn’t have given. Therefore, it is logical to assume that the donor would like to be kept abreast of any developments within the scope of his donation. Many times, a quick note, an email, or a phone call will do fine. The point is to let donors know what a significant difference their gift made.

5. Interesting News Item to Pass Along

Once you have gone through the initial process of working with a donor, you have established a bond with him. In many cases, you probably had several conversations with him, shared your own personal story with him, and learned about his life a little. In some ways, you have begun to cultivate a friendship. And just like any friendship, you have to pay attention to it or else it will wither. Therefore, I think it is wise to occasionally pass along an interesting piece of news to the donor that you think he might find interesting. This news can have absolutely nothing to do with your group or any kind of donation. It could be about sports or culture or something you know the donor likes. You know- “Saw this and thought of you” kind of note.

Be careful, however, not to send something potentially controversial and be very careful with any use of humor. People can be easily offended, and the last thing you want to do is offend one of your donors. Never go for a laugh unless you are 100% positive you’ll hit the mark.

6. Personal Story of How a Person in Your Organization Achieved Something Great or Overcame an Obstacle

One of the reasons your donor was drawn to your group in the first place was the community of people. Organizations, in and of themselves, are non-living entities. It’s not until you fill it with people that the community springs to life. At some point, your donor must have made a connection with a person or a group of people there.

For instance, if you are running a school and you have a student who won a county spelling bee or got a silver medal in ice skating at the state level or made Eagle Scout, it’s very possible that your donor would love to hear about that. Even better, make sure to share a story of a student at your school who was struggling mightily in some capacity, but through hard work and the teacher’s perseverance, overcame the challenge.

By being included in these success stories, your donor will keep that personal connection alive with your school.

7. Invitation to Go to Lunch/Meet for Coffee

Everybody’s got to eat lunch, right? I think it is wise to plan a time each month where you take a donor out to lunch or meet them for coffee. Set up a rotation schedule for yourself. During this time together, don’t ask for anything for your organization. Just keep developing the relationship you have with the donor. The more often you get together and the more often you talk about other issues, the easier it will be to go back to the donor when you need something. The donor will have seen a pattern of continuing and sincere communication from you, and that will ultimately work in your benefit.

8. Bounce a Creative Idea Off of Them

I always loved to call up a donor and share with him a crazy new idea I had for my organization. Even if it was a “pie-in-the-sky” plan with no real shot of ever getting done, I got a charge from brainstorming with donors. As I alluded to earlier, most donors became donors because they had the ability to make lots of money. This implies that many donors have an entrepreneurial streak in them. And entrepreneurs love to brainstorm- even if it never goes anywhere- it’s just how they’re wired.

Whenever I have made these kinds of phone calls and have been really enthusiastic about my idea, I have always been met in kind with energy, enthusiasm, and support. Besides, you never know, one of your crazy ideas might really appeal to the donor, and he may decide to fund it!

9. Share Marketing or Enrollment Material with Them

Whenever I would come out with a new marketing piece, I would always make sure my donors got a copy of it as soon as possible. By doing this, the donor is able to stay current with any new slogans, pricing structures, or programs. I have found that many donors like to be able to talk about your organization out in public. If they have the latest version of your marketing material, they will be able to be better salespeople for you.

10. To Inform Them if There’s Been Some Sort of Problem Within Your Organization

While this is the least pleasant of all of my suggestions, I do think it is important that you alert your donors whenever something significantly negative happens in your group. You’ll have to use your best judgment as to what the donors should know and when they should know it, but it is often better that a donor hear from you about a potentially negative incident personally, rather than by rumor or even possibly on the news.

By hearing about the situation from you first, you can explain the entire story and offer your solutions. The donor will not get this kind of thorough message in any other manner. Bad news happens- it is inevitable. However, if you desire to keep the relationship with your donor stable, you must remember to keep in touch during both the good times and the bad.

Again, you never know, a donor may actually have experience in handling a situation like what you’re going through and could offer great wisdom to you. In any regard, it’s much better to get in front of a story than to be chasing behind it every step of the way.

Conclusion

I strongly believe that your relationship with each donor needs to be sincere, active, and dynamic. When a person makes his first contribution to your group, it is vitally important that you develop a strategy to get to know that person much better. Don’t let an initial “ask” letter and a thank you note be the extent of your relationship with him. Look for every opportunity to make your donor a part of your community. In the long run, everyone at the school will be much richer for it.

121 Recognition Ideas for Donors, Volunteers and Memberspublished by Stevenson, Inc. offers you 121 valuable ideas that you can put into action immediately. Many ideas involve more effort and creativity than funds. Some ideas are perfect for top-donors where spending additional funds to say “thank you” in a way that continues to develop that relationship with your organization will have great value. There are ideas that will work for many different types of organizations, and this book is certain to get you thinking about how you could adapt these 121 ideas for your own organization’s needs.

One excellent idea offered that will also help develop relationships with your volunteers is #10: Ask Volunteers How They Want To Be Recognized. This idea suggests that a suggestion box be placed out for recognition ideas. Getting an idea of how people want to be recognized is a valuable tool for any organization to have at its fingertips — but many do not look for this input.

You’ll find lots of ideas that are long on creativity and low on cost. Idea #31: 10 Ways To Show Volunteers That You Care is a great example of some thoughtful ideas to thank volunteers. With some brainstorming, these ideas could even be adapted to find ways to thank donors or members. One of the ideas is to create a dollar value of the volunteer’s time and to present them with a “fake” check at your recognition event.

This book lists ideas and gives steps that offer how to put them in place. You will be inspired and motivated reading this book, and come away knowing how you can recognize the people that have been so important to your organization. If you are looking to brainstorm and jumpstart your creative thinking for great recognition ideas, this is the book for you!

Find out more about 121 Recognition Ideas for Donors, Volunteers and Members

Purposeful and well-thought out Thank You letters can help you steward your donors, not to mention provide you with another way to communicate with them. Make sure you are getting the most from your Thank You letter efforts with these ideas.

1. Get the letter out quickly!
Everyone has probably heard that the faster you get your Thank You letters out the door, the better. And it’s absolutely true! Donors want to be sure that you received their gift and a Thank You letter is the best way to let them know it arrived safely. Experts say let no more than 48 hours go by from the time you receive a gift until the time you send out a Thank You letter. If it takes you a little longer and that’s the best you can do, work with it. Figure out what will work for your organization and put a priority on getting the letters out the door.

2. Relate your Thank You letter to the ask
Instead of sending out a generic letter, customize your Thank You letter to the specific ask that was used to generate the gift. If a gift comes to you from an appeal you sent out, then make sure your Thank You letter refers back to the story or the text in the appeal. You may need to write several different letters that can be used for whatever you have going on. For instance, you may want to write one letter for a special event you are working on, another one for monthly givers, and another one for donors who respond to your newsletter. Relating the Thank You letter back to the ask is a way to let your donors know you are paying attention.

3. Tell the donor what you will do with their money.
This is critical. Make sure the donor knows how you plan to use the donation he or she just sent you. Text like “Your gift will ensure that 15 children will go to summer camp for one week” makes the process of donating more real and tangible to the donor. They can envision 15 kids going to camp for a week and it helps create a bigger feeling of satisfaction for the donor.

4. Use a real signature
Digital signatures are easy and eliminate hand signing a stack of letters. But technologically-savvy donors know the difference between a digital signature and a live one. Have your President or Executive Director sign the letters, or ask a volunteer to sign them on his or her behalf. And use a blue pen so that donors can clearly tell it is a real signature.

5. Have the ED or President go through the letters and add personal notes.
This can bring big rewards in terms of stewarding donors! Taking a few minutes of a busy day to go through a stack of letters may seem like a chore to your boss, but donors who get a Thank You letter with a personal note will be thrilled that the ED took time to personally acknowledge his or her gift.

6. Add a reply envelope
Don’t be afraid to include a reply envelope in a Thank You letter. Many donors will hang onto these and use them for their next gift. You may receive some negative feedback, but you will likely receive a large number of gifts as well. It’s not uncommon to receive thousands of dollars in gifts from these “bounce-back” envelopes. You may want to code these envelopes so that you can track the number, size, and amount of donations received using this technique.

7. Include year to date or lifetime giving data
For donors who have been giving for several years, this information can be very enlightening to them. A donor who gives a $10 gift regularly to your organization will immediately see how their gifts add up over time. Sometimes donors forget when they last gave. Including year to date information can be a gentle reminder for them if they have pledges or commitments to make.

8. Make it clear that the letter is also a receipt
Don’t you hate getting boring thank you letters that drone on and never clearly spell out the gift you made? (By the way, if you aren’t giving to other organizations, you need to. It’s a great way to put yourself in the donor’s shoes and also let’s you see how other organizations handle the thank you process.) If you have to, draw a line on the page below the thank you text and put “Gift Receipt” about the actual gift information.

9. Include an offer to tour your facility or program site
Always include in your letter an offer for a guided tour of your facility or program site. You may never have anyone take you up on this, but they will remember that you offered. You will probably get a few people who want to visit you. Seeing firsthand the work that you do may make all the difference in the world to a particular donor. It can also mean the difference in an average size gift and a major gift.

10. Include the name and contact info of someone the donor can call with questions. Make sure that person is available.
Donors want to be able to call and talk to a real, live, knowledgeable person when they have questions. So be sure to include the name and phone number in your Thank You letters of someone who can answer questions for them.

Marc Pitman also advises us to be attentive and listen to what supporters say. How you respond or don’t respond to them can unintentionally communicate negative messages to them.

Just taking money without thanking donors and or letting them know how their gift was used speaks very loudly that you’re more interested in their cash then in them.

Sending your letters 6-8 weeks after a gift comes in let’s donors know you’re not very interested in them too.

Doing nothing about an issue even after people have complained about it or questioned it repeatedly, not even developing a succinct explanation for why it is done that way, speaks volumes too!

Read more of Marc’s thoughts on his blog post: What are you saying?!

Here are a few tips for thanking donors:

• Pencil in thank you activities on your calendar ahead of time. If you have just a one on one meeting with someone, make it a habit to send a note the same day. For special events, put your thank you note writing on the calendar for two days after the event (one day for a breather!)
• In addition to personal thank you calls, notes and/or letters, include acknowledgements for major gifts, volunteers who went the “extra mile,” and event organizers in your regular newsletter.
• Respect your donors wishes. For example, if they wish to a gift to be anonymous keep it that way. Just thank them in private.
• Make thank you letters specific to the campaign or project that someone gave to.
• Automate thank you letter process as much as possible using your database capacities and/or mail merges
• Delegate tasks when possible. For example, the director can write up several versions of a thank you letter for common giving situations. Another staff member or volunteer can be charged with running the mail merge and printing the letters. Then the director can review and sign.

Having an open line of communication between non profit leaders and donors is vitally important. Remember to thank early and often, practice active listening and follow up when people provide feedback.

This template simply provides a basic place to get started, so you don’t have to stare at a blank screen dealing with writer’s block!

As you will notice there are spaces to fill in details and personal accounts about your cause. It is important that you tailor the letter to your own cause and to the audience that will be reading the letter. Make it specific to your own needs and circumstances.

Print your donation letters on your organization’s letterhead or paper that was printed just for this particular letter appeal. Each letter should be hand signed or a scanned image of the signature should be inserted into the document before printing. Finally, send the letters in envelopes that are specially printed with your organization’s name and return address.

[Name of Organization & Address on Letterhead]

[Date]

[Address of Donor]

Dear [name]:

Each year [name of organization] continues to advance the cause of [cause]. Through our programs [name of programs] we have seen many lives changed for the better.

Let me share with you the story of [story of someone affected by the issue / or helped by your organization]

Fortunately, we were there in time to help [name]. Now [he/she] is [status].

[Name of organization] continues to work to help make a difference in the lives of people like [name of person listed above]. Each and every person affected by this [disease/condition] has reason to hope because great advances are being made in [issue].

However, continued [research/outreach/work] is essential to help the over [number] of people are affected by [cause] each year.

Today, you can make an immediate difference in the life of a [child/etc.] Each [$ amount] you send provides [specific goods/services] to [number of people].

I hope we can count on you to help. Please send the most generous gift you can, as soon as possible.

With grateful appreciation,

[Signature]

[Name]
[Title]

P.S. So that as many [people/children] can be helped this season, please send your gift in the envelope provided by [date] so that it can have maximum impact. Thank you in advance for you kind support!

Just like donation request letters, newsletters should speak to the needs and interests of the reader. They should include an appropriate emotional appeal using stories of real people who are effected by your organization.

One of the local charities I’m involved with sends out a monthly letter. It’s nothing fancy - just plain paper not a full color glossy job or anything. But every time I get it I immediately open it. Two of my favorite monthly features are written by volunteers. One is a volunteer’s perspective and the other tells the story of one the people they’ve helped. It gives first hand insight into the great work they’re doing everyday to make a difference in people’s lives.

For more newsletter writing tips, check out this recent article from GuideStar: These Seven Donor Newsletter Flaws Are Killing You

Related Articles:
Attention Getting Openings for For Fundraising Letters

Letters asking for a donations work especially well for organizations that support a specific cause. This includes groups such as health advocacy, hunger or disaster relief, and public arts such as museums and symphonies. These are groups that people can easily identify as contributing to the community and the world.

Step By Step Guide to Writing Fundraising Letters

This free 6 page report will show you, step by step, how to write a fundraising letter. Did you know that WHO you send the letter to is just as important as the content of the letter itself? Find out why… and how you can reach the right people who’ll be interested in responding to your letter.

In this guide you’ll find out the basic format for a fundraising letter. You’ll also learn how to write an opening paragraph that grabs the reader’s attention and makes them want to keep reading. Finally, you’ll get lots of extra tips for writing your letter effectively.

Here’s what others have to say about this guide…

Dear Sandra,

Thank you for the tips on how to write a fundraiser letter. I have been involved over the last couple of years in fundraising events for my softball team and league and I have been struggling when it has come down to writing letters for donations.

This is a great time of the year to have received this e-mail. I am starting to look for donations for door prizes for our banquet, and these tips will certainly help me write those hard to word letters.

Thank you,
Lorraine Cyr

This is a completely free report.  Just click on the following link and you’ll be able to view, save and/or print this report.

Click here for this free report 

1. Reading

In our case reading means being able to read, or understand, your target audience. Get to know the people who are most likely to respond to your letter. Find out what motivates them. Is it a membership? Is it personal satisfaction of helping the cause? Discover all you can about how you can connect with your constituents.

Here are some ways to use better read your audience:
1. Short surveys which ask specific questions and for feedback. This could be a written survey, a discussion group or a few questions or checkboxes added to response cards.
2. If your organization purchases a mailing list to find new donors, be sure that recipients are those who will be most likely to be interested in your organization by specifying location and/or interest groups.
3. Sub group mailings can be done for specific niche interests. For example a humane society could send a special mailing to dog owners with a specific offer just for them.

2. Writing

Effective writing is not just about grammar, punctuation or even format. Speaking directly to the heart of the reader, to his or her interests and motivativations is much effective. While it’s easy to state the case of why your organization needs support, show the reader why it matters to them. How can they directly benefit from giving support to your cause?

Effective writing techniques include:
1. Personal stories from those who have benefited from your organization’s efforts.
2. Quotations from volunteers, donors or constituents.
3. Photographs - a picture’s worth a thousand words.
4. Emphasize the benefits the reader receives by donating.

3. Relationships

Building relationships with donors, volunteers and the community is the most important thing that you do in any of your efforts.

A letter can help build relationships with your donors by demonstrating your organization’s effectiveness, asking for their feedback or thanking them for their previous support.

A recent e-mail that I received from Dale A. Albertson of Quest Outreach Society, a hunger relief agency, illustrates all three of these points.

Hi Sandra,

You know we are not very adventurous with our fundraising techniques, and typically, we do the quarterly campaign letter with our Newsletter. We keep it grassroots, yet professional, with human interest stories, and a few facts and stats woven into a narrative. The campaign letter is bit of a tug on the heartstrings, mixed with a bit of success and lots of potential. We emphasize the multiplication aspect of donating to our organization - your donation goes further.

We see our revenues grow steadily with this approach. We know our constituents though, and this is the key. We have built relationships with them based on shared values and interests. There simply is no substitute for that. Our success is not an “exciting” read, it is methodical, strategic and planned.

We supplement fundraising campaigns with grants from foundations and companies, again, methodical, strategic and planned. This grows steadily as well, and some Funders are now multiple year donors, with only a friendly reminder required to receive annual grants. These are also relationships that have been carefully built and nurtured.

I hope this helps, and all the best to you and your readers.

Regards,

Dale A. Albertson
Director of Public Relations
Quest Outreach Society “Rescuing Food, Reducing Hunger”

As Dale’s description of Quest Outreach’s methods shows, the three R’s of fundraising letters often overlap and reinforce one another.

When you have a strong understanding of your audience, you can write in a way that speaks to their interests and desires. Human interest stories and evidence of your organization’s effectiveness strengthen the relationship with your donors.

When a person believes strongly in your organization and sees it as a partnership, they are more likely to be motivated to donate.