Four Myths Destroying Your Fundraising… And The Truths That Will Save It
To craft an effective fundraising message, you have to do more than rely on intuition. You have to understand what strategies work best in order to raise the most amount of money from the most amount of people.
Quite often, the results will surprise you.
Here are four myths that we hear clients perpetuate all the time. Don’t let these falsehoods torpedo your fundraising efforts. Because small changes can make a BIG difference.
Myth #1: Shorter copy is better because of readers’ short attention spans
Fact #1: Longer copy regularly outperform shorter copy
Longer copy gives readers more on-ramps. The more you say, the more likely it is that donors will latch onto your message.
Now, of course, there are a number of factors involved here. If readers feel overwhelmed by long copy, they will surely give up and exit the page.
But, if you use a large font, short sentences and paragraphs… If you focus the reader on the important parts of the message by bolding, underlining, and italicizing… Then you give your organization more opportunities to hook the reader in.
Myth #2: Donors like statistics because it proves our organization is successful
Fact #2: Emotive language outperforms logical language
Donors give most generously when they feel an EMOTIONAL connection to the people that your organization serves. Large numbers and percentages actually create DISTANCE between the donor and the service recipient.
Big numbers often make the problem feel too big to solve or, worse yet, that the problem has already been solved.
On the other hand, an emotional story about a single individual in need allows the donor to visualize what true impact looks like.
Your goal is to create an emotional connection between the service recipients and your donors. Not to overwhelm them with numbers.
Myth #3: Talking about our past success is most important so donors know they make an impact
Fact #3: Donors give when you give them a problem to solve
Donors give when they feel an emotional connection to the organization and service recipients.
When you focus your message on your amazing organization, you create two negative associations:
- you convey that the problem that your organization fights against has already been solved, and
- you miss an opportunity for the donor to insert himself/herself into the narrative.
If you want to raise the most amount of money you can, make the donor the hero of the story, not the organization.
Paint a picture of the world if donors failed to support your organization. Then, show them what their support enables. “But when you donate, you create a bright future.” And go into detail about the amazing impact of a donor’s gift.
Myth #4: Repetition is a waste of space
Fact #4: Repetition is absolutely critical to conveying your message
When readers receive your email or visit your Campaign Page, they won’t read every word.
Even your most ardent supporters will skim it. This is the new reality of the internet era.
Besides, it was decades ago when advertisers learned that a sticky jingle led to increased sales. In the land of the short attention span, repetition is king.
And that is especially true with fundraising. Because the more often you make a direct ASK… and the more often you describe the IMPACT of a gift… the better you convey to donors that their donations make a DIFFERENCE.
It’s the only way to cut through the noise.
