Thank you letter templates for your nonprofit
An important step in the donor journey is thanking donors. Here is a helpful thank you letter template to help you steward donors properly.
Believe it or not, but the end of the year is just around the corner. As we enter the giving season, it’s important to start preparing for one of the most important parts of the donor journey: thanking your donors.
Thanking your donors is much more than just sending an email. It’s about nurturing a long-lasting relationship with your donors. In fact, thanking your donors is the first step towards your next gift, so it’s important to get this step right.
Getting started with a thank you letter or email can be tough. That’s why we put together a useful thank you letter template for you to customize and use at your nonprofit.
Tips for writing a thank you letter to donors
Send a thank you: This one is pretty self-explanatory but it bears repeating. You should always always send a thank you letter to your donors after they have donated to your organizations. These individuals are giving of their hard-earned income, and had no obligation to do so. It’s important to recognize this by thanking them with a personalized letter.
Consider the format: Take a look at your audience and meet them where they are. If you have an older demographic that would be less likely to be online, you might be better off sending them a physical letter in the mail. If you have a younger demographic that does a lot of their engagement online, then you might want to send them an email. You could even include a video. This will increase the likelihood that your audience will actually receive the thank you that you send them.
Send it as soon as possible: Being prompt is an important part of donor recognition. The world is increasingly becoming one of instant gratification, and this behaviour can extend to donors. They expect to be thanked for their contributions, so your team should try to meet those expectations. The sooner you can do this, the better.
Be concise and clear: Let the focus of your message be strictly about thanking them for their contribution. Don’t clutter your message with other calls-to-action. Be clear about the impact they are making, thank them for being a part of your mission and then wrap the message up.
Proofread your work: Every touch-point a donor has with your organization is an opportunity to evaluate whether or not they want to give again. Make sure that your messages are professional. Proofread your work and make sure you don’t have any grammar or spelling mistakes — especially when it comes to the donor’s name!
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