Fundraising Appeal Letter Template printable pdf download

WRITE A FANTASTIC FUNDRAISING APPEAL

From:

______________________________________________________________

Your appeal should come from a real person, or at least use the full name of your organization.

Acronyms, technical jargon or a “do not reply” style email address will make your message more

likely to be deleted.

Subject:

_____________________________________________________________

The subject line is the most important part of your email appeal. Its purpose is to make your message

stand out in a reader’s inbox and entice them to open your message. Keep your subject line short,

relevant and compelling. Front load your subject line with key terms in the first 50 characters, to

account for the way different email programs might display your message.

(Salutation)

Dear _________________

(if possible, use the recipient’s name, spelled correctly)

(The emotional, interesting opening)

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Don’t start with the typical “we need your help”. Open your appeal with a vivid, emotional image that

illustrates the need or the impact a gift could have. Or show supporters the difference they are making.

Try to focus on an individual story rather than overwhelming the reader with mind-numbing statistics or

massive scale.

For example, consider this opening from Take Root, an agency founded by former abducted children to

help victims of child abduction after they have been found: “When I was three and a half years old, two

men in black coats and hats lifted me up by the arms off the front lawn of our home on Long Island, New

York. My legs kicked wildly into the air between us - I was thrown into a waiting car and driven away. . .”

This is the story of Scattergood Moore, who is one of the survivors who put their hard-won wisdom into

Take Root’s work to improve America’s support to formerly missing children.

Or this, for an after school program: “I am writing with amazing news: Thanks to you, John Jameson

graduated from high school and is headed to Georgetown University this fall. And he is not alone. Your

support has made possible a 100% graduation rate for our 12 seniors. That's right - your support resulted

in success for every single student we sought to help. Imagine what we can do together for the class of

2013.”

Fundraising Appeal Letter Template