Having a strategy for communicating with donors is vital, but it can be difficult to remember the details of how to do what you want to do. With a good communications plan, you can easily target specific people in order to make them feel important. You can even use segmentation to determine which donors you want to reach. A communications plan that will help your nonprofit reach its donors will help you to achieve measurable results. Whether you’re trying to reach out to new donors or rekindling an old one, a good communications plan will help you to do everything that is necessary to stay on track.

  • QUESTION #1: Is the message of our mission clear? When approaching any volunteer, donor, client, advocate or board member, do they know the mission of your organization? Can they say what your nonprofit looks to accomplish? Depending on how and how often you communicate with your constituents, they may or may not be able to communicate the why behind the what. Informing donors and casting the mission and vision to your various audiences should always be a top priority. Just because the mission is clear to you, it does not mean that all of your donors or volunteers know what the mission is. Think of ways that you can communicate the mission of the organization in multiple formats. Do not just rely on social media or mentioning it in passing, communicate how the mission of the organization connects to the program or activity you are a part of.
  • QUESTION #2: Who are we trying to reach? You need to know how to target each group of potential donors, and how to stay in touch with them. How do you decide which group of donors you are trying to reach? If it’d be easier to target a specific set of donors who are likely to support your cause in the future than it is to reach out to a whole list of donors who have already contacted your cause in the past, making sure to identify which groups of supporters are your most valuable. If you want to meet with more than one group of donors, make sure you know how to approach them. Organizing and segmenting those who are a part of your organization is a great way to identify who you are reaching. As you segment or “tag” specific groups of people, identify how to specifically communicate with each group. This allows you to build messages to target specific groups of donors based on their giving level, communication preferences, and engagement history. Utilize a tool like MYDONORS as a database for donors, volunteers, clients, and other constituents.
  • QUESTION #3: Is the impact of our nonprofit easily accessible? If you want to make your communications easy, focus on a few key messages that will drive your supporters to take action. This allows you to tell the reader precisely what you are trying to accomplish by using as little text as you can. Stay concise and focus on the key points. You need donors to feel urgent when you write to them. You want people to immediately think about taking action. If your CTA is encouraging donors to give more, encourage them to act. Ensure your CTAs are prominent in your communications and that people notice them. Put strategically placed CTAs where people will see them. If you want to reach donors via the mail, place a CTA right in the body of the message.

Looking for more ways to improve your nonprofit’s communication strategy? We can help! MyCommunity exists to build relationships and tools that equip organizations so that they can maximize their impact. Our suite of tools is designed to help organizations of all sizes focus on their mission without worrying about the logistics. We understand the importance of building strong relationships, so we provide the necessary tools to maximize impact and make a difference like our easy-to-use platforms MyDonors and MyVolunteers. Likewise, MyNonprofitCoach equips nonprofits with the training they need to be successful. Schedule a demo for any of our solutions here.

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Source: https://www.networkforgood.com/resource/9-best-practices-for-donor-communications/