Crafting Messages That Resonate With Digital Donors

Before it was about getting donors to write checks. Now it’s about involving them in your ecosystem. Here’s 5 steps to get started today: You’re not just fundraising anymore. You’re onboarding stakeholders. If you want repeatable, compounding revenue from donors, partners, and decision-makers, you need to stop treating them like check-writers… …and start treating them like collaborators in a living system. Here’s how. 1. Diagnose your “center of gravity” Most orgs center fundraising around the mission. But the real gravitational pull for donors is their identity. → Ask yourself: What is the identity we help our funders step into? Examples: Systems Disruptor. Local Hero. Climate Investor. Opportunity Builder. Build messaging, experiences, and invites around that identity, not just impact stats. 2. Turn every program into a flywheel for new capital Stop separating “program delivery” from “fundraising.” Your programs are your best sales engine → Examples: • Invite donors to shadow frontline staff for one hour • Allow funders to sponsor a real-time decision and see the outcome • Let supporters “unlock” bonus services for beneficiaries through engagement, not just cash People fund what they help shape. 3. Use feedback as a funding mechanism Most orgs treat surveys as box-checking. But used right, feedback is fundraising foreplay. → Ask donors and partners to co-define what “success” looks like before you report back. Then build dashboards, stories, and events around their metrics. You didn’t just show impact. You made them part of the operating model. 4. Make your “thank you” do heavy lifting Thanking donors isn’t the end of a transaction. It’s the first trust test for future collaboration. → Instead of a generic “thank you,” send: • A 1-minute voice memo with a specific insight you gained from their gift • A sneak peek at a challenge you’re tackling and ask for their perspective • A micro-invite: “Can I get your eyes on something next week?” You’re not closing a loop. You’re opening a door. 5. Build a “Donor OS” (Operating System) Every funder should have a journey, not just a transaction history. → Track things like: • What insight made them first say “I’m in”? • Who do they influence (and who influences them)? • What kind of risk are they comfortable taking? • What internal narrative did your mission fulfill for them? Then tailor comms, invitations, and roles accordingly. Not everyone needs another newsletter but someone does want a seat at the strategy table. With purpose and impact, Mario

I came across a post amid all the excitement surrounding Kamala Harris’ truly historic $100M+ haul that encapsulates something much harder to quantify: the dread that many would-be donors appear to feel at the prospect of donating due to the avalanche of unsolicited texts they now expect to receive. Here’s the thing: Since you can’t prove a negative, we have no real way of knowing how many more dollars might have been raised if only people thought their privacy would be respected. And it's not even her campaign's fault. It's an overriding feeling that has built up over the years. Just take a look at a few of the (many) replies to the post: “Exactly this. I would be a donor if I knew that doing so didn’t result in spam emails and texts for the next 20 years.” “It's the worst possible thank you gift for a person WHO JUST GAVE YOU MONEY!” “Stop texting me for the love of all that is holy.” “This is exactly why I don't donate.” Sobering, huh? Yes, I know what you’re thinking: This is isolated to political campaigns! What does it have to do with my nonprofit? But fundraising doesn’t happen on an island and there’s no imaginary line in the sand among donors as far as organizations go—political or apolitical, 501(c)3 or 401(c)4, local or national. If the prevailing wisdom among donors is that they will be buried by an unrelenting stream of messages because their information is sold to the highest bidder, they will over time (rightfully or wrongfully) deem that to be a systemic problem and opt to simply throw their hands up and walk away from the concept of giving entirely. This is why it’s essential for the sector as a whole to practice what we preach: - Asking for permission before sending marketing and fundraising emails to donors by including an email opt-in form on your fields—and respecting it when it’s not selected by ensuring the response is synced to your CRM and their contact record is updated. - Committing to not sharing donor information with other organizations without first obtaining their clear and freely-given consent. - Not engaging in “churn and burn” tactics that sacrifice relationships in the name of pumping each supporter dry by sending an unending stream of emails. It’s completely understandable to try and strike up relationships with donors. What’s not is when you treat them as a slot machine or a trading card. Instead of short-term gains that burn bridges not only for you but other good causes, let’s take a measured approach that treats people like human beings and focuses on reciprocal relationships and lifetime value.

When Do Tangible Stories Backfire? Most fundraisers have heard some version of this advice a hundred times: Be concrete, specific, make it tangible, show one child.  Speaking of children, I find it useful to act like one (insert joke here) by asking, but why? Why does being concrete sometimes work so well and sometimes fall flat? Here's what we know. When an appeal is concrete, it zooms in on vivid, emotionally resonant details—like a story about one child who needs breakfast tomorrow morning. This kind of message feels personal and immediate. It taps into our sense of loyalty and duty to help those who feel close to us, even if we’ve never met them. When an appeal is abstract, it zooms out. It highlights the broader cause, ending hunger for all children, not just one. Abstraction reduces focus on any single case and promotes a more universal, impartial concern. It encourages donors to see all people as equally deserving of help. That last distinction matters, because donors differ in how they see right and wrong. Some donors are loyalty-focused. They feel a moral obligation to take care of “their own”—family, community, country. You can often spot them through personality: people higher in conscientiousness tend to hold this loyalty-driven worldview. A concrete story about one child will inspire loyalty-focused donors. The specificity feels real and trustworthy. Other donors are impartiality-focused. They’re motivated by fairness and universal care—helping anyone in need, no matter who they are. Higher openness to experience often signals this mindset and big-picture thinking. An abstract vision, ending child hunger everywhere, resonates with impartiality-focused donors who care about the broader cause more than any single example. If you get this match right, giving goes up. Get it wrong, and your carefully crafted story can fall flat. Across studies, the pattern is clear: See chart. Why This Matters to You Most fundraising programs still default to “best practices” like: “Always use a vivid, concrete story.” The problem is best practice assumes everyone’s wired the same way but your donors aren't interchangeable. The same concrete story to everyone guarantees some people feel inspired and others feel disconnected. How to Get It Right DonorVoice helps you tag your donors by Big Five traits so you can confidently segment messaging: **Abstract, big-picture appeals for high-openness donors who want to help humanity. **Concrete, specific stories for high-conscientiousness donors who feel responsible for their own community. This is your path to treating donors like individuals instead of generic “best practice” targets.

As a nonprofit email consultant, I’ve seen firsthand how small adjustments to your email strategy can lead to big increases in donation rates. These are some of the strategies I’m actively implementing with my clients to help them engage supporters and drive results: 1. Focus on audience targeting: Segment your email list to send messages that feel personal and relevant. For example, a lapsed donor may need a different message than a first-time giver. 2. Lead with impactful stories: Stories that highlight the direct results of donations—paired with a clear, actionable ask—are incredibly powerful. “$25 provides a meal for a family” resonates far more than a general appeal. 3. Optimize for mobile: With so many emails opened on mobile devices, it’s crucial that designs are clean, buttons are easy to click, and content gets straight to the point. 4. Create a sense of urgency: Deadlines or limited-time opportunities like matching gifts can be effective motivators. I’ve seen significant lifts in response rates when urgency is baked into the message. 5. Test and analyze everything: From subject lines to donation ask amounts, I encourage my clients to test different approaches and make decisions based on the data. A small tweak can make a big difference. 6. Always follow up: A simple thank-you email after a donation not only builds goodwill but also lays the groundwork for future giving. I know every nonprofit’s audience is different, but the common thread is that thoughtful, intentional email campaigns can create meaningful connections and drive real impact. I’d love to hear what’s working for you—what’s been your most effective email fundraising tactic?

3 donor emails that aren’t “asks” but still bring in donations We all know the direct asks matter. But some of the most effective emails I’ve helped send aren’t official campaigns or appeals. They’re moments of relationship. Here are 3 types of emails that donors seem to love and that often lead to surprise gifts: ⸻ 📬 1. The “We Did the Thing” Email Subject: We just finished it. Thank you. You promised to build a playground / fund a program / send kids to camp. This email says: We did. Because of you. Photos. A quote. A short paragraph. That’s it. People love seeing the result of their generosity. 📬 2. The “Saw This and Thought of You” Email Subject: This made me think of you. It might be a story from the field. A note from a beneficiary. Even a newspaper article. You send it to 1–5 specific donors with a personal sentence like: “You’ve always cared about ___, and this reminded me of you.” It’s not a pitch. It’s a connection. And it works. 📬 3. The “No Reason but Gratitude” Email Subject: No ask. Just thanks. A short note that simply says: “We’re so grateful for you. No updates, no links—just gratitude.” I do this quarterly. You’d be amazed how many people hit reply with: “How can I help?” Fundraising is more than asking. It’s paying attention. It’s following up. It’s letting people feel the difference they make. Which of these have you tried or would you add a fourth to the list?