Asking For Increased Gift Amounts – Best Practices For Using Your Fundraising Essentials Next Ask Amount Scores

However you choose to implement your Fundraising Essentials results, you’ll want to constantly be testing new approaches and analyzing your results – keeping those that perform well, re-testing those that don’t perform well the first time, and adjusting weaker strategies in the future.

• Select all donors that have made a gift in the past 18 months who also have a Next Ask Amount of $1-$250.
• Write an appeal letter using renewal language similar to this: Will you please continue your support today by returning your check with the enclosed reply card?
• Check out the Best Practices for Appeal Letters toward the end of this article.
• The reply card should offer an ask array within the Next Ask Amount range of $1-$250 – it could be offered in descending order like this:$250, $200, $150, $125, Other _____.
• The objective of this appeal is to garner renewed donations at the higher-end of the Next Ask Amount range.

1. Acquisition of New Donors and Re-acquisition of Lapsed Donors
   • Select all non-givers and all past donors that have not made a gift in the past 18 months who also have a Next Ask Amount of $1-$250.
   • Create an appeal using language similar renewal language to this:Will you please make a donation today by returning your check with the enclosed reply card?
   • The reply card would offer an ask array within the Next Ask Amount ranges, which might be offered in ascending order:$20, $25, $30, $50, $100, Other _____.
   • The objective of this appeal is acquire new donors, even if the acquisition brings them in at the lower end of the ask amount range.
     
2. Convert Lower Level Donors to Monthly Donation to Significantly Increase Gift Amounts

• Select all donors that have made a single gift of $200 or less in the past 18 months that also have a Next Ask Amount of $251-$500.
• Create an appeal using similar language to this:Will you please leverage your support today by converting to a monthly gift?
• The reply card or phone-caller would offer an ask array where the total annual gift is within the Next Ask Amount ranges, which might be offered in descending order like this:$40/mo, $35/mo, $30/mo, $25/mo, Other _____.
• The ask array makes it easy for donors to increase their total annual giving to between $250 - $500.

• Select all donors that have made a single gift of $250-$749 in the past 18 months who also have a Next Ask Amount of $1,001 - $5,000.
• Create an appeal letter that focuses on one or several specific funding priorities, with a $1,000 to $5,000 ask, acknowledging what the upgraded amount would allow the organization to accomplish.Best practices for writing an effective appeal letter are below.
• The reply card would offer an ask array within the lower Next Ask Amount range for $1,001-$5,000, which might be offered in descending order:$2,500, $2,000, $1,200, $1,000, Other _____.

• Also, select all donors that have made a single gift of $750-$999 in the past 18 months who also have a Next Ask Amount of $1,001 - $5,000.
• Have gift officers make a phone call to these donors that first thanks them for their past gift and shares an example of how donations made a difference to someone’s life.Tell the donor that the organization wants to make the same difference to 100 more people’s lives.Let them know that you aren’t asking for a gift today, but that you’re sending a letter asking them to consider an upgraded gift and to expect to receive the letter shortly.Thank the donor again and let them known what a pleasure it was to speak with them personally on behalf of the executive team at the organization.(Be sure to have your talking points written out but do not read them word for word so to avoid sounding scripted.)
• If the donor does not answer the phone on the second attempt, leave a message that accomplishes the objectives above but is less than 1 minute in length.(Have voicemail talking points ready to go!)
• Then, send the same letter as above and have it hand-signed and addressed by the gift officer making the call or leaving the voicemail.

There’s a lot of information on here and it might have seemed a little overwhelming when you first saw it. It’s time to look at it again. It contains some of the same strategies that you’ve just examined – it’s a useful guide as you think and plan how to best move forward with your Fundraising Essentials results.

• Outline a problem your donor can solve
• Offer a simple, results-oriented solution
• Describe an attainable goal including what it will cost to solve the issue
• Give an example of what the funds raised will accomplish
• Use a unit of accomplishment - $100 pays for 300 meals

• Make an upfront ask – early in the letter – again at the end
• Include a string of giving levels appropriate for each donor where possible – use your Target Analytics Next Ask Amount ranges for each segment of prospects or for each individual if you have mastered using “IF” fields in a variable text letter
• Increase the gift’s value through a challenge or matching gift strategy
• Include an urgent reason for your giving deadline

• Use “You” rather than “I” or “We” in your letter
• Write for one reader – read your letter aloud to “hear” your words
• Tell a story using a conversational tone and avoid lots of data – again read your letter aloud to “listen” to your tone and choice of words
• Use visuals, such as pictures, where appropriate
• Ask the reader to join you in accomplishing something amazing
• Assume your reader is about to give, and thank him or her in advance

Testing new fundraising strategies, Next Ask Amount segments, different Donor Type Rating groups and new ask arrays take time, deliberate action, tracking and analysis – none of which occurs overnight or in a week’s time.