It’s the end of the year – in fact, this episode is actually being released ON CHRISTMAS EVE… so Merry Christmas! 

The end of the year is a GREAT time to check in with your donors with an email! 

Truth be told, it’s ALWAYS a great time to check in with your donors – any time you have a good reason to check in with them, or give them an update on what’s going on with your nonprofit, you are growing your relationship with them.

Your relationship with your donors is the BIGGEST part of them giving you money. If you have a good relationship with your donors – you keep in touch CONSISTENTLY, you make them feel good – like the hero.  You let them know their donation is making a difference – they will want to give you money!

So really, this is a great time to send them an email… Think about it…at this time of year, you love hearing from people you care about…whether a card in the mail or with an email. So reach out and let your donors know you care.

Now, maybe you over-achieved and your nonprofit actually did send out a Christmas card to your donors… But maybe you didn’t… and now, it’s too late for you to jump on that train this year. 

But it isn’t too late!

Even if you DID send out a Christmas card, sending out another email with a “little season’s greetings, thanks for your support this past year, here’s what we accomplished this year with your support” is still a GREAT idea!  And if you didn’t send out a greeting, now you can send out a warm, feel-good email to express your gratitude and say Merry Christmas to your donors, volunteers and the people you serve too! It is the EASIEST and FASTEST way to grow your relationships with the people that matter to your organization.

Do it before the end of the first week of the New Year. That’s PLENTY of time to write 3 sentences – that’s all it has to be for this type of end of the year check-in email. Write 3 sentences and include a great picture.

To make it easy for you in the future – so you have some in-depth direction of where to go with your emails to your donors, this week I’m sharing with you a replay of Episode 13: 5 Things You NEED to Know About Email Newsletters

This episode is packed full of tips and tricks for writing the BEST EMAIL EVER! 

Remember to keep in mind my little analogy -  that your donors and supporters are like plants growing in a garden.  They are getting watered with Facebook and Instagram and if you add EMAIL, it’s like giving these plants FERTILIZER!  The result? Your plants will be in full bloom year-round! 

Why email? Because according to recent research, people prefer email for communicating with the brands they’re connected with – yes, that includes your nonprofit organization. 

If your nonprofit has multiple audiences you’re talking to (donors and supporters, people you serve), you can use separate email lists to nurture your relationships with each group. 

Here are the 5 Things You NEED to Know About Email Newsletters:

1. Write a great subject line. Think about it – if you get an email with a weak or boring subject line, do you want to open that email? No… probably not! You might even just delete it without even opening it, especially if it’s a business or an organization. So, try to make your subject line genuine, interesting and of course, in-line with what your email is about.
2. Use the right framework: A picture, a paragraph and a call to action. Why? Because it WORKS! The picture captures someone’s attention right off the bat, the paragraph goes into more detail, and the call to action clearly lets that person know what they should do after they read the email. 
3. Put the most important information first. Pretend like you only have ONE SENTENCE to tell someone what your email is about. Make that the first sentence of your email. Start strong and tell them right away what your email is about in that first sentence.
4. Keep it simple and short. Your emails should be a quick and easy read and about ONE TOPIC. Try to keep your emails to about 200 words, or about 20 lines - if it needs to be longer, or shorter, that’s OK – but just remember, take out anything that your audience doesn’t have to know about. If it’s not going to help your audience take action, then leave it out.  
5. Give them something. Give them a reason to OPEN and read your email. Remember, they’re asking themselves:  ‘Why does this matter to me?”

If you have two email lists – one list for your donors and supporters, and one for the people you serve, you’re going to give these two groups of people two different things. 

You’re going to give your donors and supporters the uplifting, positive feelings they get because they are helping the community or a cause. 

For the people you serve, you’re giving them resources in your emails - small, digestible pieces of information that can help them - like a class or list or freebie. 

Serve your audiences with ONE TOPIC in every email. It’s all part of building that know, like and trust factor. 

Again, be consistent with when you email your people  – at the beginning, try sending out an email just once a month.  Then work up to once a week, but again, the most important thing is that you are consistent. So, commit to a goal you can achieve.

And finally, always remember WHY YOU ARE DOING THIS! There is so much day to day stuff that can be overwhelming and distracting from your purpose and your mission, but always remember your WHY. What was it that first inspired you to get involved with your nonprofit organization? Take ownership of that! Keep that fire burning in your heart! You are making a difference in the world. A big difference is the culmination of a lot of little steps. So, take that next little step today, and get to work on your next email! You ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE! What you’re doing MATTERS. 

Remember to check out the free tools we have on NonprofitPotential.com like the easy-to-understand guide for how to make REALLY GOOD Facebook and Instagram posts.

Get access to the free guide now at Nonprofit Potential.com

Episode 7: NonprofitPotential.com/7

Email me your “how do I…” questions about Facebook or Instagram – I’d love to answer you on the podcast. nonprofitpotential.com/contact

Let’s be friends… Find me on social media and let me know what kind of nonprofit or business you’re working with! Here’s where to find me:

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If links are not visible in your podcast app, visit the Episode Webpage and Show Notes at https://nonprofitpotential.com/27