Recently a client organization was preparing to recommend to its board the creation of a loyal giving society. While preparing for that conversation I came across a thought that stopped me in my tracks. The idea could be positioned in this way:
“When thinking about donor loyalty who is being loyal to whom?”
(Thanks to Jay Love, co-founder of Bloomerang, for mentioning this concept in his book
Stay Together: How to Encourage a Lifetime of Donor Loyalty)
Do you think about what it might look like from the donor’s perspective to be thanked by your organization, one to which she has given, maybe for decades?
What might acknowledging her loyalty look like if you flipped the focus of the thank you?
It would mean first acknowledging each and every gift in a timely manner if you are not already doing so.
Then take this idea and apply it to the opening sections of an acknowledgment letter. Would you want to receive a letter containing this opening line?
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