Enlist board help in thanking donors following end‐of‐year fundraising

• Published date: 01 January 2021
• Date: 01 January 2021
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/ban.31196

January 2021 • Volume 37, Number 5 3

DOI 10.1002/ban© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC • All rights reserved

Enlist board help in thanking

donors following end-of-year

fundraising

As 2021 fast approaches, your

organization’s end-of-year fun-

draising is likely in full gear. As

these donations come in, experts

say, you should be sure to put

your board to work in thanking

donors for their contributions to

the cause—which not only helps

put a smile on your support-

ers’ faces, but also helps lay the

groundwork for the next time you

ask them for a contribution.

According to Amy Eisen-

stein, a fundraising consultant

and CEO and co-founder of the

Capital Campaign Toolkit, board

members and executive directors

alike can pen thank-you letters

to donors, expressing gratitude

and demonstrating the impact

their support will have on the

ground. Eisenstein suggests

that these letters use distinct

language for first-time donors,

repeat donors and major donors,

with the goal of ensuring they

feel personalized and tailored to

the level of support provided by

the donor.

“The base of your thank you

letter can stay the same for most

donors, but you will want to write

a few personalized paragraphs

that can be swapped in and out

for different donors,” Eisenstein

writes on her blog.

She also suggests a series of

follow-up contacts—in writing

and over the phone—depend-

ing on the donation amount. For

example:

• For donations of $100 or

less, a tax receipt with a simple

thank-you letter, written within

a week or so of the donation, will

suffice.

• For donations of $101 up

to $500, that tax receipt letter

should be sent, followed by a

handwritten note from the execu-

tive director within two weeks,

a phone call by a board member

within two weeks and a follow-up

letter or email within six to eight

months.

• For donations of $501 to

$2,000, the letters and phone

calls should all be done within

a week of the gift, she said, and

the six-to-eight-month follow-

up should include a personal

note.

• For gifts of $2,001 and

above, she said the letters should

go out within a week, but the call

from the board member should

be made within a couple days of

the gift. The long-term follow-up

contact, she said, should be in

person.

And be sure to give your board

members guidance when it comes

to the thank-you phone calls,

Eisenstein said. Don’t assume

they know what to say, or how to

say it.

“If your board members will be

making thank you calls to do-

nors, draft some talking points

for them to use during their calls.

What difference did their dona-

tion really make? These calls

are a great opportunity to let the

donor know,” she said.

For more information and

tips on board recruitment and

retention, visit https://www.

amyeisenstein.com. ■

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