Sam­ple thank-you let­ters for you to swipe

Next to your fundrais­ing appeals, your thank-you let­ter is the most impor­tant com­mu­ni­ca­tion that a donor receives. So shouldn’t it sparkle with sincerity?

Written by
Lisa Sargent
Added
June 26, 2011

Profit from Lisa’s thank-you letter clinic

See Lisa’s original Thank-you letter clinic here. Now, specially for SOFII, the talented Lisa has prepared an annotated, instructive series of ‘before’ and ‘after’ thank-you letters from around the world. Click here to review the first seven of these, from five countries – Ireland, UK, USA, Canada and Australia. With thanks to all SOFII users who sent in their thank-you letters for Lisa’s clinic.

Here are eight examples to help inspire you as you write your next one.

Example 1, from the Ontario Science Centre, Toronto, Canada.

View original image

Example 2, from Menzies Research Institute, Tasmania, Australia.

View original image

Example 3, from the ALS Society of Canada, a medical research and welfare charity.

View original image

Example 4, from the Cancer Council of New South Wales, Australia.

View original image

Example 5, from Dunwoody College of Technology, Minneapolis, USA.

View original image

Example 6, from a UK-based conservation trust.

View original image

Example 7, from a children’s care and welfare charity in Ireland.

View original image

About the author: Lisa Sargent

Lisa Sargent

Lisa Sargent (she/her) is head of Sargent Communications. She helps non-profits raise more money and keep more donors through better donor communications. A creative strategist and copywriter, Lisa works exclusively with non-profits on direct mail, email fundraising and donor care communications – acquisition appeals, annual reports, proposals, welcome packages, newsletters, thank-you letters and more.

Lisa is a contributing author to acclaimed decision science book Change for Better and author of Thankology, on keeping your donors connected and giving through the power of gratitude (reviewed by SOFII’s Ken Burnett here). Lisa also publishes The Loyalty Letter, a free newsletter for non-profit and charitable organisations read by subscribers around the world. Lisa has contributed regularly contributed to SOFII over the years, including the wonderful thank you letter clinic, which you can read here.

Recent Articles

Open Letter to Tom Ralser re: The fallacy of ‘facts tell, stories sell’

Claire Axelrad responds to Tom Ralser’s opinion piece with an open letter. In it, Claire shares her perspective on storytelling, as a writer and fundraiser.

Read more

Matched funding challenge boosts Ken Burnett’s latest 500-mile quest

Thanks to the kindness and generosity of Chip Grizzard, the first £7,500 Ken raises will now be doubled! Could you help Ken reach his goal and raise even more for SOFII?

Read more

The fallacy of ‘facts tell, stories sell’

In a new addition to SOFII’s Opinions and Debates showcase, Tom Ralser shares his view on the notion that ‘facts tell, stories sell’. When it comes to fundraising, Tom feels that relying on stories alone isn’t always enough to create a great appeal AND convince your donor to give. 

Read more

Can fundraisers tell the difference between AI and human-written thank you letters?

Surprising survey results show that AI letters were rated higher by fundraisers than human-written letters. 

Read more

A medida que los donantes jóvenes empiezan a participar más, ¿están las organizaciones preparadas para ellos?

Las personas jóvenes están listas para apoyar a las organizaciones, pero la forma en la que te comunicas con ellas puede marcar una gran diferencia en que elijan o no tu causa. En este artículo, Anjali Bewtra de Blue State, comparte qué tomar en cuenta al comunicarse con este público, junto con ejemplos de entidades que ya lo están haciendo bien.

Read more

Also in Categories



    

Share