Tools to make your fundraising writing sparkle & shine
At my house we just finished our annual December watch of the 2009 British classic Nativity!.
I love this movie so much that I’ve had to get crafty with “alternative” streaming methods, ever since the grinchy Netflix overlords de-listed it for Americans.
(Like we don’t have enough problems on our hands!)
Anyhoo…. the children’s performances in the final scenes bring me joy every year.
And the feeling I get from “Sparkle & Shine”…
Well, it’s exactly how I want your donors to feel when they open your year-end appeals, thank-you notes, and stewardship messages.
Hiring a seasoned donor comms strategist and copywriter (like moi) is a sure-fire way to get there.
But if you’re DIY-ing it, you should know about these easy, FREE tools to help your writing Sparkle & Shine:
🌟 IMPROVE YOUR SUBJECT LINES 🌟
If your subject line doesn’t get your email OPENED, the rest doesn’t matter!
SendCheckIt will give you a helpful assessment and an overall score, checking issues like readability, sentiment, and spam triggers.
🌟 BOOST YOUR READABILITY 🌟
Your donors are busy people in a loud, loud world.
At least half of your job as a fundraising writer is to pave a clear, easy, frictionless path to connect emotionally to your cause and take helpful action.
In Bloomerang’s Comms Audit Tool, just copy and paste your writing to get an assessment of both donor-centricity and readability.
🌟 WATCH OUT FOR TROUBLESOME WORDS 🌟
Every year the Big Duck agency publishes their annual Words to Avoid list for the nonprofit sector. Use it thoughtfully to strengthen your donor comms — or at least to spark a conversation with your team.
Extra points if you reference the Words to Avoid GLOSSARY, containing all 16 years of language to think twice about.
💡 If you haven’t used these tools before, give them a try and let me know what you think?
I’m wishing you a successful year-end. And a peaceful holiday season with your loved ones.
Even if it’s just for a moment… May our hearts be light.