Do You Know How To Write A Church Fundraising Letter?

Do you know how to write a church fundraising letter? Believe it or not that is one of the most asked questions on the Internet. As someone who develops church fundraising materials for a living, I get the question all the time. Appeal letters, written correctly and part of a larger church capital campaign communication effort, are one of the best ways to increase giving at your church. The key is writing them well. That is what I want to share with you in this post.

Do appeal letters actually work? The answer is, “Yes!” Churches, Christian schools and ministries still raise some of their annual or capital campaign giving through well-crafted appeal letters. Obviously, major funding needs/goals require a bigger effort in the form of nicely produced church fundraising materials for top-of-mind awareness and lasting impact. But I can assure you that fundraising letters do yield results, and are regularly incorporated. So, let’s learn from the good appeal letters, and get yours in the mail ASAP. But first, let’s establish some key points.

Vision drives dollars, even in a snail mail letter. The reason most direct mail letters fail for churches is not that they are not written well, but that the message is not appealing. Every appeal letter MUST touch the heart of the donor before they will send you any money. What is the vision driving the appeal of your letter (and overall fundraising campaign)?

Remember the “3 C’s of vision” that your letter MUST have. Make the vision of your appeal…

Clear – If I can’t make sense of what my gift will accomplish, I will not give.
Concise – Get to the point. I am a one-page appealguy. If you can’t state what the appeal is in one page, then no one will get where the dollars are going. They also won’t read the letter!
Compelling – The more compelling the message, the more effective the results.

Here are the top 10 writing tips for church fundraising letters:

Don’t be boring. I always try and tell a story of real life change that will make my letters interesting.
Start with a bang! If you don’t grab their attention in the first few lines they won’t read the letter and you won’t get any money.
Get in and get out. The second C of the vision is concise, so get to the point!
Personalize it. “Dear Mark,” is much better than “Dear Church member,”
Use bold and italic text. Just as your eye was drawn to the bold in my text so will your readers be drawn to your bold and italic text.
Use bullet points. People skim so make it easy for them to get the facts quickly.
Always include a PS. Studies show people almost always read a PS.
Always include a return envelope. Make it easy for people to respond, and they are more likely to give.
Consider inserts. Inserts allow you to say more, and they are almost always looked at even if your letter is not read. Consider sending a campaign-themed prayer bookmark or a short prayer devotional as a keepsake.
Write and send them! You won’t know if appeal letters work or not if you don’t first send them. So, get your letter in the mail!

Using these key tips, you can write an effective fundraising letter to accompany your campaign package of church fundraising materials. So, get started on crafting your letter today!