End-of-Year Mail Appeal Campaign with Carl Paulsen

Price: $200 per organization, $100 w Scholarship


10/22 - Pull your mailing list

    1. Using ready-made reports, create a list of prospective donors and insert them in a campaign.

HOMEWORK: Cull the list and finalize it.

10/23 - Optional webinar on writing your appeal letter with Amy O'Connor

Price: ($50 per organization)

    1. The needed elements of a package
    2. The difference between letters to major donors vs. letters to the rest of their donors
    3. How to structure an appeal,
    4. Tone, length, etc.

HOMEWORK: Write your letter and gather photos for it.  (Optional sessions with Amy to work on your appeal letter.)

 

10/29 - Set up the campaigns and tracking

    1. Create the campaign(s) for your End of Year appeal.
    2. Add donors from your reports, and estimate returns.

HOMEWORK: Generate initial reports on progress

 

11/5 - Help session on the mail merge.

    1. HOMEWORK: Send out the mailing.  (Carl available to help out.)

 

11-6 (Carl and Baird) OPTIONAL session on coordinated emails and online campaign.

Many donors prefer to give online.  WaterGrass can track their donations in the same campaign, so you don't mistakenly go back to donors who have already given - and so you know who to follow up with again.

    1. Create online payment page(s);
    2. Link them to your campaign;
    3. Create a schedule of emails with links to your payment pages.

HOMEWORK: Finalize and test payment page(s) in your online payment system.  Draft your emails.  We suggest one email that goes out before the mailing, one after the mailing, and one right before December 31st.

 

11/19 - Tracking results.

 

12/3 Pulling follow-up lists and mailing them.

    1. HOMEWORK: Send follow-up letters to members of your high donor group who have not yet given.

 

1/16 Final evaluations

    1. HOMEWORK: Share the results in your organization, and with other participants.
    2. Carl send out anonymized list of results to the WG list.

End-of-Year Major Donor Campaign with Baird Straughan

Price: $100 per organization


10/23 - Optional webinar on writing your appeal letter with Amy O'Connor

Price: ($50 per organization)

    1. The needed elements of a package
    2. The difference between letters to major donors vs. letters to the rest of their donors
    3. How to structure an appeal,
    4. Tone, length, etc.

HOMEWORK: Write your letter and gather photos for it.  (Optional sessions with Amy to work on your appeal letter.)

10/31 - Set up your major donor campaign and generate your major donor list.

    1. Create a child campaign for your major donor cultivation
    2. Add prospects to the campaign via a report
    3. Tag major donors using the Major Donor Now field to avoid including them in other fundraising mailings
    4. Learn how to cull the list to remove individuals
    5. Create a calendar of cultivation contacts (ie. letters, phone calls, events)

HOMEWORK: Plan your cultivation steps (usually one or two cultivation events, then a phone call or personal ask.)

 

11/7 - Create flow of reminders for major donors.

(The biggest challenge with major donor programs is staying on top of the contacts with prospects and making sure that they're done on time.  Automating reminders helps with that.)

    1. Create prospective donations, with amounts and solicitors.  Set the stage to "Prospect."  Set next step date and next step.
    2. Create reminder emails.
    3. Create automated workflows to send those reminders at certain times.
    4. If some of your  board members are willing to solicit, assign the prospects to the solicitors.
    5. Outline of an appeal to your board members.

HOMEWORK: Assign prospects to solicitors, if you have board members or others who take responsibility for soliciting their friends, acquaintances, or businesses.  Send the initial mailing.

 

11/14 - Tracking Progress

    1. Reports to help you track progress.

HOMEWORK: Send out the mailing.  (Carl available to help out.)

11/21 - Tracking progress and nudging solicitors (or yourself)

HOMEWORK: Follow up with donors and solicitors.

 

12/12 Optional check-in: Tracking results and nudging solicitors

HOMEWORK: Follow up with donors and solicitors.

 

1/16 Final evaluations

    1. HOMEWORK: Share the results in your organization, and with other participants.
    2. Carl send out anonymized list of results to the WG list.