Personal Touch Casts Its Spell in Magical Email from My High School's New Fundraiser

There's no tool like the personal touch, in nonprofit marketing or marketing at large. Let me tell you what I mean.

I recently received an email from Anne Burns, the new fundraiser at my high school. Nothing new at first glance, since I'm constantly receiving giving appeals from  Baldwin. But when I took a second glance at the subject line--A New Face in the Advancement Department--I decided to open the email.

What I found was a warm introductory note from Anne. Here's how she earned my interest and wins my heart (a first for Baldwin, where I usually leave the giving to others):

• She tells me her career story -- "In the last 11 years since I have left Baldwin, I have had three jobs..."
• She makes me feel that my alma mater (and hers) is special, in a way that reminds me of my own experience there -- "Walking through school on my first morning, I actually had that back to school feeling that I haven't felt in ages."
• She offers to help me out in any way that she can -- answering a question, responding to a suggestion -- so it's not the usual one-way request conversation.
• She encourages me to act now, while I'm thinking about Baldwin, and makes it easy for me to do so via email or phone -- "Now we need your help nominating outstanding alumnae for three honors."
• She closes with an extremely personal story, generating even more investment on my part and ensuring I'll remember this email for longer than the norm.-- "My husband and I are expecting our first child in about two weeks, but I'll have access to email throughout if you want to be in touch." Talk about accessibility.

Well done, Anne. Take a cue from Anne and communicate with the kind of personal touch that casts a spell (in the most authentic, positive way, of course) on your organization's target audiences.

Learn more ways to connect with your audiences in:
5 Tips for Writing Nonprofit Marketing Copy that Works

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Comments

[Terry Kammes]

Thank you for this article - it came just as my agency is about to begin our own e-newsletter, and I plan to use this as a template for my introduction in our first issue. Thank you for an article that has real-life and immediate application.