Sending Sunshine: 4 Easy Ways to Communicate Donor Impact

It’s January. For many of us, it is getting colder. The holidays have passed. There isn’t as much sunshine as there was a few months back—though we are getting more.

While we’ve encountered the college football championship—and the Super Bowl is on the horizon—this can be a more subdued time of year. It still gets dark pretty early, and if you are like me, your energy level often sinks a bit as the sun sets.

In many parts of the country, some of your best donors have found their way to warmer climates for a time.

Do you feel a bit different this time of year? I do.

If you do, chances are your donors and prospective donors do—or at least those who have not escaped to a warmer setting.

So, what can you do in the next few weeks to bring some “sunshine” to your donors? What can you do in the next 20 days to remind your donors who have left town for a bit of the impact that they are having on their home community.

What can you do? Here are four quick ideas:

• Call them and tell them a story that illustrates the impact that they are having—ideally something that has happened in the last two weeks.
• Send them a card with a few photos and stories about the people you serve.
• Call and ask for their advice on a challenge that you are facing.
• Ask if they can review/read some communications that you are testing to see if it resonates with donors.