Special Report: A Walk Through ?a Web Site Audit

Lastly, once a donor has provided an online gift, is there a heartfelt, automatically generated thank-you e-mail? This e-mail should not only thank the donor, but mention that she will hear from you very shortly. Within a day or less, you should send another personal, warm and gracious e-mail thanking the donor and providing a receipt. This should not feel like a form e-mail, but an actual note from someone in your organization. Many of the principles of writing direct mail also apply to e-mail, and the way you thank donors is certainly one of them.

If your Web site is already doing all of these things, congratulations, you have a donor-friendly site. If not, then I hope this bit of friendly advice helps you and your organization. FS

Richard DeVeau is owner/creative director of Richard DeVeau Copy Writing & Creative Direction. Reach him at radeveau@aol.com