Photos Make Priceless Donor Gifts

One of the best gifts you can give a donor is a photo of the people their gift is impacting.

When working with a camp, we always brought a camera on awareness tours. We would then send a few prints from our time together to the donor or prospective donor.

For donors, we would often frame a photo as a thank-you gift. More often than not, when we would make a follow-up visit to the donor’s office, we would see that framed photo proudly displayed.

A fun, little scrapbook also was prepared often as a donor gift—with a few photos of the donor and campers, and lots of photos of campers having fun and learning life skills. It's fun, creative and makes an impact.

Just like 90 percent of the time when we begin to look for our names in an annual report, I’ve never encountered donors or prospective donors who declined photos with campers, students, the list goes on. And even if they resist a bit, they already are checking their hair, necktie, etc., to be sure that they look their best.

Likewise, photos at your events are a strong connection. Photos that appear in business and society publications are even better. It praises your donors and leaders—and builds your brand. People want to be a part of a winning cause and a worthwhile group.

Many of your donors can buy anything that they want. But the good work and memories represented in a simple photo are priceless.