Hand written thank you note Archives

14 May 2019

Stephen Mally Facebook, Fundraising, Hand written thank you note, Instagram, LinkedIn, Non-profit, Social media, Stewardship, Thank you, Thank you call, Thank you email, thank you note, Twitter

Thank you – an easy thing to say

It is the easiest task to do, yet it is often times overlooked in our day-to-day responsibilities. In the rush to get stuff done, including finding new donors, asking for that next big gift, we are overlooking the most important task. I am talking about saying thank you to donors, volunteers, and staff.

We all need to take the pledge – one thank you call, email, or handwritten note a week.

We have more tools to actually say thank you today than ever before. It is often times the “old fashioned” way to do it – the handwritten note – that stands out in donors, volunteers, and staff minds.

We receive most of our communications today via electronic format. Communications flow in via email, voice mail, SMS, or via social media channels like Facebook, Facebook messenger, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Yet, what do we actually receive that is highly personalised and handwritten besides a birthday card or an occasional invite to a formal event like a wedding? Even those communications are moving more and more electronic.

This leaves me to argue, as fundraisers, we need to communicate more in handwriting. Thank you notes are a perfect place to start.

Reasons to send a handwritten thank you

There are a variety of reasons and ways to thank individuals for the fantastic support they offer your non-profit organisation. Reasons for handwritten communications may include:

A birthday.
An anniversary.
Honouring someone for achievements in your community.
A significant donation.
A donor’s giving milestone
- A ten-year giving anniversary.
Volunteer service milestones.
A note to recognise a staff person who has gone above and beyond.

Think about who you will write a personal thank you to this week. Think about who you will call to thank. Try to say thank you via the most personal channel as possible.

30 Oct 2015

Stephen Mally Donor care, FundraisingForce, hand written note, Hand written thank you note, Stewardship, University of Queensland

University of Queensland understands good stewardship

Good stewardship – made simple. That’s what University of Queensland understands. On Tuesday of this week, I received a hand written note from a third year pharmacy student thanking me for my recent contribution to the University of Queensland.

When was the last time you received a hand written note? Maybe a birthday or Christmas card, but rarely anything more. When you receive a hand written piece in Post, it stands out in your letterbox amongst the mountain of machine-processed mail. The added personalisation matters. Not every piece of mail could be produced in this manner due to volume and time constraints. However, pieces like this one, received from University of Queensland, make a difference when hand written.

What also matters about this piece is the fact it is not just hand written, but it comes from a student receiving financial support from many donors across the university.

I wrote a FundraisingForce blog post about the gift giving experience with University of Queensland and the dynamic call received from a student. This hand written note is just one more step University of Queensland take to engage people like me, giving small amounts of money on a routine basis. Want to improve your organisation’s stewardship? Look to University of Queensland as a model.

10 Jun 2014

Stephen Mally Donor care, hand written note, Hand written thank you note, personalised note

Hand Written Thank You Notes? That’s Time Consuming

Hand written thank you notes may be time consuming, but think of the difference they make. When was the last time you received a hand written note of any kind? Besides Christmas and Birthday cards, which are becoming more rare each year, it is high unlikely you will receive many, if any, hand written cards this year. Think back to your childhood (I may be dating myself here) when our parents wrote their parents and other relatives letters, rather than placing long distance telephone calls, and people took the time to say thank you in the most personalised fashion possible – with pen to paper.

A recent news story out of the US called this to my attention and required me to take a moment to write (OK, type) about this very thing.

Why aren’t more charities taking the time to thank those important to them via a hand written note? Our heroes including our donors, volunteers, clients and staff deserve to have us take the time to thank them and to recognise them via a personalised note or phone call.

Take the pledge – write a personalised note or call one donor each day this week. Experience the difference this will make, as “Doc” Emrick has, with his outreach. In addition to the gratitude you will show those close to your organisation, think about the impact this will have on your donor relations.

Does your organisation send personal notes or place phone calls to constituents who are closest to your organisation? Have you seen that this strategy made a difference?