planning

Why It’s Important for Nonprofits to Have a Thank You Plan

Ann Green direct mail, donor engagement, donor relations, donor retention, gratitude, planning, thank you letters, writing , , , , , , ,

Thanking your donors is just as important, if not more important than fundraising. Yet many nonprofits spend a lot of time putting together a fundraising campaign and then treat thanking their donors as an afterthought.

Donor retention continues to be a problem. One of the many reasons is because people don’t feel appreciated. Prioritizing gratitude and donor relations will help. If you don’t do a good job of thanking your donors, as well as building relationships throughout the year, you’ll have a hard time getting people to donate again.

This is why having a thank you plan is crucial. It’s not only important when you’re running a fundraising campaign, but also during the “between times.”

Many organizations just thank their donors after they receive a gift and then vanish until the next fundraising appeal. Plus, when they do thank their donors, they do a poor job of it. Your donors deserve better than that. 

Thanking your donors is something you need to do throughout the year – at least once a month, if you can. A thank you plan will help you stay focused on gratitude all year round.  

Here’s what you need to include in your thank you plan.

Plan to make a good first impression with your thank you landing page

Your landing page is your first chance to say thank you and it shouldn’t resemble Amazon checkout. It should make a person feel good about donating.

Open with Thank you, Lisa! or You’re amazing! Using a person’s name is always good. Include an engaging photo or video and a short, easy-to-understand description of how the donation will help your clients/community.

If you use a third-party giving site, you might be able to customize the landing page. If not, follow up with a personal thank you email message within 48 hours.

Plan to write a warm and personal automatic thank you email

Set up an automatic thank you email to go out after someone donates online. This email thank you is more of a reassurance to let your donor know you received her donation. You still need to thank her by mail or phone.

Even before AI came into the picture, many thank you emails sounded like they were written by robots. Make sure you sound like a human and write something warm and personal. Remember to address your donor by name.

Give some thought to the email subject line, too. At the very least, make sure it says something like Thank you for your generous gift or You did something great today and not anything boring like Your Donation Tax Receipt or Donation Received. And please stop using words like transaction and processed. A donation is not a transaction. It’s the start or continuation of a relationship. 

I could write a whole post on subject lines, but right now I do want to emphasize how important it is to write a good one. I’ll share one more – This is why I’m grateful for you. This was sent from an organization that shared a success story and thanked me for helping make that happen. 

Put all the tax-deductible information at the end of your email, after you pour on the appreciation.

One way to increase your personalization is to blind copy someone on the development staff each time the initial email acknowledgment goes out. Then send an additional email with a more personal note, acknowledging whether that person is a new donor, repeat donor, etc. You should still send something by mail or make a phone call (more on that below), since donors often miss email messages, especially if there’s not an enticing reason to open them.

Plan to thank your donors by mail or phone

I’m a firm believer that every donor, no matter how much she’s given or whether she donated online, gets a thank you card or letter mailed to her or receives a phone call.

Try to thank your donors within 48 hours or within a week at the latest. That might sound hard to do, but it will be easier if you plan to carve out some time to thank your donors each day you get a donation. Remember, thanking your donors should be a priority. If you wait too long, you’re not making a good impression.

Instead of sending the usual generic thank you letter, mail a handwritten card or call your donors. Find board members, staff, and volunteers to help you with this. Make sure to get your team together well before your next fundraising campaign so you’re ready to roll when the donations come in. 

I’m a big fan of handwritten thank you cards and you’ll stand out if you can send one. I get a few of them a year and they tend to come from the same organizations, which shows you what they prioritize! These may be more feasible than making phone calls. Not everyone likes to get phone calls, but some people do. This is why it’s important to know your donors’ communication preferences (more on that below).

Here’s a sample thank you note that could also be used as a phone script.

Dear Tim,

You’re amazing! Thanks to your generous donation of $50, we can continue to provide neighborhood families with healthy food. This is great. We’re seeing more people come in right now because of rising food costs and cuts in benefits.

We really appreciate your support over the last five years.

Sincerely,

Lauren Caldwell

Board Member, Riverside Community Food Pantry

If you can’t send handwritten cards or call all your donors, send them a personal and heartfelt letter. If you’ve been using the same letter template for a while, take time to freshen it up. Don’t start your letter with On behalf of X organization, we thank you for your donation of…. 

Open your letter with You’re incredible or Because of you, the Taylor family can finally move into their own home. Create separate letters for new donors (new donors should also get a welcome package), renewing donors, and monthly donors. Be sure it’s personalized and include at least one photo.

It doesn’t need to look like a form letter. You could use a different format, such as a postcard. For a thank you right after a gift, I would put a postcard in an envelope. You can send stand-alone postcards at other times of the year.

Your thank you letter should be all about thanking the donor – no bragging, no explaining what you do, no asking (definitely not that)– just thanking.

You can add a personal handwritten note to the letter, preferably something that pertains to that particular donor. For example, if the donor has given before, mention that. Hand sign the letters, if you can.

Just like with fundraising appeals, your envelope matters. Use something besides a white #10 envelope. Maybe a colored or oversized envelope. It shouldn’t look like a bill or junk mail. Go all out to make it personal. Hand address the envelopes if possible or print directly on them. Use stamps, if you can. I recommend investing in Thank You stamps.

In addition, write your thank you letter at the same time you write your appeal letter. Make sure they’re ready to go as soon as the donations come in. Don’t wait three weeks. Timeliness is important, and so is quality.

Plan to keep thanking your donors all year round

This is where having a thank you plan makes a difference because as I mentioned before – thanking your donors is something you must do all year round. 

You can use your communications calendar to incorporate ways to thank your donors, but why not go one step further and create a specific thank you calendar?

Remember to try to say thank you at least once a month. Here are some ways to do that. 

  • Send cards or email messages at Thanksgiving, during the holidays, on Valentine’s Day, or mix it up a little and send a note of gratitude in June or September when your donors may not be expecting it. Try to send at least one or two gratitude messages a year by mail, since your donors will be more likely to see those. And you don’t need a holiday or special occasion to thank your donors. Thank them just because….
  • Invite your donors to connect with you via email and social media. Keep them updated on your success and challenges. Making all your communications donor-centered will help convey an attitude of gratitude. Be sure to keep thanking your donors in your newsletter and other updates. Emphasize that you wouldn’t be able to do the work you do without their generous support.
  • Create a thank you video and share it on your thank you landing page, by email, and on social media. Go one step further and personalize it. 
  • Reach out to your donors on the anniversary of their giving (not your organization’s anniversary). Don’t overlook your dedicated, long-time donors.
  • Send a warm-up letter or email about a month before your next campaign (no ask). This is a great way to show appreciation BEFORE you send your appeals.
  • Hold an open house or offer tours. You could also create a virtual tour or a behind-the-scenes look at your organization.
  • Keep thinking of other ways to thank your donors. You can repeat some of the ones listed above over the year.

The tactics that work best will differ for each organization. Again, I would definitely send something by mail a few times a year. Email and social media may not be as successful, especially if your donors don’t use electronic communication very much. Plus, people get an enormous amount of email and social media messages, sometimes way too much.

I recommend surveying your donors to find out their communication preferences. What do they like – mail, email, phone, text, social media, video, or a combination of those?  Find out their interests, too. This will help you with your engagement.

Creating a thank you plan will make it easier to keep showing appreciation to your donors all year round. You need your donors, especially if your revenue goals are down, so remember to put gratitude front and center.

Use This Checklist to Help You Plan Your Year-End Fundraising Campaign

Ann Green database, direct mail, fundraising, gratitude, planning, year-end appeal , , , , ,

Can you believe it’s already August? And it won’t be too long until September rolls around. I know it’s hard to think about fall when it’s been sweltering all over the world for most of the summer. I was in Colorado a few weeks ago for a family wedding and it was HOT. It made me wish for fall (my favorite season). Summer does tend to fly by, though, and fall will be here before you know it. I’m already seeing Halloween candy at the grocery store and pretty soon we’ll be seeing all things pumpkin spice.

If you’re doing a year-end fundraising campaign, you’ll want to start planning it now, hopefully in an air-conditioned space. You don’t want to wait too long, especially if you’re behind in your revenue goals.

I’ve put together a checklist to help you get started. You can also use this for fundraising campaigns at other times of the year.

How much money do you need to raise?

You may have already set a goal for your year-end campaign in your 2026 fundraising plan (at least I hope you did), and maybe that has changed. 

You must determine how much money you need to raise before you start your campaign and raising as much as we can is not a goal.

Do you have a campaign plan?

Put together a plan or brief for your campaign that includes a timeline, a task list that includes who will do what, and the different channels you’ll use. Make it as detailed as possible.

I strongly encourage you to mail an appeal letter. Direct mail appeals are more successful. You can also send an email appeal and follow up with email, as well. 

When do you want to launch your appeal? If you’ve experienced funding cuts and are behind in your fundraising goals, you might want to start your campaign earlier – maybe in October. Make sure your goal is to have the letters done at least a week before that, because things always take longer than you think they will. Work backwards to figure out how you can get to your proposed send date.

Keep in mind you’ll be competing with a lot of other organizations that are doing appeals. Think about how you can make yours stand out.

Also, how are you mailing your appeal? Do you use a mail house or get staff and volunteers together to stuff envelopes? Either way, plan ahead, so you’re not scrambling at the last minute.

Do you have a good story and photo to share?

If you’ve been using the same boring, generic appeal letter template for the last few years, it’s time for a refresh. It’s a good idea to revise your templates at least once a year. Situations keep changing and usually not for the better, so you need to take that into account.

A good way to start is to create an engaging story for your appeal. What challenges are your clients/community facing? Many people are struggling right now. Focus on them, not your organization. Each year is different and this is why you need new stories.  

You’ll want some good photos for your letter and donation page, too. Quotes and testimonials from clients will also enhance your appeal.

How can your donors help you make a difference?

Your appeal letter should focus on a need and let your donors know how they can help you make a difference. You might want to start by creating an outline.

You may be seeing more people at your food pantry because of rising food costs and cuts in benefits. Maybe your clients are struggling to find affordable housing.

You can also highlight some of the accomplishments you’ve made recently and state what you would like to do in the coming year, although these are usually more appropriate for a newsletter or impact report. 

One way to frame it is to describe a situation such as this. You run a tutoring program in your community and work with students who are falling behind in school. You can describe how thanks to your generous donors, your one-to-one tutoring program has helped students get better grades and are now less likely to be held back a year. You want to keep that going and serve more students.

Remember to focus on your clients/community and don’t brag about your organization.

Are your mailing lists in good shape?

Make sure your mailing lists are up to date. Check for duplicate addresses and typos. Your donors don’t want to receive three letters at the same time or have their names misspelled. Take a little time to do some data hygiene. Give your email list some attention, too.

Also, now is a good time to segment your mailing lists – current donors, monthly donors, lapsed donors, event attendees, etc. This is so important. Your current donors are your best source of donations. You should have more success if you can personalize your appeal letters. Acknowledge if someone has donated in the past or is a monthly donor. Donors like it when you recognize them for who they are, so don’t send everyone the same appeal.

Do you have enough letterhead, envelopes, and stamps?

Don’t wait until September or October to check your supply of letterhead and envelopes. Make sure you have enough. 

Speaking of envelopes, something besides the standard white business envelope can improve your response rate. Think about using an oversized, colored, or embellished envelope. If that’s not possible, don’t use a window envelope because it resembles a bill. A general rule is that you don’t want any of your direct mail pieces to look like a bill or junk mail.

Even though many people donate online, you want to make it easy for donors who prefer to mail a check. Include a pledge envelope or a return envelope and a preprinted form with the donor’s contact information and the amount of their last gift. 

Stamps are more personal, so you could find some nice ones to use. 

Is it easy to donate online?

Be sure your donation page is user-friendly and consistent with your other fundraising materials. Using a branded donation page and not a third-party site is best. Highlight your year-end appeal on your homepage and include a prominent Donate Now button.

One way to ensure a good experience is to have someone on your staff or, even better, someone outside of your organization make a donation on your website. If they want to run out of the room kicking and screaming, then you have work to do.

Do you offer a monthly or recurring giving option?

I’m a huge fan of monthly giving. It’s a win-win for your organization. You can raise more money, boost your retention rate, receive a steady stream of revenue, and allow your donors to spread out their gifts.

If you don’t have a monthly giving program or have a small one, don’t wait any longer to start one or grow the one you have. Be sure to highlight it as a giving option.

Do you want to find a major funder who will give a matching gift?

Another good way to raise additional revenue is to find a major funder to match a portion or all of what you raise in your year-end appeal. If you want to go down this route, now would be a good time to reach out to these potential funders. 

How will you thank your donors?

Be sure to spend as much time on your thank you letter/note as you do on your appeal letter and write them at the same time. And if it’s been a while since you’ve freshened up your thank you templates, you know what you need to do. It’s so important to thank your donors and thank them well as soon as you receive their gifts, so have a thank you letter/note ready to go. Don’t treat thanking your donors as an afterthought.

Handwritten notes and phone calls are much better than a preprinted letter. Create or buy some thank you cards and start recruiting board members and volunteers to make thank you calls or write notes. 

You’ll want to put together a welcome plan for your new donors and that also needs to be ready to roll after the donations come in.

How will you keep up with your donor communication?

Even though you’ll be busy with your fundraising campaign, you want to ramp up your donor communication this fall. Keep engaging your donors and other supporters (who may become donors) by sharing updates and gratitude. Pour on the appreciation! 

Send at least one warm-up letter or email. I’m a big fan of postcards. You could create a thank you video or a video that gives a behind-the-scenes look at your organization. Maybe you could hold an open house or offer tours. Just don’t disappear until appeal time. 

Yes, we’re in a period of economic uncertainty. Some donors may not give as much or at all, but others will give more. They won’t give anything if you don’t ask.

There’s still plenty of time to go to the beach and get ice cream this summer, but right now find that air-conditioned space and start planning your year-end campaign.

Best of luck!

Is Your Nonprofit Meeting Its Fundraising and Communications Goals?

Ann Green Communications, donor engagement, fundraising, gratitude, planning , , , ,

Can you believe we’re already halfway through 2026? It’s been another tumultuous year so far, especially in the U.S, although the World Cup is bringing us some much-needed joy. 

The midpoint of the year is a good time to see if you’re meeting your fundraising and communications goals. For this post, I’m assuming your fiscal year is the same as the calendar year. If you’re on a different fiscal cycle, you can make the appropriate time adjustments.

Your fundraising revenue may be down. You might have lost some federal funding, and cuts in federal funding can trickle down to the state and local levels.

Even though we’re in an uncertain economy, that doesn’t mean you should stop fundraising. Never stop fundraising! Donors will give if they can.

You may need to make some changes to your fundraising plan and other goals. And, if you never made a fundraising plan for this year, stop right there and put one together now and use it for the remainder of the year. Always have a plan.

Take a look at what’s working and what’s not. It will be different for every organization. If you’re doing okay, keep it up, although your circumstances could change. If you’re falling short, figure out where you need to make changes.

If you’re relying too much on grants and events and those aren’t bringing in the revenue you need, focus more on individual giving. Many nonprofits raise the most money from individual giving. 

Summer is usually a less busy time for nonprofits. Take advantage of that with these suggestions to help you stay on track this year.

Start or enhance your monthly giving program

Monthly giving is doable for all sizes of nonprofit organizations, even small ones. It’s a great way to raise more money, as well as your donor retention rate. Retention rates for monthly donors are considerably better than other retention rates. You’ll have a steady stream of income and it may be more feasible for your donors, especially if they’re feeling pinched financially. It’s also one of the few types of fundraising that’s growing right now.

If you don’t have a monthly giving program, start one now. To get more monthly donors, send a special targeted letter to current donors inviting them to become monthly donors. This is a good opportunity to upgrade smaller dollar donors, or any donors for that matter.

Small gifts of $5 or $10 a month can make a difference. You could also get larger gifts of $10 or $20 a month. Again, this can be more appealing than giving a bigger sum all at once.

Also, this is a good time to do something special for your current monthly donors. Send them a thank you postcard or email. They’ve made a commitment to you – now make a commitment to them.

I’ve always been a big fan of monthly giving, even more so over the last several years. They’re one of your most committed donor groups. 

Having a strong monthly giving program is going to be a big help if you’re worried about meeting your fundraising goals.

Look into higher levels of giving

Another advantage of monthly giving is that these donors are more likely to become mid-level, major, and legacy donors. Starting a major gift program will take time, but it’s doable even for small organizations. Look into starting one soon. Organizations with strong major gift programs tend to do better financially. Look into starting a legacy program, too. Bequest giving is also on the rise.

Get in touch with your lapsed donors

This could also be a good time to reach out to donors who haven’t given for a year or two. There are many reasons for that. Maybe they can’t afford to give right now. Maybe you’re doing a poor job with your donor communication. Maybe they were busy and forgot. Send them an engaging, personal appeal saying how much you’ve appreciated their support, state your need, and ask them to give a gift.

Don’t assume donors aren’t going to give right now.  Although if you hear from a donor who says they can’t give at this time, respect that. Most likely, your need is growing, and remember, many donors will help if they can. 

Ramp up your donor engagement

Since summer is usually a slower time for fundraising, it’s a good time to show some donor appreciation and plan for fall. Don’t disappear over the summer.

Some donors will pull back on their giving, but that doesn’t mean ignoring them. Keep engaging with them to help ensure they’ll give again, if they can. Remember the ask, thank, report, repeat formula, with a focus on thanking and reporting. 

Make improvements to your donor communication

Many nonprofits can do a better job of communicating with their donors. Are you one of them?  Look at metrics such as website visits and email open rates. I know these don’t always tell the whole story, but if you’re not seeing a lot of engagement, figure out why.

Often, it’s because your content is boring or it’s too long. Maybe it’s hard to read because of poor layout and design. You could also be targeting the wrong audience. Summer is a good time to make some changes. Do a marketing audit to see where you’re falling short.

It’s not too late, yet

If you’re falling behind in your goals, you still have time to do better, but you need to make an effort.

Be sure to keep evaluating your progress for the rest of the year. Remember, even if you’re doing okay now, circumstances can change. I would recommend monitoring your progress more frequently (once a month instead of once a quarter) so you can try to stay on track. You don’t want to get caught off guard. 

Keep monitoring your progress to help ensure a successful year.

How To Encourage Donors To Make Bequests to Your Nonprofit

Ann Green Communications, donation page, fundraising, legacy giving, planning , , , ,

Looking to inspire legacy gifts at your organization? Explore these planned giving marketing ideas to connect with supporters and grow long-term funding.

By Patrick Schmitt 

Building a reliable pipeline of legacy gifts is essential for securing your organization’s long-term financial health and sustaining your programs well into the future. However, initiating conversations about bequests (gifts made through wills or trusts) can feel intimidating for development teams.

Ultimately, success comes down to clear, educational communication with donors rather than aggressive solicitation. By focusing on stewardship, you can naturally introduce the concept of legacy giving while strengthening your current relationships. To guide your approach, we’ll explore several donor-centric strategies to communicate the value of bequests to your community.

Design comprehensive planned giving brochures

Providing your supporters with accessible, easy-to-understand educational materials is a foundational step in any legacy giving strategy. Creating a dedicated brochure, whether distributed physically at events or digitally via email, gives donors the space to learn about their options on their own timeline without feeling pressured.

FreeWill’s guide to planned giving brochures lays out five essential elements to include:

Alt text: A summary of the components to include in your planned giving brochures

  1. Gift descriptions: Explain the different types of legacy gifts, such as bequests or beneficiary designations, using simple language so donors fully grasp their options.
  2. Impact stories: Share examples of how previous legacy gifts have advanced your nonprofit’s mission.
  3. Tax benefit overviews: Briefly highlight the potential financial advantages for the donor and their heirs, while advising them to consult their own financial planner.
  4. Essential legal details: Provide the information donors need to complete their forms, such as your organization’s full legal name and tax ID (EIN).
  5. Actionable next steps: Outline what the supporter should do if they are ready to document their gift or if they want to speak with a staff member for more information.

To maximize the effectiveness of these brochures, consider partnering with local estate planning attorneys who can display your materials in their waiting rooms. This places your organization’s bequest options directly in front of community members when they are making important financial decisions.

Feature planned giving options on your main website

A well-optimized digital presence acts as a silent fundraiser, working around the clock to inform your community about how they can support your work. Your nonprofit’s website is a natural spot to promote estate planning. It starts the conversation and ensures high-capacity prospects can independently discover how to leave a lasting mark.

Maximize your website’s potential by implementing these key strategies:

  • Create a dedicated legacy giving page or microsite that outlines your organization’s long-term vision and provides easy access to the information from your brochure (e.g., gift descriptions, impact stories, and tax benefits).
  • Link to this page in your main navigation, making it a natural part of the browsing experience rather than a hidden resource.
  • On your Ways to Give page, feature bequests and other legacy options alongside standard credit card donations and check mailing instructions, normalizing these gifts as a standard method of support.
  • Publish spotlight features on your blog that explain why a specific supporter chose to leave a legacy gift and their impact, providing powerful social proof that inspires others.

To maximize the visibility of your website’s planned giving resources, actively drive traffic to these pages using external marketing channels. Promoting your legacy giving microsite or Ways to Give page using paid search ads covered through the Google Ad Grant, targeted social media campaigns, and email outreach ensures you capture high-intent prospects when they are most receptive to estate planning information, which brings us to our next point.

Add planned giving to your email marketing strategy

Strategic digital communications can gently introduce the concept of bequests without overwhelming your audience. Email provides a direct channel to your donors, and by integrating legacy giving topics like bequests into your outreach, you can grow awareness in a low-pressure way.

Normalize the conversation

The goal is to make legacy giving feel like a natural part of supporting your mission. Instead of a once-a-year ask, incorporate short, educational mentions into your regular emails. This might look like:

  • Donor spotlights in your newsletters about a legacy society member that links to their full story on your blog.
  • Postscript (PS) mentions of planned giving at the bottom of general fundraising appeal emails.
  • Standalone emails that highlight a single, simple concept—such as the ease of naming your nonprofit as a beneficiary in a will.
  • A full email campaign for National Make-A-Will Month in August.

Let data drive your efforts

Pay close attention to engagement metrics, such as click-through rates on legacy-related links, to identify which messaging angles resonate best. A click often signals interest, and a targeted follow-up to subscribers who engaged with planned giving outreach can open the door to more personalized, one-on-one stewardship conversations.

Test planned giving marketing messaging in targeted segments

Not every donor is at the same stage in their legacy journey. Leverage your email segmentation tools to ensure your messaging reaches the supporters most likely to be receptive to planned giving outreach.

EverTrue’s donor segmentation guide highlights that you can group your supporters using five core categories: demographics, affinity for your cause, engagement with your nonprofit, preferences, and giving capacity.

With this context in mind, here are some segmentation strategies to try:

  • Focus on loyalty over wealth. High-net-worth individuals aren’t the only legacy prospects. Your most loyal donors—those who have given consistently for years, regardless of the amount—are often your best candidates for planned giving.
  • Leverage behavioral triggers. Identify likely prospects by tracking who has already interacted with legacy-related content. You might create a segment for anyone who clicked a link in your newsletter about naming a nonprofit in their will or visited your legacy giving landing page. These donors have signaled intent and are prime candidates for a more direct follow-up.
  • Tailor the “why.” Use segmentation to match the legacy opportunity to the donor’s specific interests. For instance, you might send a targeted note to donors over age 70 about the tax-wise benefits of naming your nonprofit as a beneficiary of their IRA, or share how a simple bequest in a will can provide a “forever gift” to a specific program they have supported for years.

By narrowing your focus and making outreach personal, you ensure each message feels like a relevant invitation rather than a generic mass appeal.

Weave impact reporting into your donor communications

Donors treat bequests as the ultimate investment in an organization’s future, meaning they need to be absolutely certain that their legacy will be handled responsibly. Transparent reporting proves your operational competence and highlights the enduring value of your work.

As part of your planned giving marketing strategy, outline how you’ll demonstrate long-term value through reporting. Aim to:

  • Showcase organizational longevity. Highlight your history and major milestones to prove you are a permanent fixture capable of honoring a donor’s intent decades from now.
  • Connect past gifts to present success. Share “Legacy at Work” stories that illustrate how previous bequests fund current programs, helping donors visualize the scale of their potential impact.
  • Prioritize financial transparency. Regularly share “under the hood” details—like annual audits or board oversight—to build the institutional trust necessary for a donor to include you in their estate plans.

Beyond standard annual reports, consider creating a dedicated Legacy Impact Update Report. This report should highlight the programmatic expansions made possible by realized bequests, showing prospective donors exactly how their future gift will create a lasting footprint.

Wrapping up

Securing legacy gifts is an ongoing endeavor that relies on cultivating authentic, communicative relationships with donors. By taking a pressure-free educational approach across the channels you have available, you’ll empower your supporters to leave a lasting mark on a cause they care about.

Ensure your development team regularly reviews your planned giving analytics to see which outreach channels and messages drive the most inquiries. Adjusting your strategy based on these insights will ultimately help you build a sustainable legacy pipeline.

Patrick Schmitt and co-CEO Jenny Xia founded FreeWill at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business in 2016. FreeWill’s charitable giving platform makes it easier for nonprofit fundraising teams to unlock transformational gifts, and to date has generated over $6.6 billion in new gift commitments for thousands of nonprofit organizations. Patrick hosts FreeWill’s popular webinar series, educating thousands of nonprofit fundraising professionals each month about planned and non-cash giving strategies.

Before FreeWill, Patrick was the Head of Innovation at Change.org, where he helped grow the organization to 100 million users in four years. Prior to that, he ran email marketing for President Obama and served as Campaign Director for MoveOn.org.

How You Can Make Your Nonprofit Messages Stand Out and Get Noticed

Ann Green Communications, direct mail, donor engagement, email, planning, writing , , , , ,

We live in a world that’s chock-full of information. When I was growing up, we just had a few TV channels to choose from (and no internet, cell phones, etc, back in the dark ages of the ‘70’s). Now there are countless streaming options. We also have email, the internet, and social media, just to name a few. It’s not only the volume of options, it’s also the content. And in our current climate of chaos and crisis, we’re dealing with information overload on steroids.

How does your nonprofit organization compete with all this? You need to communicate regularly with your donors and you need to do it well. But with all this deluge of information, they might miss your messages. Of course, you don’t want that to happen, especially if you’re falling behind in your revenue goals.

Here are a few ways you can make your messages stand out and get noticed. 

What’s your intention?

What’s the purpose of your message? What do you want your reader to do? Are you asking for a donation? Maybe you’re thanking your donor or sharing an update.

Think from your reader’s perspective. What would she be interested in or what would make him take action?

Don’t muddle your messages with too much information. Keep it simple and stick to one call to action or type of message. If you ask someone to make a donation, volunteer, and contact their legislators in the same message, they may not do any of that.

Choose the right channels

Most likely, you’ll use more than one channel to communicate. Pay attention to the channels your donors are using and focus your efforts there.

Email may be your primary mode of communication and there’s a reason for that. It’s fast, easy, relatively inexpensive, and almost everyone has an email address. You can quickly get a message out to a lot of people. Also, unlike social media, it’s something you can control. You don’t have to rely on a social media algorithm to hope your message ends up in your donor’s feed.

The downside is that people get an enormous amount of email from a variety of different sources. It’s also becoming less effective. Political organizations and candidates here in the U.S. send a ton of email messages, and those emails are going to replicate as we head toward the November midterm election. Some of the PACs send emails that are so obnoxious they give fundraising a bad name. I tend to ignore a lot of those messages and then end up missing something important. Plan a strategy to help you break through this noise. 

Plus, the average nonprofit email open rate is around 25%. And, social media is often just a lot of a lot.  

You can see how easy it is for your electronic messages to get lost in the shuffle. Your donors may just tune things out, even if you have something engaging to share. 

While you’ll likely use electronic communication pretty regularly, don’t discount direct mail. Your donors are more likely to see these messages. We get far less postal mail than electronic communication. Also, someone can put a piece of mail aside and look at it later. Don’t count on that happening with any type of electronic communication. You can also communicate by phone. This is a great way to thank your donors.

Going multichannel is usually your best bet. This is very common for fundraising campaigns and inviting people to events, as well as including a link to your email newsletter on your social media platforms. This way if people miss your initial message on one platform, they may see it on a different one. You’ll also want to send regular reminders for fundraising appeals and event invitations. Just remember to choose your channels wisely.

Get noticed right away

Your donors have a lot going on and you need to capture their attention right away.

Your fundraising letters and anything else you send by mail need to look appealing enough to open. You could put a tagline on the envelope. That doesn’t mean something like It’s Our Annual Appeal. Try something like – How you can help families move into their own homes. or THANK YOU!

Your envelope should look personal and not resemble a bill or junk mail. A few ways to make your mail stand out are to use something other than the usual white business envelope, hand address your envelope, and use stamps.

Once your donor opens your fundraising appeal, lead with a story followed by a clear, prominent ask. When they open your thank you letter, they should be greeted with gratitude.

A good subject line is the key to getting someone to open your email message. Keep in mind that your donor’s inbox is bursting with messages. Don’t use something boring like May Newsletter or Donation Received. Entice them with Learn how you helped Jeffrery learn to read or You just did something great today! Putting someone’s first name in the subject line can also help with open rates.

Keep them engaged once they open your message.

Keep it short

In many cases, a shorter message is best. You want a good balance between saying too much and saying too little. All your words should count, so be careful about adding too much filler. That often includes bragging about your organization and explaining what you do.

Keep in mind the average human attention span is about eight seconds.

Your goal is to get your donors to read your messages. If it looks long and boring, they probably won’t bother.

Make it easy to read and scan

Besides sending a short message, use short paragraphs and lots of white space, too. Your messages need to be easy to read and scan in an instant. Most people aren’t going to read something word for word. Be sure they can quickly get the gist of what you want to say. Don’t use microscopic font either – use 12 point or higher.

Be personal and conversational

Write directly to your reader using clear, conversational language – no jargon. Don’t confuse your donors with generic messages.

Don’t cast a wide net

It’s important to send your messages to the right audience, and your audience isn’t everyone.

You’ll have more luck with a fundraising appeal when you send it to past donors or people who have a connection to your cause. The same is true for event invitations or recruiting volunteers.

You may want to reach out to as many people as possible, but that won’t guarantee you’ll get more donations or event attendees. Segmenting and engaging with the right audience will bring you better results.

Be a welcome visitor

If you communicate regularly and do it well, your donors should recognize you as a reputable source and are more likely to read your messages. If all you do is send them generic fundraising appeals, then prepare to be disappointed.

When you send email, make sure people know it’s coming from your organization. In the from field, put DoGood Nonprofit or Cathy (Pearson), DoGood Nonprofit. If you just put a person’s name, people may not know who it’s from and ignore your message, unless that person is well known to your readers. Also, don’t use info@dogoodnonprofit or even worse, no-reply@dogoodnonprofit. That just screams impersonal.

Only send email to people who have opted into your list. Otherwise, you’re spamming them. Some people will choose not to receive email from you and that’s okay. The ones who do are interested in hearing from you. Give people the option to unsubscribe, too. Measuring your email metrics will help you communicate more effectively. 

When you send email, it’s important to strike a balance between being known and being annoying. Unlike the political organizations I mentioned above, many nonprofits don’t communicate enough. Be sure to reach out anywhere between once a week and once a month. 

Don’t let this current climate of uncertainty stop you from fundraising and engaging with your donors. They want to hear from you. With all the negativity and depressing news, be a friendly factor.

Even though people only get a few pieces of mail a day, most of it’s junk mail. You never want any of your letters, newsletters, or postcards to be perceived as junk mail (see above).

By putting in a little time and effort, you can help ensure that your messages stand out and get noticed in a world filled with information.

Don’t Wait Too Long – Spring Cleaning Projects for Your Nonprofit

Ann Green appeal letters, Communications, database, direct mail, email, planning, thank you letters, writing , , , , , , ,

It’s spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and it’s about time after a snowy, frigid winter here in the Boston area, although some days it doesn’t feel like spring. 

A lot of people use this time of the year to do some spring cleaning. I envy the people who do that because I’m usually not one of them. 

I know I should do more. As much as I dislike cleaning and organizing, I’m happy once it gets done. Usually, getting started is the hardest part.

Your nonprofit organization may be putting off some version of your own spring cleaning and decluttering. It’s important to make some time to tackle these so-called cumbersome tasks. Just think how happy you’ll be when you’re done. You’ll also make some much-needed improvements to your infrastructure and donor communication.

If you’re feeling stuck, here are a few suggestions to help you get started.

Clean up your mailing lists and CRM/database

Has it been a while since you updated your mailing lists? Did you have an influx of address changes, returned mail, and bounced emails after you sent your year-end appeal? If so, this is a good time to clean up and update both your direct mail and email mailing lists.

Don’t wait until right before your next mailing or campaign to clean up your donor data. If it’s been a while since you’ve done this, then you need to do what’s known as data hygiene.

Even though it’s tedious, have someone who’s familiar with your donors (your development director?) go through your mailing lists and CRM/database to see if you need to make any additions, changes, and deletions.

Be meticulous. No donor wants to see her name misspelled, be addressed as Mrs. when she prefers Ms., or receive three mailings because you have duplicate records.

Your CRM/donor database is an essential tool, and it needs to be up-to-date and filled with accurate information about your donors.

Run your donor list through the National Change of Address database. It may cost some money to do this, but it’s worth it if you come out with squeaky-clean data. Do it at least once a year.

Also, if you haven’t already done this, segment your donors into different groups – new donors, returning donors, monthly donors, etc. You may need to make some changes. For example, if a single gift donor starts giving monthly.

You might also want to move some lapsed donors who haven’t donated for several years into an inactive file. Don’t do this until you’ve sent targeted, personalized appeals asking them to donate again. And if you’ve never gotten in touch with any lapsed donors from 2025, you could reach out to them now.

Do the same thing with your email list. It doesn’t make sense to send emails to people who don’t respond to them. Give these people a chance to re-engage, and if they’re not even opening your emails, move them to an inactive file. Don’t worry if people unsubscribe. You’re better off with an email list of engaged subscribers.

Also, if you find you keep saying, “Our database doesn’t let us do that,” maybe it’s time for an upgrade.

While you’re at it, you could give your donation page a spring cleaning.

Freshen up your messages

Spring is a time to open up the windows and let some fresh air replace the stale air that’s been accumulating in your house over the last several months.

You know what else might be stale – your messages. Take some time to freshen them up, if you haven’t done that for a while. Ideally, you should do this at least once a year. I mentioned this in a recent post, emphasizing that your donor communication needs to be clear, conversational, and specific. Stay away from generic language and jargon. 

There’s a good chance your thank you letters need a refresh. Your thank you letters need to actually thank your donors, not brag about your organization. Also, make sure your automatically generated thank you emails and landing pages don’t look like boring receipts. Create separate templates for new donors, current donors, and monthly donors. 

Thank you messages are one of the most important components of donor communication. Make yours shine.

Weed and grow 

People who have gardens spend a lot of time getting rid of weeds to ensure they have a beautiful garden. I’m not a gardener. I live in a townhouse and don’t have a yard, but even I know I need to cut off the dead leaves on my houseplants to help them grow.

What are your weeds? Perhaps it’s events or grants. These can take a lot of time and don’t always bring in that much money. Plus, if you’ve relied on federal funding here in the U.S., you’ll need to branch out and look into other revenue sources.

A better option is to grow your individual giving program. Start with monthly giving. You can think of this as a houseplant approach, relatively easy to take on and maintain. Then move on to mid-level, major, and legacy giving. These will take more time, just like a seedling that with care and attention, will grow into a tree.

As you work on your weeding, this article on simplicity might be helpful. It suggests you do an audit of various aspects of your life and ask –  Is it necessary and is it creating energy? If you answer Yes to both, keep it. If you answer No to both, remove it. If you answer Yes to one, think about it. 

For your nonprofit, the energy question can be turned around and you can ask if something is depleting your energy. You could also ask, is it producing results?

It can be hard to let go. Maybe you’ve held a particular event for years. But like weeds in a garden, it might be prohibiting your growth. Let go of this event (or whatever doesn’t serve you) and find ways to raise money that will help you grow.

Start small, but don’t wait too long

All of this might sound overwhelming and the best remedy for that is to start small. Maybe you begin by cleaning up your CRM and then move on to freshening up your thank you letters. Remember, getting started is often the hardest part. 

I know you’re busy, but you need to take on these initiatives sooner rather than later. Just like the clutter and dust in your home, along with the weeds in your garden, they won’t disappear on their own. The longer you ignore it, the worse it gets. 

You’ll be happy once these spring cleaning projects are done. Plus, your donors will be happy if they don’t get duplicate mailings and a fundraising letter laced with jargon, but do receive a personalized appeal and a stellar thank you letter. Your organization will also benefit by taking on initiatives and making investments that will help you grow.

5 Creative Ideas to Engage Your Nonprofit Website Visitors

Ann Green Communications, donor engagement, planning, video, website, writing , , , , ,

A strong nonprofit website drives support and mission awareness. Explore creative ideas to teach site visitors about your work and inspire them to get involved.

By Ira Horowitz

If your website feels like a digital brochure, you’re leaving an opportunity for impact on the table.

Too many nonprofit websites talk at visitors instead of inviting them in. They list programs, share statistics, and post updates, but they don’t create an experience. Your website shouldn’t just sit there. It should feel like a living, dynamic hub—one that actively cultivates trust, ignites curiosity, and drives action.

The good news? You don’t need a massive budget or a full redesign to make meaningful improvements. A few creative nonprofit website ideas can turn passive visitors into engaged supporters. Here are five to consider.

1. Immersive Storytelling

Facts inform. Stories move people.

Your nonprofit’s website is the ideal place to share stories with supporters. Unlike social media and other external platforms, there are no algorithms burying your content or character limits cutting you short. You have creative control. As you add more stories to your site, you’ll build a lasting library of impact, rather than fleeting posts that disappear down a social media feed.

When you structure content around a real person—a client, volunteer, or donor—you create an emotional connection that statistics alone can’t reach. That connection builds empathy, and empathy drives action.

Here’s how to create immersive impact stories for your site:

  • Focus on one individual at a time.
  • Show the challenge, your role, and the transformation.
  • Use high-quality photos or short-form video to humanize the story.
  • Include a clear call to action at the end.

You need to consistently share stories with your donors to build long-term relationships, not just one-time gifts. Your blog is one of the best tools for this. It gives you space to go deeper, highlight different voices, and keep your content fresh. Regular updates also help you maintain a nonprofit’s website in a way that supports SEO and keeps supporters engaged over time. 

When storytelling becomes a habit, not a one-off campaign, your website starts to feel dynamic and mission-driven.

2. Gamified Educational Quizzes

Interactive content turns passive readers into active participants. A short quiz can educate, surprise, and motivate visitors in just a few minutes. Plus, a bit of creativity makes this idea work for any type of cause.

Here are some examples:

  • A “Myth vs. Fact” showdown about your cause.
  • “How Much Do You Know About Local Hunger?”
  • “What Type of Environmental Advocate Are You?”

Quizzes are especially powerful because they feel personal. When someone sees their result, they’re more likely to remember and act on it!

You can take this idea further by:

  • Offering a free PDF resource tailored to their results.
  • Including a “Share Your Results” button to encourage social sharing.
  • Connecting the outcome to a specific donation or volunteer opportunity.

By including another step, your quiz becomes more than a fun add-on. It becomes a strategic marketing tool that supports your broader outreach plan. This approach puts strong communication principles into action. By using clear, compelling messaging to guide users, you ensure the experience feels helpful and relevant, not a gimmicky distraction.

Done well, quizzes educate supporters and move them one step closer to action.

3. Impact Data

Donors want heart and good storytelling, but they also want proof that their donations are making a difference. Impact data provides the logical reassurance that their gift is making a tangible impact. When presented clearly, it builds credibility and trust.

Instead of burying numbers in a PDF annual report, bring your data to life. Here are a few creative nonprofit website ideas to accomplish that:

Interactive Maps

Show where your programs are active. Add pins that open short updates or photos from each location. This is especially effective for organizations serving multiple communities.

Real-Time Progress Trackers

A fundraising thermometer or campaign tracker creates urgency and transparency. Visitors can see momentum building in real time, potentially encouraging them to give more to help you reach your goals.

Dynamic Data Dashboards

Highlight key metrics—meals served, students supported, acres restored—in a visual, easy-to-scan format.

Before building something custom, check what your website platform can handle. Open-source systems like WordPress allow you to expand functionality with plugins. Cornershop Creative’s WordPress for nonprofits guide explains how flexible tools can support features like maps, calculators, and data displays without starting from scratch.

These dynamic tools allow you to share impact consistently, rather than just once a year in an annual report. This constant visibility supports long-term donor retention by making metrics easy to understand. When data is transparent, visual, and always up-to-date, it builds the unshakeable trust needed to keep supporters engaged year after year. 

4. An Interactive Impact Calculator

An impact calculator instantly answers the question, “What does my gift actually do?”

Impact calculator tools take the mystery out of giving by showing exactly what a $25, $50, or $100 gift provides. Here are some examples:

  • “$25 feeds a family of four for three days.”
  • “$50 plants 10 trees.”
  • “$100 supplies two hygiene kits.”

The key is clarity. Use relatable units, like meals, books, trees, and nights of shelter. Keep the design simple and mobile-friendly since many visitors will interact with it on their phones.

You can also create cause-specific variations:

  • A “carbon footprint offsetter” for environmental groups.
  • A “meal math” calculator for food banks.
  • A “school supply builder” for education nonprofits.

UpMetrics’ guide to impact measurement recommends reviewing your objective first and setting measurable goals around that mission. Your calculator should reflect those priorities. When developing your calculator, revisit your core objectives. Are you raising academic performance? Distributing hygiene kits? Expanding after-school programming?

When supporters see the tangible outcome of their gifts, giving feels concrete and meaningful. 

5. Behind-the-Scenes Looks

When you pull back the curtain on your daily operations, you invite supporters into your world and build transparency. That insider perspective deepens connection and reinforces credibility.

Consider sharing:

  • A “Meet the Team” video series.
  • Sneak peeks of an upcoming fundraising event.
  • Behind-the-scenes photos of renovations funded by a capital campaign. 
  • Volunteer spotlights or day-in-the-life stories.

You can also invite readers into this on-the-ground work by highlighting creative ways supporters contribute. Seeing unique volunteer opportunities in action—rather than just reading a job description—helps website visitors imagine themselves as part of your mission.

Prioritize authenticity over high-budget production. A smartphone video with honest storytelling often feels more genuine than a polished promotional reel.

Behind-the-scenes content reminds donors that real people power your impact.

Wrapping Up

Creative nonprofit website ideas don’t have to be complicated. Start by asking:

  • Does our website tell real stories?
  • Are we showing impact in a clear, visual way?
  • Are visitors invited to interact—or just read?
  • Do we regularly update content to reflect our current work?

Even one new interactive element like a quiz, calculator, or map can shift how supporters view and understand your organization’s work.

When you design your website with intention, clarity, and creativity, you don’t just inform visitors, you inspire them to take the next step.

With 15 years of experience, Ira Horowitz is an expert in nonprofit online communications and online fundraising. His work has resulted in increased funds and resounding supporter engagement for hundreds of organizations.

Ira oversees Corner Shop Creative’s project management team and works with clients to provide them with the best possible final product. He also manages all of their strategic engagements and helps guide nonprofits to determine their long-term strategy goals for online communications.

How to Ensure That Your Donor Engagement is Actually Engaging

Ann Green appeal letters, Communications, donor engagement, donor relations, planning, thank you letters, writing , , , , , ,

Is your donor engagement actually engaging? You may think so, but often those thank you letters and newsletters are formulaic and just downright dull.

Many nonprofits send all their donors the same appeal and thank you letters. In these letters, they never thank a donor for their past support or acknowledge they’re a monthly donor.

If that’s not bad enough, many of these letters use vague and impersonal language and even worse, jargon.

If your donor engagement isn’t doing what it’s supposed to do, it’s time for you to move away from generic and impersonal communication. Your donors deserve better. Here are a few suggestions to help you improve your donor communication to make it more engaging.

Segment your donors

Your donors aren’t the same, so they shouldn’t all get the same letter or other types of communication. Segment your donors into different groups as much as you can. At the very least, create different letters for new donors, repeat donors, and monthly donors. You can also personalize letters to lapsed donors, event attendees, volunteers, etc.

I emphasize segmenting your donors a lot in my posts because it’s so important. Both because it allows you to send your messages to the right audience, and you can personalize those messages. Donors like it if you recognize their past giving or anything that shows them this is more than a generic, one-size-fits-all message. 

Also, please stop sending Dear Friend letters. You’re not being a good friend if you don’t even use your donors’ names.

I know this will take more time, but it’s worth the investment. So is a good CRM/database to help you with this. Your donors will feel appreciated and are more likely to give again, possibly at a higher level.

Use language your donors will understand

If you use vague, generic language and jargon, you’re going to instantly bore and/or confuse your donors. Most of your donors don’t have a medical or social services background. They don’t use terms like food insecurity, at-risk populations, and underserved communities – and neither should you. Stay away from insider language. 

Connect with your donors by using language they’ll understand. Instead of writing about food insecurity, give an example of a single mother choosing between buying groceries and paying the heating bill.

What do you mean by at-risk or underserved? Are high school students less likely to graduate on time? Do residents of a certain community not have good health care nearby? Is housing too expensive? Get specific, but at the same time, keep it simple. Also, terms like at-risk and underserved undermine your clients/community. Remember, these are human beings you’re writing about.

A great way to break free from generic language and jargon is to tell stories. Most people respond better to a human-interest story than a bunch of boring statistics.

Make time for improvement

You may be between fundraising campaigns right now and have a little more time (or maybe not). If so, work on segmenting the donors in your database, if you haven’t already done that. Segment your donors on an ongoing basis. For example, some of your single-gift donors may have upgraded to monthly. If you can do this after every campaign, you should have fairly up-to-date information on your donors.

In addition, dust off those templates and freshen up your appeal letters and thank you letters. Situations in the U.S. and throughout the world are constantly changing and your communication needs to be relevant. How is what’s going on now affecting your clients/community? Create letter templates for different donor groups and replace your vague, generic language with something clear, conversational, and specific.

You can also use this time to add new stories to your story bank or start putting one together, if you don’t already have one.

Have someone outside of your organization, a friend or family member, look at your messages. Something that’s clear to you may baffle others.

Create communication that shows your donors how much you appreciate them by recognizing who they are and giving them engaging content they can relate to.

Spring Into Action With Better Donor Retention

Ann Green Communications, donor engagement, donor relations, donor retention, planning , , , ,

Donor retention is a perennial problem for nonprofit organizations. Many organizations spend a lot of time and energy on acquiring donors, concentrating more on volume and don’t seem to be concerned that they’re churning through different donors year after year. Just like the flowers and plants in your garden, you need to give them care and attention. 

You should be keeping track of your retention rate. If you’re losing donors, it could be because you’re either not communicating enough or communicating poorly. Fortunately, this is something you can fix, but donors don’t magically donate, or more importantly, keep donating to your organization.

You need more than luck to keep your donors

Building relationships with your donors is one of the most important components of fundraising.

Donor relations should be easier than raising money and it can be fun, too. Make it a priority, as well as something you do throughout the year.

But it will take more than leprechauns granting wishes. If you want to keep reaching for that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, you’ll need to work at it. If you ignore your donors or communicate poorly, they’re unlikely to donate again.

One-and-done fundraising is just March Madness

In NCCA men’s college basketball, players are eligible for the NBA draft after playing one season. This is known as one-and-done. If you watch the men’s tournament, it’s likely many of the players won’t be around next year. It’s not as common as it used to be, but it still happens. Both the men’s and women’s tournaments are also referred to as March Madness, although the one-and-done policy doesn’t apply to women’s basketball.

Another place you’ll find one-and-done is in nonprofit fundraising. The donor retention rate for first-time donors is around 25%. Obviously, we can do better. Let’s work on making one-and-done fundraising less common.

If you can get your first-time donors to give again, it’s much more likely they’ll keep giving. That second donation is known as the golden donation (that pot of gold?). This is why it’s important to engage with your new donors and send them a welcome package right after their first gift. But don’t neglect your longer-term donors. You also want to make them feel special.

A time for new beginnings

Spring is just around the corner (hopefully) and it’s a time for new beginnings. Maybe you can share a new initiative that you were able to launch with your donors’ help.

Speaking of new beginnings, how are you engaging with your first-time donors?  That welcome package, which I hope you sent, is just the first step. Keep letting them know how much you appreciate this new relationship. If you don’t, it’s likely to be a short relationship. 

A consistent stream of donor communication is crucial

Here in the Boston area where I live, we tend to have the most inconsistent weather, although this winter was mostly cold and snowy. It’s not uncommon for it to be in the 50’s one day and struggle to stay in the 30’s the next.

Inconsistent levels of donor communication should have no place in the nonprofit world. You don’t want to blast donors with appeals and then go silent for a while.

Ideally, you want to reach out somewhere between once a week and once a month. And not just with appeals. You need to thank donors and share updates. Follow the ask, thank, report, repeat formula. This is essential for good donor retention.

A communications calendar will help. So will sending shorter, more frequent updates.

Spring forward to reach out to your donors

March may be a slower time for you. Maybe you have a fundraising campaign or event planned this spring. If so, you definitely want to engage with your donors first. If you don’t have anything scheduled for a while, these in-between times are just important. 

As you’ll notice, I’ve made references to a bunch of March themes – St. Patrick’s Day, daylight saving time (going back on daylight saving time is one of my favorite times of the year), March Madness, and spring (I can’t wait for it to actually feel like spring). But you don’t need a holiday, special occasion, or a theme as a reason to reach out to your donors. Do it just because they’re great and you can’t do your work without them.

Keep focusing on better donor retention. You should be more successful if you do.

5 Creative Ways to Show Appreciation for Your Volunteers

Ann Green gratitude, planning, volunteers , ,

A good volunteer program is built on appreciation, which encourages retention and loyalty from volunteers. Get creative with these fresh ideas to say thank you!

By Timothy Sarazen 

If you’re a nonprofit volunteer manager, you know better than anyone the immense impact volunteers have on your organization. So, you probably want to make sure your volunteers know what their support means to your nonprofit.

This may be your first or your fiftieth time designing an appreciation plan to show your gratitude to volunteers. However, no two appreciation strategies will look the same because each one needs to be tailored to the specific volunteers who serve with your organization right now. 

In this guide, we’ll cover overall best practices and a few ideas to get your wheels turning. Let’s dive in! 

Volunteer Appreciation Best Practices

Volunteer appreciation, as Better Impact defines it, “is the process of acknowledging and rewarding the contributions of time and energy that volunteers make to your nonprofit.” Just as your nonprofit invests resources and time into getting to know donors and sharing your gratitude with them, it’s equally important to invest in volunteer appreciation. 

Even though volunteer service provides your nonprofit with a multitude of tangible and intangible benefits, it can be helpful to put a monetary value on a volunteer hour to recognize the impact in comparable terms. Research from the Independent Sector estimates that the average value of one volunteer hour in 2024 was $34.79. If you’re working with volunteers who are providing a skilled service to your organization pro bono, that number is far higher. 

Whatever activities your nonprofit undertakes to communicate your appreciation to volunteers, here are a few best practices to keep in mind:

Say thank you often

We can all fall into the trap of thinking that our gratitude goes without saying, but that can make volunteers believe that their efforts aren’t seen or appreciated. A verbal word of encouragement at the end of a volunteer shift or a quick text to say thanks can go a long way. Cultivate a culture of gratitude by adding thank-you messages into your nonprofit’s communications calendar so sending them becomes a regular habit for your team. 

Don’t overlook simple gestures as a way to communicate your gratitude, either. Sending a handwritten thank-you note after a major event or having a volunteer’s favorite coffee order ready for them at the beginning of their shift could brighten your volunteer’s day.

Tailor appreciation to the volunteer

The extent to which you can tailor gestures to individual volunteers depends on the scale of your volunteering program. If you have hundreds of volunteers, you may not even know all of their names, much less the unique impact each of them has had on your mission. This is where leveraging management software in volunteer communications comes in handy. You can segment your volunteers and create personalized messaging to say thank you.

No matter the size of your volunteer program, it’s always a good idea to check with any volunteers that you plan to recognize publicly. Since attention can make some people uncomfortable, asking them to stand up in a crowded room or posting about them on social media aren’t the best appreciation tactics for everyone. 

Address & incorporate feedback

You may ask your volunteers to fill out feedback surveys periodically to better understand their experience. If you do, it is vital to take action based on what the volunteers share. Not responding to a pain point a volunteer experiences is a sure-fire way to decrease trust in your organization. Your nonprofit likely won’t be able to make changes based on every single piece of feedback you get. In those cases, acknowledge what was shared and offer an explanation. 

For example, volunteers may share that they would be able to volunteer more frequently if there were additional opportunities available, like remote volunteering. Or, experienced volunteers might express that they’d like more chances to develop skills or practice leadership. It’s worth investigating these possibilities for your program, since making your volunteers feel heard will make them feel appreciated.

You can also include volunteers in your appreciation strategy brainstorming. Check with a trusted volunteer or the rest of your team on what gestures will resonate. For instance, while recognition plaques or branded swag are both popular appreciation gifts, your volunteering base may prefer an experience or an expendable gift (like a tasty snack) if they talk about trying to declutter their homes. 

Creative Volunteer Appreciation Ideas

In the midst of your regular communications to volunteers, scheduling an annual celebration or giving volunteers gifts can also demonstrate their significance to your organization and foster engagement. You want to make sure your volunteers see the impact they’re making and are motivated to continue serving. Retaining dedicated volunteers strengthens your community and will improve your programs and operations, since volunteers’ experience will help things run more smoothly. 

Delight your volunteers with these creative ideas! 

Scavenger Hunt

Who is this a good fit for: Active volunteer groups

What is it: The beauty of this idea is that it can be as simple or as intricate as you’d like it to be. Design a trail of cascading clues that lead to the next destination until the volunteers arrive at the final location. You can organize this around your nonprofit office or community, split your volunteers into teams of any size, and even invite their loved ones to participate. You can hide prizes along the way at each clue destination, or end with a larger prize and celebration once the scavenger hunt has been completed. 

Professional Recommendation or Opportunities for Development

Who is this a good fit for: Individuals who have done an exemplary job volunteering with your nonprofit

What it is: This appreciation idea works best when it’s tailored to a specific volunteer whose work you’re familiar with. If they’re looking for new professional opportunities or to grow their skill set, you can offer support. Maybe that looks like writing a letter of recommendation or endorsing them for specific skills they’ve demonstrated in working with your nonprofit, like their data management knowledge or communication abilities. It could also be offering them the opportunity to learn a new skill in your nonprofit’s supportive environment. It may even look like keeping them top of mind when you hear of opportunities and putting their name out there. 

Discount on Services

Who is this a good fit for: Nonprofits that offer services a volunteer could benefit from 

What it is: If your nonprofit offers services, like an animal shelter’s adoption program or an art museum’s summer camp, you can offer volunteers discounts on those services. This can support your recruitment efforts as well, so promote this with your volunteer sign-ups, such as on your website. Additionally, DonorSearch’s guide to annual reports recommends including calls to action for your nonprofit’s needs, like volunteer sign-ups, so promoting volunteering opportunities and service discounts in this messaging to your supporter base can be a successful recruitment method!

Art Class

Who is this a good fit for: Creative volunteer groups

What it is: Host an art class for your volunteers, which can be as simple as a paint-by-numbers-type event or as complicated as pottery throwing or learning how to knit! The bonus of this type of appreciation event is that it also creates an environment for volunteers to get to know each other and your nonprofit staff team better, building friendships and loyalty within your organization.

Rent out a Movie Theater

Who is this a good fit for: Nonprofits wanting to throw a celebratory event for volunteers

What it is: You can include volunteers and their families and friends in this idea (depending on the size of the movie theater!), but taking your volunteers to the movies is another way to say thank you! You can even build excitement by hosting a competition to see who gets to pick the movie or organize a bracketed voting system.

Whether you send your volunteers on a fun-filled scavenger hunt or treat them to an afternoon at the movies, showing appreciation will build your volunteer relationships and help your nonprofit continue to further its mission with the support of your loyal volunteers. 

Timothy Sarazen is the President of Better Impact, a global software company dedicated to enhancing the experiences of nonprofits and volunteer-driven organizations in the healthcare and government sectors. With extensive expertise in product-led software solutions, Timothy thrives on turning complex challenges into simple, effective solutions that make customers’ lives easier through the smart use of technology.

Based in Winston Salem, North Carolina, with his wife and three children, Timothy works to bridge the divide between nonprofit executives and volunteer department strategies. His team empowers organizations to align their efforts, improve decision-making, and showcase the measurable value of volunteer contributions.