9 reasons your nonprofit newsletter doesn’t raise money

Effective donor newsletters raise net revenue.

That’s not their primary purpose (which is improving donor retention by showing them their giving matters). But when done right, they raise money. For some organizations (not all), they are just as effective as appeals at unlocking donor generosity.

How do you make it work? Here’s a great list, from Jeremy Reis on LinkedIn: What are some common mistakes with direct mail newsletters?:

1. It’s not donor focused. Instead, it’s about your organization: How awesome your are, what your staff are up to, things that matter to you, but not so much your donors.
2. Having a goal to educate your donors instead of thanking them. Your donors don’t need to be taught. They need to feel connected. That’s the best for of teaching there is.
3. Too much text content. Walls of text don’t get read. And don’t motivate behavior.
4. Poorly written content. If it’s hard to read and understand, it won’t be.
5. Long (sometimes boring) letter from the President or Executive Director. If your leader is a windbag in writing — sorry, some are! — don’t bore your readers with their writing. Skip the letter or have a better writer write it.
6. Poor photos (or no photos!). A line of people standing in a row is not interesting. Show humans doing things!
7. Talking too much about staff accomplishments. Donors aren’t paying for staff growth. They want outcomes.
8. Journalistic writing. You don’t need the five Ws. You need great storytelling.
9. Not including an envelope. Yes, people still use those. Also include a reply device.