Withisms from Lori

It's that time of year where those who work for nonprofits turn their thoughts to the annual appeal. This is also the time of year where some of you probably wish you could have a little coaching to help you craft the annual appeal that will help you reach your organization's fundraising goal. Well, you're in luck!

Last year around this time, I spent an hour sharing tips and suggestions in a webinar about how to draft a powerful annual appeal for my Ignited Online Fundraising Community. Members can view all the webinars from the past couple of years in the Webinar Archives but today I’m sharing the link with YOU from that webinar: Click this link to view: Annual Appeals That Deliver.

Please note: You will need to login with a name and email to watch the webinar .

And for a reminder about how powerful messages can make a difference, here is a recent video from Chris Davenport at Movie Mondays. Of the over one hundred videos Chris has created, this one is probably my favorite. It features Tom Ahren talking about how Gillette Children’s Hospital made a small subtle change in their donor communication and how that increased donations 1000%!

Speaking of how the power of messages and the differences they can make, last month's members webinar was a recap of two fall fundraising campaigns incorporating the tips and strategies from the webinar I'm sharing with you today. Both organizations exceeded their fall 2011 campaigns!. If you want to hear what the organizations did with their letter and other multi-channel communication to exceed their fall annual appeal campaign goals, join the Ignited Online Fundraising Community and you'll have immediate access to the August 2012 webinar replay. And here's a sweet deal for you: If you 'Like' me on Facebook you can get an exclusive discount on membership.

Here are a few links to information I shared in the webinar:

• Put Persuasive Storytelling to Work for Your Nonprofit by Nancy Schwartz
• 3 Tips for Effective Fundraising Letters by Fundraising Coach: Marc A. Pitman, September 13, 2011
• How to write a fundraising letter by Linda Elizabeth Alexander

Good luck drafting your fall appeals and please let me know how well you do this year!