Guide · 2 min read
Problem, solution and the route of the money in a fundraising letter
Before you write a word, you should be able to answer three things. What is the problem? What is the solution? And how does the donor's money become the solution? If the letter does not answer them clearly, it is not ready to send.
Why, what and now
As a minimum, the letter has to answer three questions clearly.
- Why, meaning what is the problem?
- What, meaning what is the solution?
- Now, meaning why is it urgent?
A problem that is easy to understand and serious
Without a problem there is nothing to solve. The problem must be understood without explanation, and it must be about something serious. That the organisation needs money is not a problem for the donor.
A common sign that the problem is missing is that the letter presents the organisation. It opens with facts, lists what you have done this year and asks for support for “our important work”. Then the donor sees no problem she can solve.
A solution she can touch and feel
The solution must be concrete, tangible and direct. It should be something we can touch and feel, that everyone understands without long explanations, and that acts directly on the problem. “A holistic approach” is not a solution a donor can picture.
The route of the money and the price
The donor should see how her gift in particular becomes the solution. The price should sit inside the donor's comfort zone, be undivided and feel like value for money. Undivided means one amount that buys one whole thing, not a fraction of something big.
Concrete amounts beat clichés. The b.bold presentation gives an example of the difference. “Donate $50 now and make a difference!” became “Give 500 kroner with Vipps today.” That gives an amount in the donor's own currency, a channel she knows and no empty cliché.
Why it is urgent
Urgency means the donor understands what happens if help comes too late, and what she can do herself to prevent it. A deadline without a consequence is not urgency.