For those of you whose charge it is to write compelling fund raising letters, you should know this:  the words give, gift, donate and donation are words trending OUT. We invite you to go back and look at a history of your past fund raising letters, you may very well see that you have been using the same word or words over and over.

Many of your colleagues are juggling, in an effort to differentiate their message, between the following:

Invest – “Can you help us this year?  Your $25 investment will help one family.  Your $50 check will help twice as many.  And here’s how:  “

Contribute – “By contributing $25 now, you will be helping a family with a real need that would otherwise go unmet.”

Supply – “Will you kindly supply the funds we need to buy one Holiday meal for a needy family?”

Support – “Please support our Holiday Needy Families Program by using the enclosed reply form or donate on our website www.xyz.com.”

Help – “I’m asking for your help today so that 100 local families experience a bit of the meaning of Christmas this year.  Please send your gift now.”

Buy – “Your check of $25 will buy joy for one family.  Your $50 check buys twice as much.” You get the idea!

After going over your letter to see if you’ve been guilty of using the same “ask terminology” over and over, look at our sample sentences above.  There is a word (or form of the word) that should be emphasized in fundraising letters.  We used it in 5 of our 6 examples.  That’s right, “you” and “your.”  By emphasizing these words you force yourself to emphasize the importance of their contribution, rather than your organization’s accomplishments.