Get 45 of my best email templates for setting up donor meetings, building relationships, and, ultimately, raising more money.
Use the proven email techniques – and get the actual emails – that have helped me raise millions of dollars, and have saved me countless hours of time.
Don’t reinvent the wheel. Don’t waste your valuable time agonizing over what to write. Enjoy the confidence of knowing that you’re using tested email templates to communicate with your donors and prospects.
How might some fresh ideas help you realize further success? Need livelier subject lines? Want to incorporate proven persuasion techniques into your writing? Read on to learn more.
Productivity + Confidence
Now, you might be thinking, What’s the big deal here? I know how to write emails.
I don’t doubt it.
I’ll bet you can put together some great donor correspondence. We all can, given enough time.
But that’s the challenge, isn’t it? Time.
You’ll get to work tomorrow and it will be the same as it was today (or any day, really)—you’ll have a million things to do.
You’ll have appeals to draft, event details to figure out, fires to fight, and colleagues who needs things. If you manage staff, they’ll need your attention too.
And, oh yeah, you also need to raise big gifts for your organization.
In fact, you can picture your prospects now.
You have Frank, who Jim on your Board mentioned is a close friend. It would be great to get an introduction.
You have Cynthia who came to your last event. How long ago was that, again? It’s time to get a meeting with her.
And you have Mr. Roberts. He gave a big gift eight years ago, maybe more. Somehow your predecessors completely lost touch with him.
All are good opportunities. All are important. You know you need to reach out, but you haven’t quite figured out what to say. And since you want to be sure to put your best foot forward, you’re still mulling it over.
The problem is, none of this outreach is urgent. Important, yes. But it doesn’t feel as urgent as the deadlines, fires, colleagues, you name it, that you’re dealing with today.
So, you focus on those things instead.
You reach the end of the day with a dull awareness that, while you felt busy, you didn’t get to your most important task—advancing key relationships. It feels frustrating, but you promise yourself you’ll get to it tomorrow.
The next day, you start working on an introductory email to Mr. Roberts. An hour and a half passes and you’re still not completely happy with the wording.
Eventually you just hit ‘send,’ second-guessing everything the process. Was my note too long? Too formal? Not formal enough? Did I really sell it?
And since you still have a million other things to do, you leave Frank and Cynthia for later. But, before you know it, it’s 5:00 again.
Now, picture it this way…
You sit down at your desk tomorrow morning. Sure, you have tons to do, but you know what’s important: Frank, Cynthia, and Mr. Roberts.
Instead of wringing your hands, agonizing over what to say, you pull up your proven email template for brokering introductions. And one for getting first meetings with VIPs. And one for re-engaging lapsed donors. It’s like having three great first drafts right at your fingertips.
You make a few tweaks to fit the particulars for each prospect and then confidently click the ‘send’ button.
Three emails sent; three key relationships moving forward—all in less than an hour. You’ve completed the most important thing you’ll do all day.
It feels good. And you’re confident about your chances with each prospect because you used proven templates that have worked for you time and time again.
You spend the rest of the day checking off simpler, internal-facing tasks. You drive home feeling good about what you accomplished.
These two scenarios couldn’t be more different, right!?
There was plenty of “work” done in the first example, but few results. And, ultimately, feelings of dread and anxiety.
The second was far better. You focused on the right work, and had the tools you needed to do it efficiently. The results are sure to be better. And you got to enjoy feelings of confidence and accomplishment.
Writing for results
Early in my career, I was struck by how many emails I needed to write every day as a gift officer. Yet, no training was available.
These were busy, important people I was writing to. How was I supposed to cut through the clutter and get my non-profit on their radar?
Knowing that I had a lot of email-writing ahead of me, I decided to test everything: subject lines, email length, calls to action. You name it, I tested it.
And I read everything I could about sales techniques, persuasion psychology, fundraising, and of course, email marketing.
The result?
I now have “go to” email templates I use every single day as a gift officer.
I have templates that get me first meetings with VIPs, templates I use to nurture relationships, and templates that help me seal the deal. I trust them because they work. They work because they’re the result of years of research, testing, and refining. My templates have helped me raise leadership annual gifts; they’ve helped me raise major gifts in a multi-billion dollar campaign.
And now, I want to share my REVISED and EXPANDED collection of these email templates with you.
Introducing 45 Must-Have Email Templates for Gift Officers: Word-for-word scripts you can use to get more meetings, grow stronger relationships, and close more gifts.
These templates are the actual emails I send to generate goal-beating fundraising results.
I also want to share my personal insights into WHY these emails are effective. Alongside each template, I add my analysis and highlight the specific techniques used.
There’s no reason to reinvent the wheel. I’ve spent years testing and refining so you can just copy and paste – and get results.
Here’s what you’ll learn:
- How to set up that critical first meeting with a busy, important major gift prospect. (Templates 1-3)
- How to get a board member to open up his rolodex and make an introduction for you. (Template 9)
- Don’t let gatekeepers prevent you from connecting with a potential donor. My template for assistants virtually guarantees they will help you connect with your prospect. (Template 11)
- Strategies for easy, natural follow-up after meeting someone at an event. (Template 14)
- Educating prospects about your organization’s work and mission is an important part of your job. I have a template for sending information and updates they’ll actually want to read. (Template 19)
- How to stay in touch with someone without being annoying. (Template 21)
- Your donors and prospects get invited to everything in town. My event email will get them excited about your function. (Template 22)
- ***NEW*** How to re-engage a donor who hasn’t given in a long time. (Template 23)
- ***NEW*** Have out-of-state prospects? Use my go-to template for cultivating donors from a distance. (Template 24)
- How to get your prospect ready to receive a proposal. (Template 29)
- Good stewardship = good cultivation for their next gift. It’s important you know how to deliver inspiring project/gift updates that your donors actually care to read. (Template 35)
- Been declined once already? I’ll show you how to keep the communication channel open so you can circle back later. (Templates 36-38)
- ***NEW*** Ever been asked, “Is this just about money?” I’ll show you exactly how to reply. (Template 39)
- Bogged down by pointless internal meetings? You’ll love my template for graciously opting out of potential time-wasters at the office. (Template 44)
- And a whole lot more!
REAL EXAMPLES from gift officers who have used my templates
“As a perfectionist who gets stuck on words, I use these templates frequently. They’re such a useful resource!”
– Kelly Blanks, Chief Philanthropy Officer, Community Foundation for Northern Virginia
“Michael has done a great job of researching and testing what works and doesn’t work when it comes to connecting with donors. These templates and Michael’s insight will help any development officer solicit a better response and come across more professional when connecting with prospects or donors. This collection is sure to save me and my team a lot of time and produce superior results.”
– Scott Singletary, Senior Director of Major Gifts, Biola University
“I have been fundraising for 12 years. I have sent many emails, made many calls and NOT gotten many meetings. I recently tested your email text, phone call, follow-up email with four donors and was 100% successful in getting face-to-face meetings. Thank you. Really, thank you.”
– Trisha Gooch, VP for Advancement & External Affairs, San Diego Second Chance
“45 Must-Have Email Templates for Gift Officers cuts through the guess work and relieves the anxiety that stands in the way of getting the job done now and getting it done ‘right.’ Ever wonder how to arouse your prospect’s curiosity to initiate and cultivate a working relationship, without being annoying and respecting the ‘power dynamics?’ This is how.”
– Michelle Medeiros, Resource Development Leader, Friends of the Future
“I’ve been working your system and I’m seeing better results already.”
– Kenda Hembrough, Assistant Director of Annual Giving, Univ. of West Florida
Get instant access to these word-for-word templates now!
I’ve put my proven templates – and more – together for you. You’ll get 45 emails that are ready to copy-and-paste, along with my special “insider’s analysis” for each one so you can understand WHY they work.
You’ll also get my entire framework for writing winning fundraising emails. It includes all the psychology, sales and marketing theory, and persuasion techniques I use, along with plenty of other helpful tips.
And I’ll show you how email fits into my broader system of donor outreach. In the 45 Templates bonus material, you’ll learn exactly how many emails to send to a prospect and when to send them.
You’re committed to the success of your organization and you’re committed to being a top performer. I want to provide you with everything you need to know about writing winning emails. Before long, you’ll be able to write clear, effective, powerful emails to any donor or prospect in any situation.
Try it, risk free
If you don’t love 45 Must-Have Email Templates for Gift Officers, I insist that you get 100% of your money back. Here why:
These templates have been tested and refined over years. They incorporate the best academic research in the areas of sales, marketing, persuasion psychology, and fundraising. I know they work because I use them every day.
I want you to see similar results, so I invite you to use these word-for-word templates to send a few emails. Or send 100. Just copy and paste and watch what happens. I’m confident you’ll be impressed.
If you’re not, I’ll refund you 100%. No questions asked, no strings attached, no games, no hoops to jump through, no hidden surprises. Cancel with a 100% refund within 30 days.
Get 45 Must-Have Email Templates Now for Only $49
That’s just a little more than $1.00 each for 45 templates that will get you and your organization closer to its next major gift.
If this collection helps you cultivate, solicit, and close even a single $5,000 gift, your ROI will be over 10,000%.
It’s easily the most cost-effective, ready-to-use professional development opportunity you’ll come across!
PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS you and your team can use TODAY
We’ve all been to conferences. It’s great meeting peers, but how helpful are conferences, really?
For $500-1,000 (plus travel expenses!) you get a lot of big picture info and maybe one or two takeaways that actually make a positive impact on your day-to-day work.
How about webinars? There are tons of them out there. And they’re pretty hit-or-miss, aren’t they? Typical price: $75-300.
With 45 Must-Have Email Templates for Gift Officers you get 45 word-for-word scripts you can copy-and-paste today to get meetings and move prospects closer to making a gift.
You also get tons of notes and analysis that will help you and your team take control of your inboxes.
Or, you could try and do it yourself. Price tag: $0 (plus months, possibly years of testing and learning).
I’ve done all the heavy lifting for you. I’ve followed the thought leaders in fundraising, sales, copy-writing, and direct marketing for years. I’ve tested hundreds of emails to determine what works and what doesn’t. This collection of must-have templates is ready for you. Just copy, paste, tweak, and then hit send with confidence.