Author Archives: George Crankovic
Grammar rules you can’t break in fundraising copy and some you can
Grammar rules? For fundraising copy? Yes. Hold on a minute. Shouldn’t fundraising copy be all informal and conversational? And doesn’t “conversational” mean that we routinely break so-called grammar rules and begin sentences with “and” or “but,” use contractions, end sentences … Continue reading
Posted in copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising
Tagged advertising, charity, copywriting, donors, english, fundraising, Fundraising copywriting, grammar, language, marketing, nonprofit, writing, writing-tips
Leave a comment
Why your fundraising appeal needs more urgency
There’s a moment when your donor looks over your direct mail or email appeal and thinks, “I’ll put this aside for now and maybe help with that a little later.” That’s the moment when you realize your appeal didn’t have … Continue reading
Posted in copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising
Tagged advertising, behavior, charity, copywriting, deadlines, donors, fundraising, Fundraising copywriting, marketing, nonprofit, technology, urgency
Leave a comment
Why is the copy for direct response fundraising so weird?
It’s not weird, really. But it is way different from academic, business, or journalistic writing, and so it can seem weird to the (uninitiated) people at nonprofits who review copy. As my article in NonprofitPRO points out: Good copy is … Continue reading
Posted in copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising
Tagged behavior, books, charity, copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising, Fundraising copywriting, marketing, nonprofit, writing
Leave a comment
Is this fundraising that works?
The overline at the top of the fundraising letter reads, “You can join your neighbors to help families facing hunger.” So far, so good. Everybody’s against hunger. Then, this: “Every $1 can help feed a family of 3!” One thing’s … Continue reading
Posted in copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising
Tagged advertising, charity, copywriting, donor psychology, donors, fundraising, Fundraising copywriting, marketing, nonprofit
1 Comment
These 3 things are probably killing your fundraising
There are three big misconceptions that nonprofits tend to have about direct response fundraising. They’ll definitely bring down your results. Misconception 1: “Too much mail will turn donors off.” The fact is that donors like to give and want to … Continue reading
Reaching mid-level donors with direct mail
You probably hear a lot about mid-level donors, and that’s for good reason. For most nonprofits, these donors represent a major opportunity for short-term and long-term growth. It’s a revenue source that’s largely untapped. The potential is there, waiting to … Continue reading
Should you do a year-end fundraising appeal?
Yes, and here’s why. It’s one of the easiest appeals to create. And it can be one of the biggest revenue producers of the year. About 30 percent of most nonprofits’ revenue comes in between Giving Tuesday and December 31. … Continue reading
The offer in fundraising
In direct response fundraising, what’s an offer? Is it like the offer in commercial direct marketing, or is it completely different? Why does the offer matter? Is it really the most important thing in a letter appeal or email appeal, … Continue reading
Posted in copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising
Tagged behavior, charity, copywriting, direct mail, donor psychology, donors, fundraising, Fundraising copywriting, marketing, nonprofit
Leave a comment
When fundraising is too cautious for its own good
You can just see the fundraising team around a conference table trying to create an appeal that doesn’t draw any complaints, doesn’t raise even one hackle, doesn’t offend in any way, real or imagined. And the result is this: For … Continue reading
One sure way to make your fundraising better
The single best thing you can do to improve your fundraising? Come to terms with a hard truth: You are not your donors. They’re probably older than you, for one thing, which means they have a completely different frame of … Continue reading
Posted in copywriting, donor psychology, fundraising
Tagged advertising, charity, copywriting, donor psychology, donors, fundraising, Fundraising copywriting, marketing, nonprofit
Leave a comment
Fundraising Copywriter George Crankovic 