Tag Archives: Call to Action

I recently sat in on a Fundraising Success webinar presented by Michael Snusz, Internet Marketing Consultant for Blackbaud.  Engaging E-Mails: How to Get Past Filters, Get Opened and Get Read provides sound advice on turning your next e-mail blast into a successful fundraising campaign.

Get Your Subject Lines Noticed:                                                                                         

* Pique curiosity with interesting copy

* Convey urgency by including a deadline

* Avoid using special characters (#, &, etc) as these can trigger SPAM filters

* Make subject line mobile friendly – the first 30 characters are key to mobile technology

Generate Concise Content:

* Write short paragraphs

* Use bullet points

* Use bold and colored fonts for important phrases

* Use video screen shot image to increase click through rate – video can increase these rates 2 to 3 times

Personalize Your Content:

* Directly address the percentage of your constituency who attended your previous year’s event to increase click through rates to this year’s event info.

* Create separate paragraphs or sections within your e-mail to address specific audiences or interests of a particular group, be it volunteers or donors.

* As a university making an appeal to parents of students as well as alumni, call out individual benefits for each group.

* As a non-profit handling animal welfare issues, address “cat and dog people” as separate audiences.

Make Your Call To Action Compelling:

* Spell it out for your reader by using the words Take Action

* Create a link that tells them what, why, when or where – not just a generic Click Here link for more info

* Include your Call to Action Link early on and again at the bottom

Test Your E-mail’s Effectiveness:

* Send two different e-mails to 10-20% of your mail list, wait 2-3 days and then review metrics.

* Experiment with subject lines, call to action verbiage and landing pages, to see which yields a higher open and click through rate. Then send the highest response to your remaining list.

* Note which e-mail garners the greatest subscribe or unsubscribe rates.

Lastly, boost your SEO by adding a web-based version of all your e-mail blasts to your website. Search engines favor websites that continuously generate new content.