Should I continue to send newsletters about our ministry? Or does this push them away from giving?
The question includes a bad assumption—newsletters are always about money! Your newsletters should not be about money—in fact, don’t mention money except to say thanks generally for “supporting you,”
Your newsletter carries the banner of your ministry vision—not to coerce or “guilt” readers into sending gifts! If your letters constantly hint about finances then, you are right, readers will be pushed away from giving!
How to get readers excited about your ministry? Don’t merely list your activities for the past year. Yawn! Here are a couple suggestions:
- Tell a story about one person who is benefiting from your ministry—a saved marriage or someone who has found a personal encounter with Christ.
- Tell a sad or challenging story about a person who needs your ministry.
- Show a photo of you in action in your work. Put a caption under it because people always read captions.
- Keep it short—one page! You don’t read long letters do you! One page, one photo, one story!
How about this strategy? Send four “vision” newsletters per year to everyone on your list. Send three additional thank-you letters to donors-only. Send an appreciation gift to donors-only once a year. Send a cash project letter to everyone on your list once a year. (That’s the time you talk about money!) Learn how to write an effective cash project letter from my book, Fund Your Ministry at Navpress.com.
