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Donation Letters

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Every person with a considerable earning, donates towards some or the other cause in his/her life. Some donations are made out of choice, while some out of compulsion. Donations given during admission to a school or college are a type of compulsory donation. However, when someone is requested to donate for a particular cause, he/she cannot be forced to do so. The person or organization raising funds thus have to write donation letters, requesting the person to donate as per his/her capability. Writing these letters might sound simple, but one has to write a letter that succeeds in convincing the reader to donate towards the cause. In this section of sample letters, we would thus discuss about donation letters, and learn the art of mastering donation letters.

Writing letters requesting for donations:

Donation request letters are written with two main aims in mind -

To gather funds for a particular cause
To convince people to donate for the cause

Getting donations becomes difficult, because here the person gives money, but does not get anything in return. Thus, convincing someone to shell out money from the pocket for someone else becomes difficult.

Another important point to consider while writing these letters is that these letters are addressed to very influential personalities, elite classes, rich entrepreneurs, etc. Thus, one has to follow a proper mode of communication to reach them. One cannot just land up at their home or office and ask for donation. A well-written donation letter thus helps you communicate effectively. The letter should be drafted as per the formal letter format, and addressed to the right person, rather than addressing it in general, to some department or organization. A personal address will increase the chances of your letter, reaching the right person, and thus help you in getting donations.

Instructions for writing a donation request letter:

As mentioned above, this letter is written as per the formal letter writing guidelines. To help you draft your letter correctly, a few instructions are listed below:

Write the letter on a letterhead:

While a request for donation should look authentic, and thus you must write the letter on the letterhead of your organization, trust, etc. This authenticates your request. It also gives the reader a chance to verify your authenticity by checking the website, or calling up at the organization.

Introduction:

Begin the letter by introducing yourself. Mention the date, your name, designation in the trust, your contact details, etc. at the top left hand side of the page.

Address:

As mentioned above, the letter should be addressed to a specific person. Try to find out the name of the concerned person who has the authority to respond to your request. Address the letter to that particular person.

Salutation and body of the letter:

The letter will have a precise subject line, which gives the reader a complete idea of your intention of writing the letter.
Begin the letter by writing proper salutations, for example, Dear Mr./Ms. _________.
The first paragraph of the letter would begin with greeting the reader, and mentioning your purpose of writing the letter.
The second paragraph would give complete details on the cause, the amount of funds needed, the plan of action, etc. The reader's queries regarding the cause and the funds should be clarified.
In the last paragraph, thank the reader for reading the letter, and again request him/her to donate towards the cause.
Make things simpler for the reader by providing a pre-addressed and a pre-stamped envelope that motivates the reader to donate. His/her work would be simplified, because he/she will just have to place a check in the envelope, and drop it in the post box. You can also send someone to pick up the same from his/her office or residence.
Provide any pictorial cues if possible. If you have some pictures of the previous causes you had taken up, and the pictures of the current cause you wish to work for, send the same to the reader. This will strengthen your request.

Many charities, NGO's, orphanages, etc., write such letters to the selected target audience in a given locality. Not all these requests get a positive response. Thus, writing letters that succeed in convincing the reader is essential. Read some sample donation letters given in the links below to write winning letters that would help you get funds for a good cause.

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