Master a modest handful of so-called "emotional triggers" ... and you will master probably 95% of what you need to write effective fundraising appeals, donor newsletters and giving pages on your website.
These emotional triggers work because of preexisting factors in the typical human brain, so it doesn't matter whether they're delivered via print or digital (or in person, for that matter).
The biggies, cited often by direct mail experts, include these (in alpha order, not in order of potency):
- Anger - "How can you kill a dolphin? I'm furious about this. Why does stuff like keep happening? I wish somebody would do something about it." Enter charity, stage right.
- Exclusivity - "That would be a good group to join." Enter President's Circles, legacy societies and events.
- Fear - "Are my grandkids going to be able to go outside without a gas mask in the future?" Enter charity, stage left.
- Flattery - "You said something very nice about me. You made me feel good. I'll do something nice back." A gift emerges.
- Greed - "I want to live in the best place on earth. But there are problems here, too. And I can do something to help." Call it "good greed" or maybe enlightened self-interest. Why do I give to my local volunteer fire department? Because they've already saved me twice.
- Guilt - "I wish I hadn't done that." And a lifelong attachment to supporting a certain mission is born.
- Hope - This is what charities actually sell to donors. Many, if not most, charities are solving problems. In an industrialized world, nature needs lots of protection. Millions don't have clean drinking water. The arts struggle to survive. Whatever the cause, the charity sells hope that the situation can be remedied, fixed, ameliorated, changed, improved.
- Salvation - "We're all sinners." Doing good is the responsibility of all good people. There's a chance we can save ourselves from our base nature.