The Keys to Becoming an Extraordinary Leader
At its origin, Donor Relations was built upon acknowledgment letters and stewardship reports, requiring two very specific yet different writing styles. Today, however, donor relations professionals are tasked with crafting much more than the standard thank you message — impact reports, event and video scripts, social media, storytelling across mediums, and much more. Join us for a new webinar series dedicated to all aspects of writing in the Donor Relations profession. By exploring the core purpose of our pieces and audiences, we'll dive deep into communication strategy and tactics to help you and your team develop more efficient, consistent, and engaging messaging for donors at all levels across all mediums.
From writing for your VP or CEO to the delicate art of data storytelling, we'll help you hone your writing skills in the acknowledgment, recognition, and stewardship spaces. We'll empower you to make changes at your organization, both subtle and dynamic, to fine-tune the tone and voice of Donor Relations and positively affect the overall donor experience. Learn what pitfalls to avoid and where to focus your energy and resources. Full of samples, best practices, and helpful insight, this series will stretch your writing and editing muscles to the max as we explore the Four Keys to Writing for Donor Relations.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
Purchase the entire series for just $200 (a $40 savings!)
Key 1: Determining Who, What, When & How
Recording Now Available
What is the purpose of our writing? Are we writing for gratitude, impact, or persuasion? Or are we writing to convey financial or technical information to a donor? Are we writing for an audience of one or many? And are we writing for print materials or for the digital space? The answers to these essential questions affect every piece we craft in Donor Relations. Join us as we discuss actively using these questions (and others!) to set the tone and pace for all our communications, from acknowledgments to impact reports to financial reports and more.
Learning Outcomes:
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Explore how purpose and audience determine writing style
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Identify critical content for audiences of all sizes
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Learn how to utilize a master communications plan to determine frequency and audience experience
Key 2: The Art of Writing for Gratitude & Impact
Recording Now Available
The power of a good story in our industry is immeasurable. Whether you are demonstrating gratitude and impact to an audience of 1, 100, or 1,000, the key elements remain the same — length, tone, and relevance to name a few. While making a gift is a transaction at the root, the stage we set leading up to and after that gift is anything but tactical. It is 80% emotional and 20% logical. In this equation, we must master the art of capturing a reader’s attention, convey both fact and emotion, and ultimately inspire them to future action. This webinar will explore how to structure and craft your content to create more engaging and emotionally persuasive stories that will resonate with your audiences. We will discuss writing in the voice of others, infusing genuine emotion, communicating causation, effective data and narrative storytelling, finding the Donor Relations voice and many other important topics that affect the donor’s experience.
Learning Outcomes:
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Explore how to scale gratitude and impact by audience size
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Tips for using externally written pieces and interviews to shape storytelling
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How to recognize and remove unnecessary institutional language and content
Key 3: Fine-tuning the Product & Process
Recording Now Available
Writing for Donor Relations is much more than finding creative ways to express gratitude and convey impact. It starts with a project plan and effective collaboration with colleagues throughout our organization (think: those who have the information we need!) and includes interviewing, editing, and so much more. Join us as we discuss project management best practices, including developing relationships with partners, and share tips for conducting compelling interviews, repurposing content, editing for purpose, formatting to match the delivery channel, and so much more.
Learning Outcomes:
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Why project plans matter and how to design them
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Create efficiencies in the writing and editing process
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Tips for reworking and repurposing content submitted by others
Key 4: DiVE Into Writing for Digital, Video & Events
June 30 at 1 pm ET | $60
Writing for all of the different mediums we have in our portfolios can be taxing – each being nuanced in it’s own way. For instance, you have less than 10 seconds to capture your readers’ attention in social and email formats – are you using this brief opportunity effectively and efficiently? Hybrid events are here to stay – are you scripting programs that resonate with and engage donors to attend (and stay) in person AND online? Join the team as we explore the challenging art of writing content for web, email, social media, and event outlets. We will provide you with a framework for effectively communicating on these platforms by focusing on purpose, content, and key audiences. Grab hold of this opportunity and don’t let your 10 seconds slip away.
Learning Outcomes:
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Key components of effective and efficient messaging
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Best practices in length and delivery
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How to create engaging content versus canned messaging
FAQ
Can I buy one registration for my entire team, even if we're all viewing it remotely?
Yes! Just complete your purchase and you will receive a confirmation email (check your junk mail folder if you don't see it) with a link you can share with your team members that allows them to register for free. Only one purchase is required per organization.
Will a recording be provided for those who can't attend?
Absolutely! We send a recording of the live session to all registered attendees within 24 hours of the live event ending. You will also receive a recording if you purchased a webinar after the live session has ended.
Are these webinar included in the purchase of a 2022 Core Subscription?
No. This series is separate from any other webinar purchases that have been offered.
Do these webinars count towards my CFRE certification?
This series has been approved for 1 CFRE continuing education point per webinar (4 points for the entire series).
MEET YOUR PRESENTERS
Sarah Sims, CFRE
Consultant & Strategist
at The DRG Group
Executive Director of Donor Engagement
University of Houston
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Jan McGuire
Associate
at The DRG Group