According to  Email Benchmarking Report 2021 report from The Data Marketing Association (DMA)

• In 2021 charity email open rates increased to 26% vs. 21% in the previous year. 
• Also, charity email click rates were the highest at 6.9% compared to 2.3% average click rates across other sectors.  
• Charity email click rates were the highest in value since the study began. 

This is good news and a good reason for you to create and implement a robust strategy for email marketing and fundraising. 

1. Grow your email list: There are people in the Christian marketplace who might want to be part of your community.

But your sign-up form is hard to find ( I am talking here about your sign-up form at the bottom of your web pages) or your invitation/ proposition is dull (Join our mailing list… hmmm, when was the last time you joined one joyfully??)  

So, first thing first: create an attractive proposition for people to join your community of friends and supporters.

Then, turn this proposition into an exciting invitation and place it in places with high visibility on your website. 

Add an email opt-in pop-up in your story pages/resources/ prayer pages. Place your invitation to join your community on the top bar of your website, or launch social campaigns to find potential supporters.

Pro Tip: Watch out for those ‘Sign up’ if you agree – with this or that statement about poverty, child labour, justice issues – adverts on Facebook from charities like yours. The main purpose of those campaigns is to get new supporters.   

This ties in nicely with my next point … 

2. Don’t send ‘the next email in your schedule’ to new subscribers – create a welcome journey for them. 

To better understand what I mean click on the ‘Sign up’ button of a charity Facebook advert, and see for yourself the journey they create for you.

Give them your email. Take note of the sequence of emails and examine the content and the steps of the journey they send you on.

This way you will learn a great deal about how to create a welcome journey for your potential supporters and how to draw them closer to your cause. 

Pro Tip: If you are just starting out on this create a sequence of four emails for your welcome journey:

1. a short welcome email with a story that illustrates what you do and how; 2. a ‘get to know you’ email with a link to a short survey, 3. a fundraising email asking for a gift, 4. an email that invites them to get involved in different ways. 

Check out the other two points in the next blog post.