Dumb Mistake #2 "Not Writing Thank You Notes"

I know I sound like your mother at graduation time. "Have you written your aunt to thank her for that check?"

You like me may have had the experience of giving to a ministry and never hearing back from them. When I don't get any response, I wonder if they got it; was it lost in the mail? Finally, when the check clears I wonder what it was used for or if the gift really mattered.

A long time ago I went to a fund raising seminar and the leader said something I have never forgotten. "The people most likely to give you money are the ones who have already given you money." It is a simple and easy to understand principle. People are more likely to give again and might even give a larger gift, if they know their gift was appreciated and what is was used for.

The good and bad news about people's giving to religious causes today is they no longer give blindly. They want to know how their money is used and they enjoy seeing and knowing that it is making a difference. When you write to say thank you, they know you got it and that you appreciated it.

But, you can even go a step further and tell them what you used it for. Or, you can tell them about an event coming up or that you just had and thank them for helping to make events like that possible. I wrote thank you notes yesterday and in each of them I told them that school started this coming Monday and that we were having a chili supper for all the students interested in being in and signing up for one of our Bible study groups and thanked them for helping to make events like that possible. Much of the money for the program personnel for our Back-2-School Retreat comes out of the money given by individuals. Many give around that time and when I write them a thank you, I tell them something about the retreat.

Some checks from individuals and churches to campus ministries are received monthly. You can still write them a personal note once or twice a year. December and May are great times to do that. Are you thanking people for what they have done and, and are you creating the likelihood that they will give again by letting them know their gift was appreciated?