On average, a subscriber spends just 13 seconds skimming over an email. That’s about the length of a NASCAR pit stop. By using these conversion words and phrases in your email copy, you’ll maximize the number of donations you receive from supporters.
Urgency
Supporters need a reason to donate the moment they receive and open your campaign’s email. If they see your email and don’t give, they’re not likely to revisit it later after a dozen other emails displace it from the top of their inbox.
These words prompt supporters to act quickly
- Now
- Emergency
- Urgent
- Immediately
- Deadline
TIP: Don’t overuse these urgent words because your supporters will become desensitized to reading them.
Curiosity
Your fundraising email is one of dozens your supporters receive in a single day. If they’re also active donors, they’re being asked by other campaigns and organizations as well. Tap into curiosity to entice an email subscriber into opening and reading an email with these words and phrases:
- Did you see…?
- Can you believe…?
- This is unbelievable:
TIP: For best effect, use curiosity words in the subject line, preview text, and opening paragraph of your emails.
Emotion
Triggering a supporter’s emotions is a powerful tool in a digital campaigner’s arsenal. When we’re emotional, we make decisions – such as donating – more quickly than when we are rational.
These emotional words will drive supporters to donate:
- Excited
- Surprised
- Outraged
- Angry
- Disappointed
- Shocking
TIP: Negative emotional words get 63% higher click through rates, according to a study from Outbrain.
Action
Never ever use passive voice if you want supporters to take action. Your email copy needs to be crystal clear on what a supporter should do by using these words:
- Act
- Click
- Donate
- Contribute
- Chip in
- Sign
- Add
TIP: Avoid qualifying these words with other words like “please,” “maybe,” “consider,” “possibly,” or “if.”
Loss Aversion
Humans are hard-wired to expend more energy to avoid losses than they are to achieve gains. This is a cognitive bias known as loss aversion and is more commonly known as “fear of missing out” or FOMO.
Drive supporters to action by letting them know what they’ll miss out on if they don’t act.
- Lose
- Miss out
- Disaster
- Fall behind
- Can’t let this happen
TIP: The loss needs to seem credible to supporters and you can’t make the gap too extreme.
When you incorporate these words and phrases into your fundraising emails, you’re using human behavior to maximize the quantity (and size) of donations from your supporters.
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