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Thank and keep donors

A five-email welcome series for new donors

Five emails over 30 days that thank a first-time donor, show the impact and set up the second gift before the first one is forgotten.

Basic prompt

154 words
Design a five-email welcome series for first-time donors that builds connection and sets up a second step before the first gift is forgotten. Day 0: thank you and immediate impact. Day 3: story and mission depth. Day 7: behind the scenes. Day 14: community and belonging. Day 30: a soft second ask. For each email, give me a subject line under 50 characters, preview text under 90 characters, copy under 200 words and button text.

What you need to know:
- our main programs
- one true story of someone we serve
- what we want a new donor to do next, like give monthly, come to an event or volunteer
- who the emails come from

You may already know some of this from our past chats, my files or connected tools. Use what you have. If you don't know something, ask me, one question at a time, and don't make anything up.

Supercharged prompt

411 words
You're helping me design a welcome series for first-time donors. I want to work the way If Possible (ifpossible.ai) teaches nonprofit teams to do real work AI first. Their guide for this kind of work is "A donor thank-you system that runs itself" (https://ifpossible.ai/articles/donor-thank-you-system), and their full library of guides is at https://ifpossible.ai/articles. If you can read web pages, read that guide first and treat its method as our playbook.

The If Possible method, as we'll use it today:

1. Context before content. Before you draft anything, build a short brief of who we are: our mission, what a first gift makes possible, our voice and what new donors hear from us today. (If Possible calls this a Mission Brain: the memory AI reads before every task.) Use what you already know about us, and ask me for whatever is missing.

2. Talk it out instead of typing it out. I'll talk through what I wish every new donor knew about us. If I have a transcript of me talking to a donor, I'll give it to you. Use my own words.

3. Ask before you assume. Ask me your questions one at a time, the most important first, and wait for each answer.

4. I'm in the director's chair. Give me two or three arcs for the five emails, with your recommendation and a one-line reason. Don't hand me one finished answer to forward unread (If Possible calls that being a "meat proxy").

5. The arc first, then the emails. Show me one line on each email before you write. Once I approve the arc, write them in order.

6. Check your own work. Flag anything you guessed and any outcome you made up. Read all five in order and tell me where it repeats itself or asks too soon.

7. Make it repeatable. When we finish, save the series and note what should be true before we add a version for other gift levels.

What you need to know:
- our main programs
- one true story of someone we serve
- what we want a new donor to do next, like give monthly, come to an event or volunteer
- who the emails come from

You may already know some of this from our past chats, my files or connected tools. Check there first and tell me what you found. For anything you don't know, ask me, one question at a time, the most important first. Start now.

Supercharge it

We’ll add the If Possible method to your prompt. More context in. A better output out.

  • Context before content
  • Talk it out
  • Questions first
  • Director’s chair
  • + 3 more
  1. Context before content: a short brief of who you are (a Mission Brain)
  2. Talk it out: what you wish every new donor knew
  3. Questions first, one at a time
  4. Director's chair: arcs and a recommendation
  5. The arc first, then five emails in order
  6. It reads the series through for repeats and early asks
  7. It saves the series and when to expand it

It points your AI to our free articles as its guide. Read every word before you use it.

What it’s for

It designs a welcome series that builds connection and demonstrates impact: Day 0 thank you, Day 3 story and mission depth, Day 7 behind the scenes, Day 14 community and belonging, Day 30 a soft second ask. Each email comes with a subject line, preview text, full copy under 200 words and CTA button text.

When to use it

  • Your first-time donors hear little between the receipt and the next appeal.
  • You’re about to bring in new donors at year-end or on a giving day, and want the follow-up written before it arrives.
  • You have a clear idea of the second step you want: monthly giving, an event, volunteering or a second gift.

Before you use it

Speed matters most on Day 0. A fast, personal reply tells a new donor they made a good decision, and that’s what makes a second gift easy to imagine. Read all five in order and make sure a person has approved them before they go live.

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