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• We invite people to give toward vision and what God is doing. We do not ask them to give to our deficit. avoid terms like need, shortfall, crisis, and lack of funding. "Help me get backpay" is not inspiring. "Empower me to reach the lost with the gospel" is. Bonus points for including a ministry story (the best ones are about one person who is named vs a large group of people).
• We personalize the communication as much as possible. A 1:1 ask is the most effective. This letter can be used to start that conversation, but please plan to ask your targeted list of people personally. At a minimum, take the time to mail merge so your letter is addressed to the person vs an impersonal "Dear friend." 
• We plan for letters hit mailboxes (or in-boxes) before Thanksgiving.  You’ll want to beat the Christmas cards (and Christmas spending). Some recommend sending a letter before Thanksgiving, followed up with a phone call after Thanksgiving. 
• We tell people what is needed to meet the goal. Have to raise $40K? Let people know. Don't be vague about what it's going to take to get you into a healthy spot so you can run this race with perseverance (Hebrews 12:2). This amount could be a great question to put before the Lord, so you have that confidence behind the number. This page will show you how to calculate the amount to put into your EOYA.  

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  title How to calculate an amount to put into your EOYA.
  Multiexcerpt include MultiExcerptName Determine an amount PageWithExcerpt The Easy Peasy EOYA shouldDisplayInlineCommentsInIncludes false

• We encourage them to seek the Lord on what to give. We disciple our donors to seek the Lord on what He wants them to do with His money. 
• We show them how to give. Online giving is great, but end of year tends to see more paper checks. Please include the Reliant mailing address. 
• We follow up with a personal call or text. When it comes to securing the gift, the 1:1 ask and the proceeding follow-up is far more important than this letter. If you're going to spend your time on something, let it be on personal asks and follow up! 

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Sample EOYA Letter 

It's recommended you snail mail this letter to a targeted list of people, then follow it up with a personal call to invite them to give. As a soft follow-up to your call, you can also email a copy of the letter. 

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