Gary Said:

how do I write a letter for donations of popcorn tins for sheltered workshop of 200.?

We Answered:

Find the name of the company on the internet and ask for the name of the President if it is not listed. Write the President a letter and explain why you want the tins and what you are planning to do with them. You can say something like Dear President , I am writing this letter to ask you for a donation of 200 popcorn tins. This donation is for a Christmas project that my group is doing for a shelter. Your donation would be greatly appreciated and helpful for our shelter. Thank you very much. Sincerely,
The letter would be better if it came from the person in charge of the shelter or the person in charge of the activity. Good Luck.

Gerald Said:

Writing A Letter Asking For Donations? Help?

We Answered:

Yup!

That's a great idea, but unfortunately, I think it's going to be a tough sell in the current economic environment. I know that even the largest pharma companies are conducting mass-scale layoffs. I don't know how receptive any of those companies will be to aid requests that fall outside of their usual "giving" programs.

If I were writing these letters, I would certainly begin by acknowledging that you are aware that these are very difficult times, and impress upon the reader that you would certainly understand if they were not able to assist you at the present time. The key to this type of appeal is to be very humble in your asking - anything that remotely hints of "gimme" is going to trigger a very fast rejection.

You'll also need to find a way to sell yourself as more deserving than every other prospective college student. Remember, times aren't just tough for businesses, of course, a lot of us are out here struggling, and it's a reasonable question for the potential donor to ask "Why should I give YOU money, when there are millions of other people who need it, too?"

Applying for a donor is kind of like applying for a job. If your letter reads like a generic form letter that you've obviously sent to 100 other companies, every one of those companies will 'pass' and leave it to the other 99 to help you out. When you do apply for a job, you need to take the time to familiarize yourself with the company - what do they do - what are their key products - things like that. You'll help yourself immensely if you demonstrate that you've taken the time to look up more than just their local address.

It may also be helpful to show that you've noticed other acts of corporate giving that they have provided in your community. Saying something like "I am writing to you because I have seen many examples of your benevolence in our community - like the computers that you donated to the local homeless shelter". Again, that goes a long way to demonstrate that you're not just hitting up every company in town for a couple of bucks.

Finally, you'll need to talk about why that particular profession appeals to you, and what you hope to do with that education. There's nothing wrong with saying that it would be an honor to one day have the opportunity to come and work for this very company that you are soliciting.

I hope that helped give you some ideas.

Good luck!

Randy Said:

I'm looking for ways to write a letter to ask for cash donations?

We Answered:

You are not asking for donations - you are selling advertising space on your fliers. You should be prepared to state how many fliers you will be distributing and where you will be distributing them. You should have a general idea of the demographics of the recipients of your fliers as well.

Ruby Said:

How do you write a letter to ask for donations?

We Answered:

First, say who u are, like I am a member of---------organiization,( a non-profit) and for ____- purpose (event, charity, etc) We/I will need : (list of specific items you need in exact detail (numer of each item,size,color, brand,etc.). If possible, can you, _____(name of company) like Wall Mart for example please consider donatingsome or all of the items listed above or a gift card to purchase the necessary materials. Our nonprofit organization's tax information for charitable contribution is: ______________(list all tax info needed so when htey donate they get a government given tax reduction)

Thanks in advance,___________________(your Full name, and your contact info and the prganization/ person in charge's contact info)

Be polite and be specific ALSO: its best to directly deliver hte letter by habd to the manager or donations staff person and to talk to them in person as well as giving the ma letter so that the company know you are serious and if they have questons you can answer them. ALSO: its YOUR job to remind the company about your request and chack if the person in charge got the letter. If u dont recieve conformation that they got it- contact them- if they say no- accept it nicely so u haave a chance next time.

Annette Said:

I wrote a letter asking for donations for my eagle project can you offer any tips or advice to make it better.

We Answered:

Whew . . . a few things that need to be tweaked.

First of all, drop "extraneous". Look up the definition, and you'll know why :-) Instead of "path", consider "goal".

Tell them WHY a garden in front of the public library is a good thing. OK, so you decided to build one. So what? Will it serve a purpose? What is that purpose?

They don't care how hard you've worked or how disappointed you'll be -- cut out the pity party. Just tell them that you have developed a plan (blueprint is more construction oriented).

Ask for specifics. Give them a list of things that you need, and ask if there is anything on the list that they would be willing to donate OR if they would be willing to make a cash donation. Offer to put their names on a small plaque by the garden if they contribute over a certain amount (most companies like to be recognized.) Most will not want to give you cash. It's cheaper for them to give you $50 worth of flowers than $50 cash.

Don't shoot yourself in the foot by saying, "I know you're busy . . ." Of COURSE they are busy. Don't give them an excuse to ignore you.

Don't ask for a confirmation email -- that's tacky. If you want a confirmation, then send it with a receipt confirmation. In Outlook, under Message Options, check "delivery receipt confirmation requested".

PS: My son found that it was more effective to WRITE the letter formally, and then deliver it IN PERSON to the manager of the store he was asking for donations from -- in full uniform, of course. It's hard to tell a good-looking guy in uniform "No" to his face! But be gracious if they can't help you -- my son's timing was completely horrid, as his project was approved the week before Hurricane Katrina hit -- it was extremely difficult to get donations for a Boy Scout project from companies that were donating thousands of $$ to Katrina relief!!

And don't forget to write thank you notes afterwards! My son did a "certificate of thanks" that included a picture of him and his troop with his finished project, framed it in an inexpensive frame, and gave it to his donors. It was something they could hang on their wall as proof of their civic-mindedness :-)

Good luck with your project!

Chester Said:

I need help writing a letter asking for donations for youth baseball?

We Answered:

Why don't you just address it "dear sir or madame" or you can say "dear (company name) representative"