4 Components Of An Effective Missions Introduction Letter
Congratulations! You have answered God’s call to ministry and are ready to get to the field. Sending a letter or an email to introduce yourself is a great way to create awareness and interest in your ministry. But more than that, your goal in writing an introduction letter is to move people toward wanting to meet with you, hear more, and join you in this mission.
So, what are the components of an effective missions introduction letter?
1 - A PERSONAL CONNECTION
Start by writing a couple of personal sentences that connect you with the person to whom you are sending the letter. Who referred you to this person? Is this person aware of the agency for whom you will be working? Do they have a personal connection with the ministry? Do you have common interests that connect you? Include a reference to those things at the beginning of your letter.
2 - A MISSIONAL CONNECTION
Share briefly about your calling to the sending agency and who they are. How did you connect with the organization? What is their mission? What excites you about this mission? If it excites you, those same things will likely excite the one reading your letter as well.
3 - AN EMOTIONAL CONNECTION
People want to help others. They want to give and make a difference in this world. Your job is to illustrate the need, urgency, and challenge in such a way they feel an emotional connection, and are therefore compelled to help.
Facts, figures and statistics, while informative, don’t truly paint a picture of the problem you're trying to remedy. Telling a short story that illustrates the statistics helps the reader to better identify with the situation and make an emotional connection.
4 - LEAVE IT OPEN FOR MORE CONNECTION
End the letter by clearly communicating your intent to contact the reader and ask for a meeting together. Be sure to clearly state you will discuss the opportunity and invite him/her to funding partnership in this meeting. You can share your goals, strategies, and cast vision for the potential impact your ministry can have during your face to face meeting.
If you are asking people to consider meeting with you, following up with them within a few days of sending a letter is just as important as sending the letter itself. You want people to remember the information you sent! Make it a priority to follow up quickly and thoughtfully. This letter is the first step in your process of fundraising; hopefully leading to a dynamic missions partnership for the long term.
Deb Evans, Fundraising Coach