Probably the best way to be a better fundraiser is to think of your donors as heroes -- and to treat them as such.
Here are some hints from re:charity on how to do that, at 7 Ways To Be A Hero Donor Fundraiser:
- Write and design for donors
- Tell stories
- Inspire, don't educate, your donors
- Offer choices
- Acknowledge and thank in meaningful ways
- Close the loop
- Create a great giving experience
Let me add a couple more that might surprise you:
- Respect them enough to ask with urgency. Don't water down the importance of the need until the act of giving no longer seems important.
- Communicate with them often enough that you are part of their lives. If you think you're doing donors a favor by going silent on them, you don't understand why they're donors.