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Nonprofit leaders – a donor thank you note is the beginning of future gifts. Let me share my hard-earned lesson learned about donor gratitude. It was early in the formation of the foundation that I helped establish and ran for 10 years. The staff headed out for our week-long, annual convention that was months in the making. Consequently, we left a skeleton crew at the office and planned to respond to any gifts received upon our return. We knew we would have gifts to process when we returned. With great surprise, a major gift came in the mail when we were out. Immediately upon my return, I received a call from the major donor. He was not happy. He had not heard from us.  You see, he mailed in $5,000 and wanted to know if we had received his gift. To say the least, I was devastated. Make sure you subscribe to my weekly insights by clicking here! That way, you won’t miss out on hearing about my fundraising tips and hard-earned lessons! Obviously, I apologized to the donor and tried to explain that we had been out at our annual convention. It didn't matter to the donor. He had not heard from us. As you can imagine, he wanted to know that we had received his gift that he had put in the mail over a week ago. I will tell you – I pledged to never let that happen again. Without question, I pledged to always be prompt in thanking donors. Here are some lessoned learned from this painful experience of mine: First, donors want to know you received their gift. They want you to appreciate them and their gift. Second, they want to feel valued by the organization. Letting the donor know they are appreciated is critical. The first step upon receiving a major gift is to make a personal thank-you call. And as soon as you hang up from that phone call, write a personal note of thanks. Now, not all thank you notes are created equal. Let’s look closer at a thank-you note. Here are three absolutes with every donor thank you note: #1.   Write a hand-written, personal, and heartfelt note. Consider your personal connection and what the donor values about your organization. It's important to be sincere when you write your message. A quick tip is to always make your first line memorable. You have only one chance to make a first impression when someone opens your note. Make your words count. #2.   State specifically in your donor thank you note how their gift will make a difference. It’s about the donor – the impact they are making. It’s not about the organization. Help your donors understand that they are part of the solution. Let them know they are the hero for your organization. Share a story that conveys the impact of their gift. Say, for example, “thanks to you, 140 homeless women and children received a community style holiday dinner this year.” Share...