Sign Here to Succeed – Why Your Appeals Need a Signature Strategy

The wrong signatory can sink a great campaign. Donors need more than good copy – they need someone they trust.

Towards the end of last year, I found myself in a meeting with a brand agency. They work regularly with charities – doing their rebranding thing - reimagining logos and writing tone of voice documents. But it quickly became clear they knew very little about the realities of fundraising.

They were focused on “developing the organisational voice.” A great ambition in theory. But after hearing this phrase for the fourth or fifth time, I asked a simple question:

“What’s your plan for the people who are actually doing the asking? What about their voices?”

Everything went quiet. It clearly wasn’t something they’d considered before.

So I explained that even when people trust and like an organisation, the person who actually delivers the ask - and follows up on the thanks and report back – can dramatically affect income.

Particularly when we’re talking about mid-value donors, where relationships are everything.

Again, no answer. And honestly, I wasn’t surprised. It’s a blind spot that costs charities millions – and is so inexpensive to fix.

Despite all the investment that goes into brand, copy, creative, and data, far too many fundraising teams treat the signatory of a direct mail appeal as an afterthought.

I recently reviewed three years’ worth of appeals for one charity and found they’d used 26 different signatories in their direct mail programme.

Twenty-six!

Over that period, they were trying to build relationships – but with whom? No donor is going to develop loyalty to a charity when they’re hearing from someone new every time.

The fact is, and it’s worth repeating, People give to people.

And if you remove trusted, consistent, recognisable people from your appeals, you do so at your peril.

I’ve tested signatories across dozens of campaigns. In one case, a well-known, trusted Peer (as in a Lord) writing to wealthy people boosted income tenfold compared to a someone unknown. Same letter. Same case study. Same design. Same call to action. The only difference? Who signed it.

I’ve seen celebrity signatories double response rates. And I’ve seen others cut them in half. Fame isn’t enough. What matters is credibility, relevance, and connection.

For mid-value donors especially, the signatory can be as powerful as the message itself.

These donors aren’t clicking “donate” on a whim. They’re reflective, values-driven, and seeking meaningful engagement with causes they care about.

So who should be asking? Try these

• The CEO – or a respected board member. Someone who shares the donors worldview or life or career stage.

• A programme leader or someone on the frontline who can speak with authenticity

• A fellow donor who’s made a similar commitment – who may well be known to the potential supporter.

Don’t Just Choose the Right Signatory. Stick With Them

Once you’ve chosen your signatory, consistency matters. Too often, fundraisers rotate signatories to “keep things fresh,” but this breaks the very relationship they’re trying to build. A donor needs to feel they’re hearing from someone they know – not reading a broadcast from a faceless institution.

Even if your signatory isn’t perfect, a good one used consistently will outperform a rotating cast of unfamiliar names. Give donors a chance to build trust.

And if there is an argument for using a new or specialist signatory – or even a celebrity - simply add a comp slip or use an old-fashioned lift letter so you can keep your primary signatory as well.

Want to Raise More Money? Start Here.

Charities will spend millions on brand campaigns, usually watching income decline in the process. But a relatively tiny investment in building a Signatory Strategy could increase income two or threefold – or even tenfold – and yet it rarely makes it onto the planning sheet.

Why? Maybe it doesn’t feel exciting enough. Or more likely, its power is simply not understood? But in terms of ROI, few variables are more powerful – or more overlooked.

So here’s my challenge to you:

Pull out your last five direct mail appeals. Who signed them? How consistent are they? Are they the right person for your audience? Have you tested alternatives?

Then pull out your thank you letters or emails – do they match? Do they refer to the appeal – and who signed them?

If it all looks pretty chaotic, don’t waste time or money on anything else before you have sorted this element out. The sooner you start, the sooner you will see a boost in your long-term loyalty and income.

Because fundraising isn’t just about what your organisation wants to say – it’s about who your donors want to hear from. It’s about recognition, respect and reward.

And the human voice you choose could be the difference between a campaign that struggles and one that soars.