Have you gotten lazy with your donor relations efforts? If you’re like the rest of us, you probably have. We start out very excited about managing donors and building relationships, but over time, it’s easy to get bogged down in daily activities and forget to keep an eye on the prize.

If you’re ready to get back to the basics of good donor relations, try these three ideas to help breathe new life into your fundraising efforts.

1. Tell your donors how you will use their money. This is important. Make sure the giver knows how he or she plans to use the donation, he or she just feels it. Text like “Your gift will ensure 15 kids go to summer camp for a week” makes the giving process more real and tangible for the giver.

2. Add personal notes to thank you letters. This can bring big rewards in terms of donor management! Taking a few minutes out of a busy day to go through a stack of letters can seem like a chore, but trust me, donors who receive a thank you letter with a personal note will be delighted that you took the time to personally acknowledge their gift.

3. Invite donors on a tour of your facility. Always include in your letter an offer for a guided tour of your facility or program site (if applicable). You may never get anyone to buy you into this, but they will remember that you volunteered. You will probably get some people who want to visit you. Seeing firsthand the work you do can make all the difference in the world for a particular donor.

Always remember that your donors are your most important asset. Without them, I wouldn’t have any fundraising programs. Do everything you can to take care of them and your efforts will be rewarded.