With competition for donors and charitable dollars at an all-time high, and the economy still keeping many donors on the sidelines, it's more important than ever to focus on getting...
Is your donor acquisition strategy working?
Is your new donor acquisition strategy working? How do you know? What's your measure of success? If you want a strong Fall acquisition season this year, your prime planning time...
Where do newsletters fit in your direct mail program? (Tip #25)
Newsletters are a great addition to your direct mail program. Unlike direct mail solicitation letters, you can use them to tell more in-depth stories, thank your donors in special ways...
Direct Mail vs. Digital: The Battle Continues
The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) released findings from a new study today showing that direct mail (and phone outreach) still deliver significantly higher response rates than digital (specifically e-mail) campaigns....
Should you let direct mail donors “rest”? (Tip #24)
Mail at least monthly. A lot of people think monthly solicitation is too frequent. Maybe you don't want to over mail donors and make them mad. I understand that. Here's...
Are you integrating mail and e-mail? You should be… (Tip #23)
Every time you put mail into the mailstream, you should send a coordinated e-mail blast. The integrated (timing, theme and message) approach will help you reach more donors and generate more...
What’s your direct mail suppression strategy? (Tip #22)
Be careful not to over-suppress. What do you do when someone calls and asks to be taken off your mailing list? Do you just say OK and pull them from all...
How often can you use a match challenge in the mail? (Tip #21)
Matching challenges help increase direct mail response rates and total revenue. I've seen nonprofits that use matches in as many as 7-10 of their mail appeals each year. Probably seems...
Are you constantly reinventing your direct mail wheel? (Tip #20)
Find a control package (or several). I'm always surprised when I talk to nonprofit organizations and hear things like, "we're working on a new holiday package because our board thinks...
What makes for a strong direct mail fundraising offer? (Tip #19)
A good offer is one that is specific, tangible, urgent and solvable. Here are some examples: Your gift of $19.40 will provide holiday meals for 10 hungry, homeless, hurting people...