Make the most of direct mail for fundraising
August 31 2015
Direct mail and nonprofit organizations often do not seem as though they go together because of the costs involved with direct mail. For a nonprofit organization, it can appear to be cheaper to make a phone call or send an email as opposed to developing and sending a direct mail piece. But when a nonprofit learns how to utilize direct mail properly, it will soon realize that direct mail is an extremely effective fundraising method.
In order to use direct mail effectively, an organization needs to understand the difference between a prospect and a current donor. A prospect is someone who has had little to no contact with an organization and has either never made a donation, or made their first donation only recently. A current donor is someone who sends in a donation at least once a year and supports the organization.
The financial relationship between direct mail and nonprofits is strongest with the current donor list. An organization should be sending out fundraising correspondence to each current donor at least once a year and reaping the benefits of that type of relationship.
When a nonprofit decides to reach out to prospects, it will usually buy or rent a list and start putting together materials to send. The point of a prospect list is to get donations and add more people to the current donor list. But if an organization is not familiar with what lists to buy and what materials to send, then it is wasting its money. It is important to hire direct mail experts to help a nonprofit get the most from all of its direct mail activity.
When a nonprofit decides to mail to its current donors, it can expect a positive financial return from that direct mail campaign. But if that organization is sending out too many mailings, then donors will stop responding. A nonprofit needs to be economical with the mailings that are sent, and offer newsletters and other informational pieces along with donation requests to add value for your donors.
Developing an effective direct mail campaign takes time and persistence. Any organization that decides to start using direct mail should be prepared to measure each result and improve their approach based on the data they collect.
Direct mail is a very effective way for nonprofits to enhance their fundraising activities. To get the most out of direct mail, nonprofits need to be committed to the success of the program and understand the best ways to get strong results.
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