What's a Good Response Rate for a Direct Mail Appeal?

We've been talking with Brian Weiner of the One to One Group about direct mail and successful fundraising appeals. What's a good response rate for a direct mail appeal? Here's what Brian says:

It’s easier to describe a “bad response rate” since the statistical norm is less than one-half of one percent. That would unquestionably be a bad rate of response. We are seeing well-targeted, socially centered, and personally messaged appeals deliver an average single mailing rate of response of 4% to 20%.

Those results today depend in great measure on how the donor or donor prospect views the charity’s position in “the social safety net.” In other words, food banks, which are at the center of the social safety net are typically going to do very well in this economic climate. Arts organizations, which are deemed less socially vital, be that right or wrong, seem to find the current climate more challenging.



Will direct mail ever die?

As a student of marketing, I believe in the product life cycle and so, to some degree I believe that direct mail will change as it matures. Variable direct mail and pURLS are but two examples. Last I looked, direct mail still accounts leads the way as the preferred donor vehicle by about a margin of 2-1. I don’t see that changing soon. Social media, cause marketing, email will play a part…but donor caution will cause direct mail to retain it’s dominance for some time to come.

Best of all, since most organizations are not using dialogue tools, pURLS, variable messaging, or responsive email…there is plenty of room for conventional growth. In the end, each of us wants to be recognized for the role we play in the support of a charity, and we want to be acknowledge for our value.

Any thoughts or questions about direct mail? Be sure to leave your comments and thoughts for Brian here.

3 Elements of Effective Direct Mail Appeals

Today, too many direct mailers…and especially nonprofits…are in the “broadcast” industry when in pursuit of donor dollars. They craft a message and then distribute it, often through the most inexpensive means possible (i.e. – newsletters, copied form letters, email blasts), waiting anxiously to see what the postman brings each day.

We have seen an uptick in this “low touch” communication over the last year as the economy tightened. I would suggest that there is much that can be done, at a reasonable cost per dollar raised, to help connect with donors:

1. Personalize everything…the more the better. In the process, provide recognition where it is due. Who among us enjoys receiving “Dear Friend” letters?
2. Incorporate dialogue in everything you do when you mail. Don’t just send a thank you letter to a donor…send a thank you and a survey with a postage paid envelope. Make sure the survey addresses the recipient personally and not generically. Create opportunities to dialogue, and then respond to each one that you receive back.
3. Develop intelligent asks. Donors find formulas insulting (you gave $30 last year, so let’s ask for $37.50 this year…) and without intelligence based research, donor asks based upon historical giving are a shot in the dark in a weakened economy.
   
   My favorite story comes from one of the Florida universities where a west coast donor had given $500 each year for five years. During a trip to California, the VP of Development scheduled a meeting with the donor after a wealth analysis showed that the donor had the capacity and the propensity to give much more. When asked why the donor chose to give $500 each year, his reply was, “That’s all you asked for…”
   
   In the end, the donor made a multi-million dollar commitment to the University. Effective asks are vitally important, as we are in the midst of a period where donor retention is perhaps more important than donor expansion.

-Brian Weiner, Principal, One to One Group

   Stay tuned for part 2 of the direct mail discussion...and don't forget to leave your comments for Brian!

Veteran Fund Raiser & Nonprofit Leader Sandi Stewart Says "Thanks for the Memories"

WOW! What a magical ride I have had over the last 23 years as an executive with the Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida. I joined the Girl Scout council in 1986 as the Chief Finance Officer and became the Chief Executive Officer in 1998. These years with the Girl Scouts has provided me so many opportunities to learn new things, make new friends, and the opportunity to influence the lives of over 100,000 girls.


Before my involvement with Girl Scouts, I was involved with my children’s activities and was a community volunteer where I served on boards and worked with organizations to make my community a better place. These contacts were how I began my career with Girl Scouting.

When I took the job with the Girl Scouts as the CFO, the council did not own one single computer. My first task as a new staff member was to computerize the office. It is hard to believe today that all financial records were kept in ONE ledger. I remember the first audit after we computerized the office and they asked if we took a backup of the records off site. I explained to him that we had a daily backup for five days all in the fireproof safe, and we still had a copy of the ledger book. That seemed pretty safe to me, although today not only do we have a backup off site daily, we actually send one out of state. Just the beginning of new ways of doing things!

As the CFO I watched the council’s assets grow (not only in cash but in facilities at the council’s camps). The job was very fulfilling to me and I felt that I had found the perfect job for the remainder of my career. My first involvement with girls was managing their “cookie points”. The beauty of Girl Scouting where a girl can actually be financially responsible for what active she wants to do, because she receives the beloved “cookie points” for her accomplishments in the cookie program.

After working with two different CEOs, I felt that I would like to become the leader of the organization and become more involved in the program delivery that I had grown to love as the CFO. At that time the Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida served 6 ½ counties and it was necessary to cultivate a Board of Directors made up of members from all the counties. I made so many new friends! And, in 2006 when Girl Scouts of the USA did a reorganization of the movement, Gulfcoast was fortunate to survive as a council and added 3 ½ counties to our jurisdiction. What a challenge to manage the geography that I have grown to love in my 23 years.

I spent my first years learning more about the Girl Scout movement, improving the ever challenging Human Resource skills and continuing to monitor financial records prepared by a new CFO. My job as CFO had given me many skills that I would use as I managed the council’s “personal real estate boom”. We sold the old council office, purchased the new site on Cattlemen Rd, did a bargain sale for property adjacent to Camp Honi Hanta, sold Camp Chanyatah, and most recently negotiated the gift of additional property adjacent to Camp Honi Hanta. In addition, I have spent the last two years in litigations on a new commercial pool at camp that leaked before girls were able to swim.

While I had the responsibility to do the “paper chase,” I experienced girls growing from the shy Daisy, through the toothless Brownies, the happy Juniors, the maturing "Highs and Lows" Cadettes, Seniors “going for the gold” and enjoyed the work of the Ambassadors who are not only the leaders of tomorrow, but also the leaders of today, who are making our world a better place.

My biggest challenge was the capital campaign. As a CEO who got the job because of her business skills, what did I know about a capital campaign? The Girl Scouts have the luxury of the Cookie program which covered about 49% of our budget. I had not done a lot of fund raising and this was a huge challenge for me. This community was unbelievable in the support of the Girl Scouts in our capital campaign. We were able to raise $8,000,000 from 2002-2005 with the help of Philanthropy Management, Inc. and the wonderful support of this community. The result of this successful campaign was the completion of the Searcy Koen Regional Girl Scout Campus.

It was during this time that I realized the importance of AFP. I joined the organization during the campaign to improve my skills, make new friends and just learn more about fund-raising. I have enjoyed my involvement with AFP and plan to continue my involvement during my retirement. My plans also involve staying connected to the not-for-profit world and giving back to a community that has given me so much.

As Bob Hope said “Thanks for the Memories."

-Sandi Stewart, former CEO, Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida