In an insightful analysis of Fund-raising through the medium of Direct Mail, Mal Warwick & Associates Inc. shared some interesting data. It was their conviction that donors are discerning and intelligent; that they understand far more about the process of Fund-raising. They also found that Fund-raising through Direct Mail served a very useful purpose of public education – their research had shown that for a great many people, Fund-raising letters were a more trustworthy source of information.
The First Benefit
Donors being not only intelligent and compassionate, respond generously to Direct Mail packages that accurately put across an organization’s mission and programme. Attractively designed and printed, they can be more persuasive in convincing people to support those charities/welfare programmes that they believe in and would like to see being implemented.
Although costs of paper, printing and postage rates do keep increasing, Direct Mail still works out to be a cost-effective method of building a stable base of donors for NGOs. It enables organizations to raise maximum net income and gain long-term financial support for their social/animal welfare programmes. For many of them, Direct Mail provides a constant flow of unrestricted income.
However, it is good to bear in mind that Fund-raising mailings are a long-term investment. It is found that newly acquired donors usually remain members for an average of two to three years. During this period, they will in all probability make three or four additional contributions – their average donations being 1.5 to 2 times the size of their initial donation.
The Second Benefit
Surprisingly enough, the greatest value that can accrue to an organization is that among these newly acquired members – there maybe individuals who could eventually leave charitable bequests in their Wills. Still others may make a one-time major bequest or provide for regular, monthly contributions from their Trust Funds.
Therefore, whether designed to acquire new donors or new members, Fund-raising mailings seek to persuade individuals/organizations to take the step of giving a first-time gift. The success of the mailing is measured in terms of new members or donors added and by the acquisition cost of adding new members or donors. One of the factors to be kept in mind is that one should avoid spending either too little or too much in these acquisition mailings.
So, go right ahead. We wish you every success in your ambitious Fund-raising efforts!
(From MLI, Social Marketing Division. As an integral part of our broader services, we provide clients with complete data management solutions including: Data Cleaning, Mailing Campaign Management, De-duplication and In house Database Management)
