Phone It In

Contrary to popular belief, telefundraising and direct mail do not cannibalize each other. Rather, the two methods can be integrated to form a highly effective campaign. Study after study has shown that the telephone and mail complement each other and actually increase the overall value of a donor when used appropriately. One integrated campaign my company did for a national religious charity increased its response rate by 101 percent for people who received a pre-call to announce a mailing. For those who received an answering machine message about the mailing, the response rate increased by 28 percent.