America’s Second Harvest’s new direct-marketing approach yields ‘remarkable results’ and proves that donors are hungry for more intimate relationships with nonprofits.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

1. Increase reporting of accomplishments so donors would better understand how their gifts were being used.

2. Change the new-donor acknowledgment program so donors would bond more closely with the mission of A2H. That meant moving away from the traditional letterhead letter and CRE stuffed into a standard-size envelope. In its place, A2H offers a hardcore thank-you letter that references donors’ year-to-date contributions and explains the amount of food and groceries that amount allows the organization to distribute. The lower part of the letter is a personalized response device.