Direct mail fails, but face-to-face and Internet fundraising are big in Italy and Spain.

By Daryl Upsall

What works?
Most of the fundraising techniques that are commonly used in other mature markets work well, with high average gifts, and payment is almost always via monthly direct debit other than for emergency appeals. Face to face, telephone, SMS, e-mail/Internet all work well, but cold mail is not effective for a combination of cultural reasons and poor quality lists for rental. Two well-known U.S. charities tried and failed to enter the Spanish market without any prior studies or consultation with market experts. They failed catastrophically by trying to enter exclusively by cold direct mail.