Don't Break Your Concentration(s)

Let's look at an example of two different ZIP codes with the same number of donors (Figure 1). A donor count suggests that both ZIP codes be mailed, and it appears that they are equal in terms of their value to the mail plan.

However, when you evaluate each ZIP code in terms of how successful you have been at penetrating it, a very different story unfolds. ZIP code 10037 is much more valuable (in terms of how much your organization's mission is known and supported) than ZIP code 10025. In addition, a much larger percentage of your acquisition mail budget would be spent mailing to a heavily populated ZIP like 10025 when the response rate is likely to be lower.