FOCUS ON: LISTS Feeling Exhausted? Your prospecting lists — and you — can get a much-needed pick-me-up with an influx of nams from commercial files.

The purpose of direct mail, whether commercial or nonprofit, is to persuade the recipient to take decisive action that will benefit both him and the mailer — to respond favorably to an offer or, in the case of nonprofits, an appeal.

You can draw on common commercial copywriting techniques, adapt and apply them to non-profit copy.