Personalization works, Mr. Sample. Just be sure to get it right, Mr. Sample. And please, Mr. Sample, don’t overdo it.

By Paul Barbagallo

“With giving people free membership trees, and reaching a national audience, we must be sure the trees will thrive in specific areas,” Brienzo says. “We are also sensitive to regional concerns and don’t send trees considered invasive in any area.”

One of NADF’s many challenges — aside from monitoring climatic and agricultural trends — is keeping its database clean and organized. With so many personalized fields throughout the package to account for, errors could be magnified, as with any effort employing personalization. But NADF to date has distributed nearly 8.7 million trees, and can boast of 1 million members.