Smart Acquisition List Selection

In no particular order, here are 15 key steps toward smart list selection:

1) Set your annual and campaign goals. How many donors do you want to acquire? At what cost per donor? How much are you willing to invest?

2) If you're a first-time mailer, construct test mailings that allow you to analyze and eventually capitalize on your potential. Build your test with lists that are most likely to succeed -- groups whose missions are most like your own. Once you have tested enough to identify these core "Tier 1" lists, you can then begin to test into the secondary and tertiary tiers.