Are You Teasing Me?

'Urgent membership information enclosed'
Membership in a nonprofit — even without any benefits — appeals to some donor demographics. However, others aren’t willing or able to commit to the “baggage” that membership implies in their minds. If a lapsed donor or prospect isn’t responding to your membership offers, test a non-membership mailing asking for a one-time gift for a great project.

'Your free gifts are enclosed (or waiting)'
That’s always a great way to get someone inside the envelope, but monitor to be certain you aren’t creating a file of premium collectors. I used to work for a nonprofit that offered a book every month. If the book seemed interesting, we did well. If the book didn’t resonate as well with donors, we didn’t do as well. We had inadvertently created a “book-of-the-month” club instead of a cadre of loyal supporters.