I remember the first direct-mail appeal letter I ever wrote. It was 1978. A massive flood had ravaged a village in the lowlands of Bangladesh, and I was assigned to write an appeal to current donors.
Twenty-eight years — and many appeal packages — later, I want to share what I’ve learned. You might find these thoughts helpful as you prepare for your next appeal.
This mailing from the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism puts all its cards on the table on the outer envelope. The white No. 10 has the USCJ return address in the upper left-hand corner and just below it, resting above the address box, the headline, “Strengthening Jewish continuity and our ties to Israel.” The right side of the outer shows a small image of a note pad and three thumbnail photographs of flowers in full color. Next to the note pad image and flower photographs is the teaser, “Enclosed: Your Flora of Israel Note Pad and Labels.” Inside is a 3.5-inch-by-8.5-inch glue-bound note pad. The
This mailing from the National Parks Conservation Association doesn’t look too different from the outside. The white, glossy outer consists of two 6-inch-by-9-inch panels folded together and tab sealed. The face panel is bare save the address box and NPCA return address, while the back displays a four-color thumbnail picture of a cliff and the teaser, “When you think of our national parks, what words come to mind?” When the seal is broken, the face panel opens to the left to show another panel with a picture of an evergreen forest and the word, “Magnificent?” When this panel is lifted to the right, three
Competition in the mailbox is tough for all mailers. While some organizations mail bigger and flashier to stand out from the rest of the packages in the mail pile, others go the other route of mailing blind and keeping elements simple. This mailing from the National Stroke Council caught my eye because it is a rare example of a package that is simple yet eye-catching, not because it’s flashy, but because it is doing something different. In addition to the usual poly address window, the light blue No. 10 outer has a simple, black-outlined illustration of a doctor in hospital scrubs. To his side
There’s something to be said for creating a mailing around a theme that uses both words and graphics to convey a clear message, and this mailing from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission does it well. The organization’s mission is to secure human rights for all people and communities subject to discrimination or abuse on the basis of sexual orientation or expression, gender identity or expression, and/or HIV status. The message of this mailing is that LGBT people around the world face persecution and that by speaking out against this persecution and donating to the organization, individuals can help ensure the rights
Greenpeace is in the mail a lot, advocating for environmental protection and raising funds for its whistle-blowing work. Constant in most, if not all, of its mailings is the interaction — and power — of its images and messaging.
For a mailing so small -- 4 inches by 8.25 inches -- this package does a good job of getting noticed. First off, it’s mailed blind, with no indication of the sender on the plain, white outer envelope. Blind mailings are always intriguing, if you ask me. Whether the recipient ends up being interested in what’s inside or not, the fact is that most people at least want to know who the mail came from. Once inside it’s clear the mailing’s from Special Olympics New Jersey. Included is a 7-inch-by-7.5-inch, double-sided letter on card stock, a reply device, two VIP tickets to the 2006 Summer
For fundraisers who rely on direct mail, these are the best of times and the worst of times.
First, the bad news: The sheer volume of information bombarding donors — from traditional broadcast and print media to the Web, e-mail and instant messaging — is making it harder than ever to get attention for your appeals.
In its white paper “RFM: A Formula for Greater Direct Mail Success,” Charleston, S.C.-based nonprofit software services provider Blackbaud posits that by using a database of donors’ giving histories to do RFM analysis, organizations can increase gifts and reduce costs.
Blackbaud recommends the following tips for nonprofits interested in setting up RFM measurement.
Chicago-based hunger-relief organization America’s Second Harvest wasn’t working with a lagging control when it devised and tested this campaign. Quite the contrary — the organization’s brown lunch-bag appeal was doing “fabulously,” says Terri Shoemaker, senior account director with Merkle/Domain, the Seattle-based direct-marketing consultancy that teamed up with A2H in January 2002. It was generating a strong response and average gift, but it was expensive to mail.
