Direct Mail Fundraising Trends for 2012

Jan 13 2012 8:17 AM

Categories: Direct Mail Production

Any organization trying to make money in the last few year's has had trouble reaching their goals. This is especially true for nonprofits - as people worry about their own financial stability, they're more reluctant to give money to others.  Add to that consumers that want more from their spending, and you get fundraisers feeling the pressure to attract donations and yield good returns - often with fewer resources. In other words, warm and fuzzy isn't enough anymore.  Nonprofits must show that they're worth the donors' time and money. More and more nonprofits have adopted marketing strategies used by for-profit organizations, which are included in a few trends that we'll see in direct mail fundraising in 2012. More Integration Nonprofits still mail letters to donors and prospects, but they're often supplemented with emails, tweets, website pages, and texts.  Mobile plays a huge role in this. Fundraising Success says smartphone adoption increased 50% in 2011 and is expected to grow another 50% by 2012. Whether a campaign revolves around a specific program or general funding, it should span multiple marketing channels.  This expands the number of prospects, and it engages current donors.  Plus, since it typically takes seven contacts before people respond, an integrated multi-channel strategy will speed up the process. More Segmentation Direct mail fundraising is like any other marketing campaign - one message doesn't fit all audiences.  That's why you need to segment your database to create a more relevant pitch for each recipient. A typical fundraising campaign might look like this:
  • New donors learn about the organization or cause.
  • Current donors are thanked for their generosity, reminded of what they've given and asked to consider giving more.
  • Lapsed donors are reminded of their past giving and asked to resume it.
  • Individual donors hear a different message than foundations and corporations.
This is just one example, but it shows how segmentation helps you create more resonant messages for each segment, which makes the whole campaign look less cookie-cutter. More Personalized Engagement Personalized messaging is a big priority in the for-profit world, so nonprofits have adopted it as well.  According to Direct Marketing IQ, 60.3% of all fundraising mail was personalized in some way in 2011, and there's no reason to think this will stop in 2012. So start doing it!  Personalize each fundraising letter with the recipient's name. Add that name within other portions of the direct mail package. Remind current donors how much they've given before and use that to deepen their engagement. Personalized messaging is the first step to building a relationship with your donors. The stronger the relationship, the greater the support - financial and otherwise. Greater Accountability Cost efficiencies are a priority for your organization, but they also matter to your donors.  Direct mail fundraising campaigns still tell heartbreaking stories and plead for donations, but they're also adding cost breakdowns and other "bottom-line" talking points. This might seem callous to some agencies, but donors want to know what nonprofits do with their donations. Talking about your finances makes your organization look more efficient and effective, which is always attractive to donors. To show donors you're spending their gifts responsibly, do one of two things:
  1. Tell them how much of each dollar goes directly to the cause; show them they aren't funding excess administrative costs.
  2. Talk about how much more you can do with their donations. Donors like giving to nonprofits that do as much as possible with every dollar they raise.
In 2012, nonprofit marketing will look more like marketing in the private sector. That's a good thing, because donors look more favorably on nonprofits that engage them personally, reach them wherever they are, and spend their generous donations as they were meant to be spent.