February 2004
When glitz can yield a winner by Deborah Block and Paul Karps
Personalizing the gift string by Susie Fought
What's up online by Dan Weeks
When glitz can yield a winner
By Deborah Block and Paul Karps
GENERALLY, direct mail fund-raising is guided by the notion that too much glitz in a package can be counter-productive to the bottom line. But, as we all know, rules are made to be broken. And by doing so in just the right circumstances, the rewards can be outstanding.
This was certainly the case with a unique acquisition appeal by Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (New York NY). The mailing invited participants in the New York City Marathon to join "Fred's Team" — named in honor of the race's late founder, Fred Lebow, who was treated for brain cancer at Memorial Sloan-Kettering. Runners were asked to solicit sponsors, raising a minimum of $1,500 to benefit pediatric cancer research.
Developed by Newport Creative Communications (Duxbury MA), four-color glossy stock dominates the mailing, which was chosen as the 2003 winner of the Direct Marketing Fundraisers Association's Package of the Year Award. So clearly, this is no average acquisition.
According to Steve Maggio, the full-service agency's Senior Partner and Creative Director, the demographics of the runners — much younger, more upscale, more professional, 80% male — dictated a different approach in the mail. The whole idea was to "make the message appropriate to the audience. That's the most dramatic thing."
Maggio concludes this was an "upscale, glossy, glitzy package because it's New York, it's young people, and it's an athletic competition." Though, as Maggio warns, "I don't think you would do that with a more typical direct mail donor who you think of as being a woman over 60."
Components
The package mailed in a 6 x 9-1/2" four-color, glossy-stock outer envelope, featuring a dramatic photo of the race's start on the Verrazano Bridge with a picture of Lebow in the foreground. The "YOU ARE HERE" and arrow to the throng in the middle of the bridge made recipients, as Maggio explains it, feel special. "Like they're one of the elite runners."
The bridge graphic was then repeated on the front of a 5-1/2 x 8-1/2" glossy brochure. This unfolded to reveal an 11 x 17" poster of the same image with a sign-up sheet on the other half of the page — suitable for posting in one's home, office, or health club to attract sponsors.
A second full-color, glossy brochure — with eight panels folded down to 4-1/4 x 8-1/2" — included a history of Fred's Team, along with details about how to join and a list of valuable incentives to becoming a member.
Other package components were a personalized, one-sided letter from Grete Waitz, a nine-time winner of the race and friend of Lebow; an "Instant Registration Fax-Back Form;" and a form letter and response device which runners could copy to help them get sponsors. Finally, an 8-7/8 x 5-3/4" reply envelope included copy on the back with "Important Deadlines" and a membership checklist.
The results
In August 2002, this Fred's Team package mailed to 28,295 entrants in the 2002 New York City Marathon, a list provided by the race's organizers. A total of 515 runners responded, an impressive acquisition rate of 1.8%. This represented a 19% lift over the September 11-affected results of 2001.
Far more telling, however, is that these 515 people raised $1.7 million for Memorial Sloan-Kettering — an average sponsorship gift of $3,296. Cost per dollar raised was only about 3.5 cents.
At least part of this success, notes Maggio, is that "these individuals are, by nature, highly motivated and goal-oriented. A key part of our strategy was to put the competitive nature of marathon runners to work for us by having them compete for prizes."
The appeal, in effect, was positioned as a contest and created stepped-up incentives to encourage runners to reach higher giving levels. The top 10 fundraisers would even be entered in a random drawing for a free trip to Australia.
Managing Editor Deborah Block and Paul Karps are partners in BK Kreative, 1010 Varsity Court, Mountain View CA 94040, phone (650) 962-9562, fax (650) 962-1499, e-mail bkkreative@aol.com.
Personalizing the gift string
By Susie Fought
SHOULD WE ASK donors to match their last gift? Double their highest-ever contribution? Or simply offer a generic, one-size-fits-all range of gift options, such as $25, $50, and $100?
The answer depends on what and to whom you're mailing.
For example, in donor acquisition, past giving information isn't available, list owners typically provide only their $5-99 donors, and it's important to keep costs as low as possible. So the generic, pre-printed, and low-dollar gift range makes the most sense.
But in direct mail appeals and renewals to existing donors, it's critical to think strategically and incorporate donor history into every request for a contribution.
When I was starting out in direct mail fundraising, a wise colleague once told me the most important item to personalize in any direct mail package is the reply device. By personalization, he meant much more than the donor's name and address.
Many organizations will spend extra to personalize the appeal letter — with donor name, address, and salutation — and then pre-print the same generic gift asks ($25, $50, $100) on the reply device, regardless of donor giving histories.
With so much information available in the donor database, it's crazy not to use past giving to acknowledge, thank, and persuade donors to give again. If you can afford to personalize the letter with gift information and the reply device, by all means do it.
But when resources are limited, the reply device is where you'll get the biggest bang for your buck. Because when a donor opens the envelope, the first item she'll pull out is the reply device. She'll want to find out what you're "offering." In other words, "How much money is being asked of me? And what will I get in return?" The reply card or memo should spell this out clearly and succinctly.
Most commonly, fundraisers use an "Ask string" based on the donor's highest previous contribution (HPC), along the following lines:
[ ] $HPC
[ ] $(1.5 x HPC)
[ ] $(2 x HPC)
But I think there's room for more imagination. For example:
"Yes, I want to help XXX ORGANIZATION provide Christmas presents and holiday meals for homeless children. Enclosed is my special year-end gift to help make the holidays a little brighter for families in need:"
[ ] $500 — to match my highest-ever gift to XXX ORG.
[ ] $200 — to double my last gift in 2002.
[ ] I prefer to make a gift of $______.
The key is to make the Ask consistent with the overall concept of the mailing and appropriate to each individual donor. This can be accomplished through either careful segmentation — grouping donor Asks into ranges of recency (0-12 months, 13-24 months), frequency (one-time, two-time, three-plus), high and/or recent dollar amount ($10-49, $50-99, $100+) — or by calculating individual Asks based on each donor's membership level, most recent gift, highest-ever gift, or cumulative calendar giving.
Let's look at an example:
In the San Francisco AIDS Foundation year-end appeal, donors were grouped into ranges based on their highest previous contribution and offered a series of gifts designed to generate an upgrade:
"Yes, I want to continue to do all I can to help people fighting to survive with HIV disease. Enclosed is my year-end gift to support the San Francisco AIDS Foundation programs and services in 2004:"
[if HPC = $25-49] [ ] $35 [ ] $75 [ ] $100
[if HPC = $50-99] [ ] $75 [ ] $150 [ ] $200
[if HPC = $100-249] [ ] $150 [ ] $300 [ ] $400
[if HPC = $250-499] [ ] $300 [ ] $400 [ ] $500
[if HPC = $500+] [ ] $600 [ ] $750 [ ] $1,000
What's up online
By Dan Weeks
In honor of Julia Butterfly Hill's 30th birthday on February 18, take a look at www.circleoflifefoundation.org, the Web site of the organization she founded in 1999. Unless you've been hiding in a forest the past few years, you'll recall that Julia is the brave young woman who lived 180 feet off the ground for 738 days straight, high up in a 1,000-year-old redwood tree named Luna. Her actions inspired enough people to ultimately save Luna and the surrounding chunk of ancient forest.
The Circle of Life Web site is colorful, legible and easy to navigate. She's even got a blog! And check out the Kids' Zone, which includes crafty projects, like how to turn your old calendars into envelopes. Hmmm, I'm getting ideas for a direct mail test!
Want more? Sign up to receive Successful Fundraising Online every month via e-mail.
