Doing direct mail donor development is complex. Delivering solid direct mail results on a regular basis requires great strategy and managing what seems like a zillion moving parts. And sadly, if you forget to plan for one critical component you can easily sabotage what could have been a great direct mail appeal. Here’s how it …
the 1 common mistake that can kill your direct mail results Read More »
I know, I know, that’s so obvious it’s nearly insulting for me to say it. But it’s true. And it’s sad how many times good organizations lose income because they don’t work hard to get the letter opened. The envelope your letter or newsletter arrives in is more important than anything inside it. The reason? …
Want to improve your direct mail fundraising? Here’s one easy way. I should say in fairness, this is easy in concept but not easy to do. Ready? Here goes: The best way to improve your direct mail is to get your envelope opened. I can see your eye roll now. “Well, duh, of course if …
Hoots reminded me a few days ago how much she likes ugly. I have to say, it’s hard not to take that kind of comment personally, after all, we’re married and partners in all things. But once I realized she wasn’t talking about me, I caught up. And I had to agree, I like ugly, …
OK . . . so maybe the USPS isn’t quite dead yet, but it’s not getting better either. To solve a $15.9 Billion shortfall (yes, that’s $15.9 billion) last year alone, our USPS announced it intends to cut $2 billion in expenses by eliminating deliveries on Saturday. We’ve already seen a raise in postage in …
There’s a formula that works in direct response. It worked 60 years ago, and it still works today. (If your fundraising isn’t utilizing this formula, we need to talk. Really.) It goes something like this: 1. There is a big problem (homelessness, human trafficking, insert your organization’s mission here) 2. We know how to solve …
Leonard and Mary lived together for 50 years, 7 months and 3 days of wedded bliss. Mary sometimes jokingly told the ladies in her quilting group that it was 40 years of bliss preceded by 10 years of training Lenny (as only she called him). That line always brought winks and knowing comments. But everyone …
Would you like to know the single most devastating thing you can do for your direct mail fundraising? What one thing will cause an income disaster? What’s the big killer (in a bad use of that word)? Simple: imagine your audience is you. Write for yourself. Write your direct mail the way you’d want it. …
5 signs that your fundraising might be in trouble (it was hard to do only 5): 1. You mail all your donors in every impact. Direct mail is highly efficient and can have astounding ROIs but only if you “get” the concept of targeting by giving patterns, gift sizes and seasonality. 2. You aren’t connecting …
I know you’re busy with 4th Quarter madness so I’ll do the bottomline first: if you want to improve your net income, think like a donor. For our “for profit” friends, think like your customer to improve your net income. Simple as that. Now you can go back to putting the finishing touches on your …
I learned a new word and want to share it with you. The word is: “exigent.” Maybe you already knew exigent. I couldn’t use it in a sentence without being tempted to go for a cheap laugh with: “Everyone knows that dinosaurs have been exigent forever.” While not very funny, it does allow me to …
“Theatrical” was the first word that came to mind when I was thinking how to describe Lady Gaga’s “look.” “Crazy,” “weird,” “unsettling,” and “strange” also popped into my head (among others). As I wrote in the previous post on “What Lady Gaga Can Teach You,” I’m not a Lady Gaga fan (be sure to see …
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