January 11, 2008
Is Direct Mail Dead?
A new report on the fund-raising performance of nonprofit groups shows that charities are not earning as much money through direct-mail appeals as they have in years past.
And news of that report — by the Boston consulting company Target Analysis Group — has prompted many writers to urge nonprofit groups to take steps to adapt to changing trends.
In fact, some experts are writing obituaries for direct mail.
“The economics of direct mail are failing,” writes Mark Rovner, a fund-raising consultant on the blog Sea Change Strategies. “That is more or less an uncontroverted fact It costs more to mail, and fewer new donors come back with each mailing. This trend has been masked somewhat by higher average gifts by donors you already have, but sooner or later, the acquisition crisis is going to affect bottom lines. For some, it already has.”
Some organizations have been able to absorb the decline in direct-mail fund raising by stepping up their efforts online. But some marketing experts say that strategy is merely a short-term fix.
To adjust to the changing marketplace, charities are going to need to do much more than simply blast potential donors with e-mail solicitations, the marketing expert Seth Godin writes on Seth Godin’s Blog.
“It’s super easy to ignore a direct-mail solicitation when all you have to do is hit delete and no one notices,” Mr. Godin writes. “The big win is in turning donors into patrons and activists and participants. The biggest donors are the ones who not only give, but do the work. The ones who make the soup or feed the hungry or hang the art.”
The key, he says, is to find ways to use the Internet to develop substantial relationships with supporters and volunteers — and to encourage those supporters to become spokespeople for the nonprofit groups they support.
“It means opening yourself up to volunteers, encouraging them to network, to connect with each other, and yes, even to mutiny. It means giving every one of your professionals a blog and the freedom to use it. It means mixing it up with volunteers, so they have something truly at stake,” Mr. Godin writes. “This is understandably scary for many nonprofits, but I’m not so sure you have a choice.”
And Steve MacLaughlin, director of Internet solutions at the technology company Blackbaud, says those relationships shouldn’t simply be cultivated online.
“The organizations that succeed will be those that build relationships and combine both online and offline channels to do it,” Mr. MacLaughlin writes on BlogBaud.
Is direct mail dead? Can charities effectively adapt their fund-raising approaches to offset the changing habits of donors? Does the Internet open doors to a more vast landscape of potential donors? Click on the comments link below this post to share your thoughts.
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Charities can and must adapt their fundraising approaches to adapt to donors’ changing preferences. The new media allow charities to approach donors with an unprecedented level of intimacy and deep engagement – making this “sea change” much more of an opportunity than an obstacle. A challenge, certainly. More thoughts at www.smalldots.wordpress.com.
— Beth Dunn Jan 11, 07:19 AM #
Phone, letter, email.
Rock, pebble, stone.
What matters is relevance. If you’re not relevant, save the postage, save the phone call, save the bandwidth. Comparing the efficacy of direct mail to the “new media” is like saying blue paper is better than red paper. It sounds like fund raising as about 10 years behind the curve on this one – the internet is not a panacea – it’s a tool. Just ask Holden Karnofsky…
— Chris Casquilho Jan 11, 10:06 AM #
Engaging your volunteers and converting them into leaders and evangelist is the best recommendation from this article. Those who do this well can use the communications tools they have, including on-line video, more effectively.
We share these ideas through the http://www.tutormentorconnection.org web site
— Dan Bassill Jan 11, 01:13 PM #
I don’t think direct mail is dead at all. I have seen an increase in gifts at my organization the last couple of years as a direct result of direct mail. I think that nonprofits need to start thinking a lot more strategically about online fundraising.
— Jason Jan 12, 02:32 AM #