You already know that the goal of your non-profit organization are worthwhile, but in a world ruled by money, it’s important to convince potential donors that your mission is important. Non profit direct mail campaigns can be one of the most effective ways to persuade individuals and groups to give your organization the money you need to succeed.
Test Your Mailers
Like with all types of advertising and marketing, an idea that may sound great in a conference room won’t always work in practice. It’s crucial to test your direct mailer ideas before putting them into wide distribution so that you don’t waste valuable resources. It’s also true that a non profit direct mail campaign that might work for one target audience might not work for another.
Treat Your Top Donors Well
The top percentage of donors to your organization are likely to make up a significant portion of your non-profit organization’s revenue. While every contribution is important, treating the big guys to special swag, promotional materials, other special mailers can make them feel important, The more you personalize the more they will feel committed to your cause.
Simplify Your Message
When you make the goal of your non-profit as simple and easy to understand as possible, potential donors will feel more comfortable making a contribution. Complex language, technical jargon, and other highly specific messaging may alienate readers. Targeted non profit direct mail campaign literature to donors who request it is fine, but welcome newcomers in by using clear language, photographers, and easy-to-understand graphics.
Listen to Your Donors
If a donor tells you they are receiving too many materials in the mail, take their complaint to heart and reduce the frequency of your mailers. If, however, someone wants more, send them additional materials catered to their requests. Your non-profit will look more trustworthy to its donors if you are responsive to the feedback you get. The more you pay attention to what people want, the better you will be at at figuring out what does and doesn’t work.
By following these tips and ideas, your non profit can take full advantage of the power direct mailers have. Trial and error is an important part of developing any non profit direct mail campaign, so be ready to learn from failures and successes of others.
