Live From DMA: Direct Mail Hiatus Cost ACS $30 MillionThe NonProfit Times

Live From DMA: Direct Mail Hiatus Cost ACS $30 MillionThe NonProfit Times: "New donors declined by 11 percent and new donor revenue dropped by $11.3 million in the first year that American Cancer Society (ACS) paused its direct mail acquisition program. The hiatus had an impact of $29.5 million over five years."



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Door Slamming on Ad Response as It Slams on Home Delivery? : Page 1 of 2 : Target Marketing

Door Slamming on Ad Response as It Slams on Home Delivery? : Page 1 of 2 : Target Marketing: "Direct mailers are losing out as the U.S. Postal Service pushes for curbside and cluster box mail delivery, says a new report from the USPS Office of Inspector General (opens as a PDF). "



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Mailers Play The Match Game To Boost Response - The NonProfit TimesThe NonProfit Times

Mailers Play The Match Game To Boost Response - The NonProfit TimesThe NonProfit Times: "Mailers Play The Match Game To Boost Response
By Richard H. Levey - February 20, 2015
What’s in a name? A 22-percent increase in donations, based on a direct mail test, is the answer.

TechnoServe offers capitalism-based poverty-reduction assistance to people in developing countries. When its leadership wanted to increase its unrestricted funds, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation offered an asset at least as valuable as cash: The right to use the foundation’s name in a donor-match mailer."



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Survey Finds Direct Mail Gets Quicker Action than Email

Survey Finds Direct Mail Gets Quicker Action than Email: If you deal with your snail mail more quickly than email, you are part of the overwhelming majority of people who do. That's according to recent research in the UK from the Direct Mail Association (DMA). The study, called From letterbox to inbox - Building customer relationships 2013, was released this past summer.

Pamela Barden-Stand Proud and Don't Let the Naysayers Get You Down : FundRaising Success

Pamela Barden-Stand Proud and Don't Let the Naysayers Get You Down : FundRaising Success: As someone who has worked with direct mail for my entire career, I cringe when I hear "junk mail," roll my eyes when I hear the claim that rigor mortis has set in, and continue to urge anyone who will listen to invest in direct mail — but do it right.

Why?

Simply put, because direct mail works. Randy Brewer of Brewer Direct  recently said, "Let's not trade dollars for dimes," reflecting the reality that direct mail is still outraising newer forms of fundraising. Bottom line: It should never be "either/or" — smart fundraisers know they need to be digital-savvy, but they also need to be direct-mail-savvy.

DMANF Unveils Fundraising Principles | The NonProfit Times

DMANF Unveils Fundraising Principles | The NonProfit Times: DMANF Unveils Fundraising Principles
By Patrick Sullivan - July 11, 2013

The Direct Marketing Association Nonprofit Federation (DMANF) has released its first set of fundraising principles. The principles are effective immediately and cover general principles, use of funds and costs of fundraising, as well as contracts with commercial partners. “The principles really pull together standards and best practices around several areas,” said Xenia “Senny” Boone, DMANF’s general counsel.

Rumors Of Direct Mail’s Death Greatly Exaggerated | The NonProfit Times

Rumors Of Direct Mail’s Death Greatly Exaggerated | The NonProfit Times: Rumors Of Direct Mail’s Death Greatly Exaggerated
By The NonProfit Times - April 29, 2013

With the ever-growing popularity of e-mail and the Internet, it begs the question: Is direct mail dying? Based on information from Direct Marketing Association (DMA), the answer to that question is a resounding “no.”

That was one of the statistics examined in the “DMA 2013 Statistical Fact Book,” an annual publication based on the results of a survey of hundreds of nonprofits and businesses across the United States and covers a variety of direct-mail related topics.

4 Easy Email Tests to Start Today | NetWitsThinkTank.com

4 Easy Email Tests to Start Today | NetWitsThinkTank.com: "Are you testing your email messages (i.e. subject lines, time of the day, etc)? If not, you’re missing an opportunity to improve your results."

How to Write a Great Direct Mail Fundraising Letter

How to Write a Great Direct Mail Fundraising Letter: "It is very problematic to provide examples of fundraising letters. They vary tremendously, depending on the nature of the charity, the resources that charity has to apply toward direct mail fundraising, and the creativity of the person who writes that letter."

Study: Online-Acquired Donors Switch To Mail, Not Vice-Versa

Study: Online-Acquired Donors Switch To Mail, Not Vice-Versa: "Study: Online-Acquired Donors Switch To Mail, Not Vice-Versa

Multichannel giving has become popular for fundraisers as a way to build constituent support. But, the large majority of donors on file give through only one channel and use only direct mail as their vehicle for donations. The only donors who do significant multichannel giving are new donors acquired online, who switch in large numbers to direct mail giving in subsequent years.

That's among the findings of the 2011 donorCentrics Internet and Multichannel Giving Benchmarking Report for Target Analytics, a Blackbaud company based in Cambridge. Mass. Authored by Helen Flannery and Rob Harris, the report shows “ It is the ability of online-acquired donors to become multichannel donors -- that is, to start giving through direct mail -- that significantly boosts the retention and long-term value of this group of donors far beyond what they would be if online giving were the only channel available.”"

An ABC of direct response | SOFII

An ABC of direct response | SOFII: "By Jonathon Grapsas, Pareto Fundraising Limited

Direct response fundraising often doesn’t make sense. It’s often simple and boring and sometimes it’s downright counter-intuitive."