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Add You - Direct Mail Fundraising Arithmetic: Avoid Blunders By Knowing Your Numbers
If you're a businessman who travels often, the chances are you know what to look for in a good hotel room. And, if you're the kind of business traveller who spends a lot of time on the road, you might also carry around photos of your family, or other small items from home to make yourself feel more comfortable in your hotel room - after all, it's the small things that can make someone feel at home!But most of all, it's import
Consider, for example, the most well-known number in direct mail fundraising—the response rate. Everyone knows that generating a high response rate is a good thing and that generating a low response rate is a bad thing. That’s why one of the fir
ADVERTISING fulfills a need that can be traced back for as long as men have bought and sold. It is an art that has developed over the years. Most people think that advertising does not really affect their decisions. They think they ignore it and make up their own minds. Money-wise business executives know better. Throughout the world, these men hang their fortunes on tremendous advertising budgets. They build wants and sway our thin
I worked as Director of Development for a national charity that held a lavish fundraising banquet each year. The staff, from the executive director down to the receptionist, including the development staff, thought this banquet was the organization’s most successful fundraiser.
Shortly after being hired, I conducted a comprehensive development audit that measured the profitability of the organization’s fundraising methods, including this annual banquet. I added up the cost of the venue, catering, table and chair rental, lighting, sound, speaker honorarium, invitation printing, postage and every other related cost and subtracted this number from the gross income.
What a surprise we got!
What looked like a successful fundraiser was actually the organization’s least-effective fundraiser. In 1999, they spent 89? to raise one dollar. They didn’t realize that their “best fundraiser” was a financial flop, year after year. Why? Because they always published and celebrated the gross income generated by the event and never looked at the net income.
Two is better than one
You see, the problem with direct mail fundraising arithmetic is this—you need to understand and use more than just one measurement. You don’t buy a bunch of bananas based on price alone. You wouldn’t choose a lifelong mate based on looks alone (at least I hope you wouldn’t). And you shouldn’t measure your direct mail fundraising success by one ratio or formula alone.
Consider, for example, the most well-known number in direct mail fundraising—the response rate. Everyone knows that generating a high response rate is a good thing and that generating a low response rate is a bad thing. That’s why one of the firs
The search engine marketing industry has developed into a billion dollar industry and clients expect their agencies to get them involved. Ad agencies are now chasing the increased revenue generated by search engines.In the past advertising agencies tended to ignore organic SEO as it was seen as a complicated system with results that were difficult to measure as part of an overall media campaign. This changed when they reali
Shortly after being hired, I conducted a comprehensive development audit that measured the profitability of the organization’s fundraising methods, including this annual banquet. I added up the cost of the venue, catering, table and chair rental, lighting, sound, speaker honorarium, invitation printing, postage and every other related cost and subtracted this number from the gross income.
What a surprise we got!
What looked like a successful fundraiser was actually the organization’s least-effective fundraiser. In 1999, they spent 89? to raise one dollar. They didn’t realize that their “best fundraiser” was a financial flop, year after year. Why? Because they always published and celebrated the gross income generated by the event and never looked at the net income.
Two is better than one
You see, the problem with direct mail fundraising arithmetic is this—you need to understand and use more than just one measurement. You don’t buy a bunch of bananas based on price alone. You wouldn’t choose a lifelong mate based on looks alone (at least I hope you wouldn’t). And you shouldn’t measure your direct mail fundraising success by one ratio or formula alone.
Consider, for example, the most well-known number in direct mail fundraising—the response rate. Everyone knows that generating a high response rate is a good thing and that generating a low response rate is a bad thing. That’s why one of the fir
Creative DirectorLet's start at the top and work down. Art directors, or Creative Directors are responsible for a creative team that may design work for magazines, television, advertising graphics, websites, or on packaging. A creative team can consist of layout artists, graphic designers, photographers, copywriters, and menial staff to do the work. An Art directors job is to make sure that each of these workers do not
What a surprise we got!
What looked like a successful fundraiser was actually the organization’s least-effective fundraiser. In 1999, they spent 89? to raise one dollar. They didn’t realize that their “best fundraiser” was a financial flop, year after year. Why? Because they always published and celebrated the gross income generated by the event and never looked at the net income.
Two is better than one
You see, the problem with direct mail fundraising arithmetic is this—you need to understand and use more than just one measurement. You don’t buy a bunch of bananas based on price alone. You wouldn’t choose a lifelong mate based on looks alone (at least I hope you wouldn’t). And you shouldn’t measure your direct mail fundraising success by one ratio or formula alone.
Consider, for example, the most well-known number in direct mail fundraising—the response rate. Everyone knows that generating a high response rate is a good thing and that generating a low response rate is a bad thing. That’s why one of the fir
Many companies treat customer service as a necessary evil, an afterthought, only needed if mistakes and problems arise. This viewpoint is best reflected in the antiquated mindset: ‘No news is good news!’When it comes to customers, that’s bad news! Here’s why:If you have a customer who is happy and you do not give them a chance to tell you, you lose one of the strongest opportunities to increase customer loyalty. The ne
Two is better than one
You see, the problem with direct mail fundraising arithmetic is this—you need to understand and use more than just one measurement. You don’t buy a bunch of bananas based on price alone. You wouldn’t choose a lifelong mate based on looks alone (at least I hope you wouldn’t). And you shouldn’t measure your direct mail fundraising success by one ratio or formula alone.
Consider, for example, the most well-known number in direct mail fundraising—the response rate. Everyone knows that generating a high response rate is a good thing and that generating a low response rate is a bad thing. That’s why one of the fir
Unfortunately, many buyers end up purchasing equipment that lacks the capability and flexibility to meet production volumes and tolerances, simply because they don't understand all available options and considerations.Between diminishing factory orders and increasing labor and energy costs, companies that use plate metal in their fabricating processes are finding their profit margins increasingly pinched.Yet, manufactu
Consider, for example, the most well-known number in direct mail fundraising—the response rate. Everyone knows that generating a high response rate is a good thing and that generating a low response rate is a bad thing. That’s why one of the first questions that prospective clients ask my firm is usually this: “What kind of response rate will your direct mail fundraising packages generate for us?”
That’s a good question.
But the answer I give, if I simply quote an average response rate, will mislead. It will mislead because high response rates do not necessarily mean profitable results. And neither do low response rates necessarily mean poor results.
- I could craft a direct mail package that generates a 20% response rate but an average gift of only $2. Not good. You’d lose money.
- I could craft a package that generates a response rate of only half of one percent but generates an average gift of $2,000. That’s better. Probably.
Look beyond today’s numbers
You need to look beyond each campaign, looking back to previous results and looking forward to anticipated results. After all, you could be satisfied today with a direct mail program that generates an average gift of $35 but never realize that over half of your donors give you just one gift and never give again. Your average gift doesn’t tell you the whole story any more than your response rate tells you the whole story.
You can avoid their mistake—and plenty of other mistakes—by learning the most common ways to measure your success, and then using as many of them as you require to arrive at an accurate picture of your accomplishments. The knowledge is in your
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