Mal Warwick is a fundraising consultant who has authored several of the
most informative books in this admittedly niche field. He combines the scientific method with years of experience to produce effective and straightforward books on successful direct marketing for non-profit organizations. Mal Warwick’s Testing, Testing, 1,2,3 is 5 years old, but in my opinion it has not received enough attention in the field.
The 250 page book from 2003 is dedicated to the idea that direct mail fundraising can be improved through the use of what the author calls “direct mail tests.” Many organizations essentially guess at the best means of creating direct mail and do not perform evaluations of what has worked best in the past. Warwick advocates testing different types of mailings with statistically similar groups of people in order to determine what has the highest return on investment: “The theory behind direct mail
testing […] is that applying scientific principles will enable you to discover the perfect combination of ask, offer, package, and postage” (Page 17).
He spends thirteen chapters analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of this practice and lays out a compelling case to engage in direct mail testing. The disadvantages, he notes, center around the fact that people are not as rational and predictable as statisticians and economists would have us believe, and that sometimes a mailing making significantly more money than another can be a fluke.
That said, there is enough evidence to support adopting the practice in non-profit organizations. The rest of the book reviews the results of tests that the author’s
consulting company has run for several dozen different clients. This is invaluable information, as studies revealing this type of data are sparse at best.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Direct mail: your mission versus the environment
The current focus in the world of philanthropy seems to be the environment, especially the myriad issues surrounding global warming.
Many people seem to think that it is unwise to chop down carbon munching trees, process them using toxic chemicals, print messages on them, and fly and drive them all over the country. Contrary, I am firmly in support of using direct mail.
I employ a moral calculus in my support. First off, direct mail simply works. If it didn't, no one would use it because of the cost. Now consider what your organization does. Regardless of exactly what kind of non-profit you are a part off, it serves some mission that, presumably, is of some value to society. The environmental damage done by your development department's direct mail efforts will inherently be less than the good you can do with the extra money it brings.
If you are so inclined, there are a number of ways to reduce the environmental impact of your mailings, which I will discuss in some detail in a later post.
What do you think? Agree or disagree, I'd love to hear from you in the comments.
Many people seem to think that it is unwise to chop down carbon munching trees, process them using toxic chemicals, print messages on them, and fly and drive them all over the country. Contrary, I am firmly in support of using direct mail.
I employ a moral calculus in my support. First off, direct mail simply works. If it didn't, no one would use it because of the cost. Now consider what your organization does. Regardless of exactly what kind of non-profit you are a part off, it serves some mission that, presumably, is of some value to society. The environmental damage done by your development department's direct mail efforts will inherently be less than the good you can do with the extra money it brings.
If you are so inclined, there are a number of ways to reduce the environmental impact of your mailings, which I will discuss in some detail in a later post.
What do you think? Agree or disagree, I'd love to hear from you in the comments.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Non-profit podcast review part 2: 501c3Cast
While the first segment of this podcast review examined the first edition of an up-and-coming program, 501c3Cast is among the oldest continually operating podcasts focusing on non-profit issues.
Currently in its 91st edition, 501c3Cast is released every two weeks. Their fortnightly schedule works well because the podcast is filled with news, interviews, and insightful opinion. It is longer than many others, but it never drags and usually feels quite fluid.
Currently in its 91st edition, 501c3Cast is released every two weeks. Their fortnightly schedule works well because the podcast is filled with news, interviews, and insightful opinion. It is longer than many others, but it never drags and usually feels quite fluid.
Non-profit podcast review part 1: Fundraising is Beautiful
I am just starting to get into podcasts, as my new job allows me to use headphones at my desk. This is the first installment of the non-profit podcast review.
The inaugural edition of Fundraising is Beautiful (fundraisingisbeautiful.org) focuses on the myth of donor burnout. It is definitely worth a listen. The authors use real world data but break it down in a way that is easy to understand and encourage people to look at their own data for the trends they describe. Contrary to conventional wisdom, they encourage as many donor contacts as possible. They also get bonus points for their intro music (Holst's The Planets I believe, maybe Jupiter?)
Here is the essence of the current edition:
They never explicitly say it, but their advice calls for listeners to put themselves in the shoes of the donor. While some of their analogies are a bit clunky (clearcutting a forest?) they make valuable points.
I look forward to listening to more of these guys.
The inaugural edition of Fundraising is Beautiful (fundraisingisbeautiful.org) focuses on the myth of donor burnout. It is definitely worth a listen. The authors use real world data but break it down in a way that is easy to understand and encourage people to look at their own data for the trends they describe. Contrary to conventional wisdom, they encourage as many donor contacts as possible. They also get bonus points for their intro music (Holst's The Planets I believe, maybe Jupiter?)
Here is the essence of the current edition:
- Make your communications relevent. Make sure you send donors what they want.
- Gradually increase your level of contact with donors.
- The more recently that a donor gave to you, the more likely they are to give to you again.
They never explicitly say it, but their advice calls for listeners to put themselves in the shoes of the donor. While some of their analogies are a bit clunky (clearcutting a forest?) they make valuable points.
I look forward to listening to more of these guys.
Web 2.0 fails to bring big bucks for any sector
The venerable Financial Times has an article describing how so-called Web 2.0 technologies have failed to result in significant profits for the new wave of Internet companies.
This has two distinct implications for the non-profit sector. First, it is a reminder not to invest too much of your organizations resources in one Internet company. The articles quotes Roger Lee, "'There is going to be a shake-out here in the next year or two' as many Web 2.0 companies disappear." If you heavily use web services, ensure that there is a way to export any mission critical data and do so as part of a backup strategy.
The larger implication for non-profits is the exact same as for-profits: making money is hard to do online. While this blog would not exist if not for the author's belief in the potential of online fundraising, it is often a sobering experience when revenue projections that would be reasonable for offline strategies are missed in an online campaign.
This has two distinct implications for the non-profit sector. First, it is a reminder not to invest too much of your organizations resources in one Internet company. The articles quotes Roger Lee, "'There is going to be a shake-out here in the next year or two' as many Web 2.0 companies disappear." If you heavily use web services, ensure that there is a way to export any mission critical data and do so as part of a backup strategy.
The larger implication for non-profits is the exact same as for-profits: making money is hard to do online. While this blog would not exist if not for the author's belief in the potential of online fundraising, it is often a sobering experience when revenue projections that would be reasonable for offline strategies are missed in an online campaign.
Welcome to Non-Profit Profit!
Welcome! The strange title of this blog hopefully hints at its topic: fundraising. I am a college senior, majoring in Human Services at The George Washington University, who has a strong interest in non-profit and political fundraising. My interests run the gamut of fundraising, from traditional 501(c)3 human services organizations to political campaigns to the different types of political organizations.
I encourage any and all comments about this blog. Again, thank you for reading.
I encourage any and all comments about this blog. Again, thank you for reading.
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