How Nonprofit Direct Mail Can Win in Election Years

How does nonprofit direct mail successfully compete for attention in an election year against high-roller political fundraisers? Not by gambling on new lists, new creative or new media, advises expert Randy Brewer, president and CEO of Brewer Direct Inc., a direct marketing agency for nonprofits. Election years require nonprofits to resist risks and to "play your best hand -- the one you know that works," says Brewer in a recent article for Fundraising Success magazine. The proof of that strategy is in Brewer's results. Last year, his agency stuck to a conservative strategy on behalf of their 20 rescue mission clients across the country, focusing on a proven direct-mail control package. As a result, they garnered $3.75 million in net revenue in the aggregated September-December fundraising cycle, almost a 9% increase over the prior year, despite mailing 65,000 fewer pieces, he reports. Their 2012 December package led results, earning nearly a 23% lift in response over prior year campaign totals. Average mail-based donor gifts were also up in every month but October, notes Brewer. The agency did make one change in its direct marketing to adjust for the political cycle: Mailing schedules were shifted to avoid periods when research predicted that candidate appeals would be peaking. For more, see http://www.fundraisingsuccessmag.com/article/direct-mail-during-political-election-cycle-knowing-when-hold-em/1