Top NonProfit Subject Lines: Personal, Fun, Thankful

The most effective e-mail subject lines for nonprofit and association marketers in 2015 had some key lessons for any e-mail effort: The best were personal, fun and expressed gratitude for loyalty and support, according to digital-marketing agency Informz's study of 80 million A/B tested e-mails and 58 million e-mails with 40%+ open rates. As reported by NonProfit PRO magazine, the study found that personalization continues to prove its worth. For example, the subject line "FirstName, Your Membership is About to Expire" delivered a 13% better open rate than the impersonal "Your Membership is About to Expire." Subject lines that used humor and informality succeeded in punching up response to ordinary topics. For example "It's a trashy party, and you're invited!" got a 35% open rate, higher than the staid "Join Us at the Red Clay Valley Clean Up" (28%). Of course, caution is advised in this area, since there can be a fine line between lighthearted and unprofessional or offensive. Finally, the high open rates of simple thank-you subject lines proved that you can't overappreciate donors and members. "Thank you for making a real difference" earned a 66% open rate, for example. For more on subject line trends, go to http://www.nonprofitpro.com/article/the-best-nonprofit-email-subject-lines-of-2015/

Quitting Direct Mail Cost Big Fundraiser $30 Million

When it comes to the value of direct mail, sometimes, to coin a song lyric, "you don't know what you've got till it's gone." At least that was the case for the American Cancer Society, which suspended its direct mail acquisition program from January 2013 through June 2014 as part of an organizational consolidation and re-alignment of fundraising strategy. As reported recently by The NonProfit Times magazine, ACS now reveals that, in the first year of suspended mail acquisition, its new donors declined by 11% and new donor revenue dropped by $11.3 million. In addition, the direct mail hiatus impacted renewal programs, planned giving and events, so the charity estimates the mail suspension will end up costing $29.5 million in lost revenue over five years. For every $1 invested in mail acquisition, ACS brings in $7 over the course of three years, explained Catharine Houlihan, ACS director of marketing, in an ACS-led panel discussion of its re-entry into mail at the Direct Marketing Association Nonprofit Federation's New York conference. "We need acquisition to feed the core audience or else the entire program loses profitability through the course of the natural customer cycle," she noted in the article. When ACS successfully re-launched its mail acquisition program in 2014, it was part of an integrated multichannel strategy including digital, e-mail and tele-fundraising--but direct mail remained at the core, raising 80% of direct response revenue. The ACS panel noted that while digital and e-mail channels are attractive because they are less expensive, they also take longer to break even and fill the fundraising funnel. For more, read http://www.thenonprofittimes.com/news-articles/live-from-dma-direct-mail-hiatus-cost-acs-30-million/

Nonprofit Insight: Track Donors, Not Channels

"Track the donor, not the channel," to create effective nonprofit integrated marketing campaigns, recommended Sean Powell of The Engage Group, speaking at the DMA Nonprofit Federation’s Nonprofit Digital Day. Powell was joined on a Digital Fundraising 101 panel by Mikaela King, vice president of marketing at Defenders of Wildlife, who provided hands-on advice based on her organization's shift from structural division by marketing channels, such as direct mail and social media, to division by audiences, such as donors and advocates. "It’s not about how the organization is structured. It’s about what’s most important for the donor," explained King. "It is very hard to integrate marketing when you are not integrated internally." After restructuring for a donor focus, King advocated a three-step approach; first target the audience, then determine what you will offer, and finally create the messaging. It's especially critical for successful integration to sync data, added Heather Marsh of ABD Direct: "Make sure that your data is in line before starting a large integrated campaign. If you can’t really make sure you’re talking to people accurately, don’t do it." For more panel insights, read the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) report at http://thedma.org/advance/best-of-dma/insights-from-dma-nonprofit-digital-day-track-the-donor-not-the-channel/

Nonprofits See Year of Generous Giving Ahead

Seven out of 10 nonprofits expect donations to increase this year, and 13% expect their gains to be substantial—growing by at least 15%, according to a recently released survey of 538 charities by the Nonprofit Research Collaborative. As reported by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, charities in the survey said say they are optimistic because 2013 was stronger than any other year since the recession started. Indeed, Blackbaud's Charitable Giving Report for last year showed overall charitable giving grew 4.9% in 2013, while online giving grew 13.5%. The growing impact of online giving also was reflected in the Nonprofit Research Collaborative survey: Nonprofit respondents attributed much of last year’s growth in donations to special fundraising events and e-mail and online appeals, as well as big gifts from wealthy donors. Nonprofits that raised the most said they targeted a mix of donors for small, medium, and large gifts and diversified how they pursued donations by combining channels such as direct mail, social media, e-mail, and grant proposals. See the report on the Nonprofit Research Collaborative survey at https://philanthropy.com/article/70-of-Charities-Expect-Gains/145437/

Direct Mail Is Still Strongest Donation Motivator

Direct mail remains the best channel for prompting donations, outperforming social media and e-mail, according to the latest survey by global research company YouGov. The study found that 21% of Americans cited direct mail solicitations as the prompt for their most recent gift. Direct mail is particularly successful with the over-55 age group, with 25% making their last gift in response to direct mail, compared to only 14% of 18- to 34-year-olds. Lower income households also respond strongly to direct mail marketing, with 29% of those earning $40,000 or less responding to direct mail for their last donation, compared to only 18% of those earning $80,000+. In contrast, social media has yet to take off as a major giving prompt, with only 6% of adults responding for their last gift. However, social media is becoming a more significant motivator for the 18- to 34-year-old demographic, with 11% responding to social media for their last donation, compared to only 3% of those 55+. E-mail does a little better in motivating donors, with 10% of Americans saying it moved them to make their last gift. E-mail works especially well for charities supporting the arts, with 25% of their donors in the last 12 months saying they were particularly likely to respond to e-mail. For more detail, see the news story and release at http://www.sacbee.com/2013/12/18/6010758/direct-mail-is-still-the-strongest.html