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Brain Science, Industry Data Bolster Direct Mail Fundraising

September 17, 2019/in Creative, Data Hygiene, Direct Mail, Donor Lists, Fundraising, Landing Page, Marketing Research, Neuroscience, Nonprofit Marketing, Omnichannel, Online Giving, Print Technology, QR, Response Rates, Retention, Segmentation /by David Kanter

As digital, mobile and social media expand their donor influence, some nonprofit marketers prepping for the all-important fourth-quarter may wonder about direct mail’s role as a fundraising workhorse. To underscore why it’s essential to keep direct mail in harness, AccuList can not only cite years of success as a direct mail list broker and data services provider to fundraising clients, but also the latest brain science and marketing industry data.

Science Shows Donor Brains Respond to Direct Mail

Marketing channels and technology may be changing rapidly, but the human brain hasn’t changed in size and basic construction for about 500,000+ years, and mail marketers have a brain advantage, notes a recent NonProfit PRO article by Christopher Foster, vice president of business development at Modern Postcard. Neuroscience has shown that direct mail taps two basic parts of the brain: the cerebral cortex and the amygdala-hippocampus pairing. The cerebral cortex
is where we process information, think about messaging and language, and weigh the pros and cons of decisions. Unlike the truncated messaging of digital, e-mail and social, direct mail can engage this part of the brain by describing benefits and citing the objective reasons that a nonprofit is the best choice for donor dollars. Plus, research consistently shows that people trust print/direct mail information more than digital channel info. Of course, recall and emotional engagement are key drivers, and the amygdala and hippocampus, combining long-term memory with emotional response, favor direct mail over digital, too. In fact, research shows that direct mail is 35% stronger than social media and 49% stronger than e-mail when it comes to long-term memory encoding, and 33% stronger than e-mail and social media in the engagement that drives memory encoding. Overall, direct mail’s motivation response is 20% higher than digital media, per Canada Post research.

Mail Spurs Donor Response and Retention in Omnichannel Efforts

While the volume of direct mail has decreased by about 2% each year since 2015, this has actually helped boost direct mail effectiveness by helping it stand out in the messaging blitz of the digital era. In fact, the Data & Marketing Association (DMA) 2018 direct mail response rates were 9% for a house list and 5% for a prospect list, way higher than any other channels (such as e-mail, social media and paid search at 1%). As a result, mail’s median ROI is also higher than most digital channels. Direct mail, of course, works even better integrated into an omnichannel campaign, where it actually spurs digital results; for example, studies show donors are three times more likely to give online in response to a direct mail appeal than to an e-appeal. Plus, direct mail drives donor retention; for example, 70% of donors have restarted a relationship because of direct mail, per DMA data. And direct mail is efficient at retention; the Association of Fundraising Professionals reports direct mail costs $0.25 for every $1 from recurring donors.

The Right Fundraising Tactics Capitalize on Mail’s Strengths

However, direct mail’s fundraising success is certainly not a given. A recent NonProfit PRO article by Jen Linck, chief marketing officer for Corporate Giving Connection, cites some important strategies, beginning with list segmentation and targeting to avoid wasting time and resources sending costly direct mail to bad leads. We would note here that, for effective segmentation, data quality is key, which requires prospect lists from reputable sources and good hygiene of house lists (note that 20% of addresses in donor databases are out-of-date, per research). Then get creative to capture attention and drive envelope opens via tactics such as dimensional mail and a large or unconventional sized envelope, urges Linck. And make sure the direct mail pieces add value to the audience’s lives by including a special offer or a promotional gift of branded materials for everyday use, such as a notepad. But remember that content needs to tap both logical persuasion and emotional connections in donor’s brains! Because 63% of donors want to know how their donation will be used, use specific donation amounts to tell donors how they help and quantify how previous amounts donated have been used, but also inject emotional examples into the dollar results. Finally, remember that direct mail works best when it is integrated into an omnichannel campaign, so be sure to incorporate digital technology by including QR codes, short links or text keywords for use across all channels. Plus, links should direct donors to a branded, campaign-specific landing page, since 38% more donations happen when landing pages are branded and campaign-specific, and 66% of those same donors are more likely to come back and donate again. For more tips on integrating direct mail with digital fundraising, see this MobileCause infographic.

The Right E-mail Tactics Can Make Holidays Merry for Retailers

August 14, 2019/in Call to Action, Creative, E-commerce, E-mail Lists, E-mail Marketing, Holiday Offers, Landing Page, Marketing Research, Mobile Optimization, personalization, Retail Marketing, Seasonal Marketing, Segmentation /by David Kanter

The holiday buying season is around the corner, and e-mail is more important than ever in the retail marketing mix for both existing customer lists and prospecting e-mail lists. Marketers planning for fourth quarter success may want to check plans against the “Ultimate Guide to Holiday E-mail Marketing” post offered by Campaign Monitor for some basic strategies and examples.

Leverage Online Buying, Mobile and Personalization Trends

Targeted e-mail marketing is positioned to capitalize on three big retail marketing trends: online buying, mobile commerce, and personalization. Four out of five Americans are now online shoppers, per Pew Research, so marketers will want to join the 41% of retailers that use “Buy Now” buttons in their e-mail marketing to link shoppers directly and quickly to online purchase pages. Mobile-optimized e-mails (linked to mobile-optimized landing pages) will also deliver more dollars because half of those online buyers make purchases using a mobile device. Sales on both Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2018 surpassed $2 billion, breaking the previous record set in 2017, and, according to Movable Ink, 76% of Black Friday e-mails and 63% of Cyber Monday e-mails are opened on a mobile device. Finally, now that personalization is demanded by consumers across channels, quality e-mail list data and segmentation can create the personalized e-mail messaging that delivers six times higher e-mail transaction rates, that converts 202% better than default e-mail calls to action (per HubSpot), and that generates a median e-mail ROI of 122% (per Instapage research). And don’t forget that personalized e-mail subject lines generate an average of 50% higher open rates (per Oberlo data)!

Start by Crafting Subject Lines that Get Opens

Indeed, the subject line is the first step in getting an e-mail noticed and opened. And on the subject of subject lines, Campaign Monitor has distilled some key tips. As noted above, personalize the subject line to boost open rates, using list data such as first name, for example, as well as relevant messaging based on purchase history, geography, gender, site actions/browsing, etc. Keep the subject line short but pack in “power words” that tap emotions and drive action, including sales-driven words (deal, promotion, discount, savings, free shipping); time-urgency words (order now, limited time, today only, last minute, exclusive); holiday references (12 Deals of Christmas, Season’s Greetings); and gratitude expressions (Thank you, appreciation, your support). Try engaging with a question (Need gift ideas?) or an eye-catching emoji. Brands using an emoji in their subject lines report a 45% increase in unique open rates, per Experian. Including an enticing offer in the subject line can help grab opens, too. For example, a mention of free shipping gains the interest of 74% of consumers, per UPS.

Use Holiday Messaging That Drives Action

Research shows e-mail creative earns more click-throughs and conversions by making the call-to-action prominent via an eye-catching button with short text (Buy Now, Save 40%). Make sure the button has a trackable link to a landing page where the recipient can buy the specific offer in the e-mail rather than a home page or generic purchase page where prospects must search for the offer. Overall, messaging can use holiday shopping fever to heat up response with tactics such as offering a gift buying guide, pumping a Cyber Monday or Black Friday sale, offering a special gift for referring a friend, incorporating a traditional or pop-culture holiday theme, or catering to panicked last-minute shoppers (In 2015, the average shopper had only completed a little over half their shopping list two weeks before Christmas). For inspiration from real e-mail examples, go to the Campaign Monitor article.

Social Media Allied With Direct Mail Delivers Marketing Wins

May 26, 2019/in B2B Marketing, B2C Marketing, Creative, CRM, Direct Mail, Direct Mail Lists, geo-targeting, Omnichannel, Profiling, Prospecting, QR, Response Analytics, Segmentation, Social Media Advertising, Social Media Marketing, Social Sharing, Targeting, Testing /by David Kanter

Social media and traditional “snail mail” may come from the different digital and print realms, but they are a marketing odd couple that work well together. Successful integration of social media and direct mail can deliver improved response rates, customer insights, creative testing, targeting and branding. And AccuList makes it easier for clients by offering services to help match Facebook and other social media with direct mail lists. Here are just a few strategies for combining social and mail marketing:

Mail Lists Build Social Reach and Social Builds Mail Lists

Facebook, the biggest consumer social media platform with more than 2 billion users a month, actively encourages marketers to upload direct mailing lists for matching against user information in order to run hyper-targeted paid social ads. Plus, Facebook ads can drive prospects to a landing page that offers an incentive to capture a physical mailing address in order to build up mailing lists.

Social Geo-targeting Can Help Tailor Mail Geo-targeting

Before prospecting in a specific geographic area with a costly mailing to target zip codes, try inexpensive research using social media. Send a promotion to a social media platform’s users in targeted zip codes and review the analytics to see which areas responded to which messages most favorably and then tailor direct mail list and creative. Facebook and Twitter allow targeting by location as well as demographics and interests for consumers, while LinkedIn can be used to target business prospects by location.

Social Analytics Enhance Direct Mail Targeting and Creative

Social apps and ad analytics provide marketers with demographics, interests, and response data for insights into target consumer and business audiences. Those insights can be applied to mailing list segmentation and targeting selections to increase direct mail response. Plus, social media ad creative can be tested and tracked to see which messages and images perform best with which audience segments, with the results used to inform the messages and images used in physical mailers. Finally, marketers can merge social insights and data from social media profiles with CRM and marketing automation to craft direct mail triggers and to create personalized mail content.

Use Cross-Channel Pollination to Help a Campaign Bloom

Cross-promote on social media and direct mail to marry social media’s ability to generate engagement and excitement with mail’s ability to deliver personalized, lasting, tangible information. Of course, the creative and offer should mirror each other in both channels for consistent branding. For example, marketers can pump a product launch on social media and then mail brochures when product hits stores. Vice versa, direct mail pieces can include social icons and QR codes linked to a social page to recruit social media followers or promote social sharing incentives to increase direct mail campaign momentum. Of course, before rollout, it’s a good idea to try a direct mail split test to those who received a social media (say Facebook) teaser and those who did not in order to tailor the wider campaign. For more ideas, check this recent NextPage blog post.

Drive Response by Integrating Direct Mail and Social Sharing

June 20, 2018/in Acquisition, B2B Marketing, B2C Marketing, Case Study, Data Capture, Database Development, Digital2Direct, Direct Mail, Landing Page, Marketing Integration, Multi-Channel Marketing, Omnichannel, postcard, Social Media Marketing, Social Sharing, Uncategorized, Viral Marketing /by Katherine Sharma

AccuList USA began its life 20 years ago this June as a traditional direct mail list broker and manager but has adapted to marketing trends and client demands to become today’s omnichannel data and services provider–including social media marketing, of course. We’ve seen the response power of taking social media and direct mail from parallel tracks to integrated teamwork. For those who are scratching their heads over mail-social integration, we recommend a Target Marketing magazine article by Summer Gould, including two case studies as templates.

A Basic Formula for Success

Gould boils a successful mail-social marriage down to a simple formula: Use the power of social sharing to expand mail response. Basically, start with an existing direct mail campaign that is working well. Create landing pages for the target audience to visit and direct recipients to those pages in the mail piece. Ask the audience to provide the information that you want on the landing pages. Finally, to get your offer, ask people to share with others.

Addressing Key Plan Elements

Marketers don’t have to reinvent the wheel to get this done, but they do need to remember to include vital spokes! Gould starts with the basics: Define objectives and the target market. Then adjust direct mail design to include landing pages and social media sharing. Make sure that the offer is the same for both direct mail and social media, and be sure to effectively incentivize sharing. Focus carefully on data capture, including social media accounts so you can reward those who share the offer! Decide what other information you really want to collect to receive the offer. Finally, make sure you have the social media monitoring software to track results, as well as the direct mail response tracking.

Case Studies That Inspire Emulation

Gould’s article offers two case studies that should inspire emulation. First, Chick-fil-A, which wanted to both build its customer database and increase store traffic, launched a direct mail campaign of 5,000 plastic postcards that included social sharing. Thanks to the viral impact, the campaign gained a 279.8% response! Second, Stein Mart wanted to increase store redemption through a referral program. The discount retailer mailed 20,000 postcards with a social sharing component, and the campaign gained a total response of 150.58%. For links to the case studies for details, read the Target Marketing article.

Case Studies Showcase Zoo & Museum Direct Mail Strategy

March 8, 2018/in Agency, Case Study, Creative, Direct Mail, direct mail creative, E-mail Marketing, membership marketing, Museum & Zoo Marketing, Nonprofit Marketing, ROI, Seasonal Marketing, Targeting, Uncategorized /by Katherine Sharma

AccuList USA provides mailing lists and direct marketing support for a growing number of museum and zoo marketers. We thought our museum and zoo clients, and other nonprofit marketers, would be interested in recent case studies of how combining direct mail with digital marketing can successfully drive gift membership purchases. The case studies were presented by The Lukens Company, a nonprofit agency, for the American Museum Membership Conference.

Postcards-With-E-mails Strategy Addresses Flagging ROI

Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo was concerned that its costly traditional direct mail letter package promoting gift memberships was experiencing declining ROI and relied on a complex process for signup. Tasked with finding solutions, the agency came up with a new two-drop postcard combined with a three-part e-mail series timed after a Cyber Monday campaign. The campaign directed recipients to an online signup with a promo code to track gift sales. Targeting prior gift membership purchasers and offering a standard $15 discount, the new approach resulted in a 173% increase in number of purchases and 88% increase in revenue.

Energizing Existing & New Audiences

A similar strategy provided positive ROI results for a gift membership drive by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) in its first holiday season after reopening following a three-year closure. Marketers faced a dual challenge: fatigue of the traditional direct mail package to the existing gift membership audience, plus a new audience unfamiliar with SFMOMA gift membership offerings. Seeking to energize both targets, the agency’s creative shifted from the traditional package to a two-drop postcard and five-part e-mail series, directing recipients online to a new custom landing page, along with phone and onsite support. Mailing to current members, lapsed members, and general admission and event ticket buyers, the campaign offered 10% off gift memberships for members and prospects who became members.

More Ways DM Can Drive Online Action

Based on its results with its postcards-with-e-mails campaigning, The Lukens Company suggests additional ways to boost online results via direct mail: 1) include URLs in all direct mail pieces, especially typing-friendly, memorable URLs; 2) encourage online renewals (“go green”) in early direct mail and e-mail renewal notices; and 3) offer specific online-only incentives for renewing early. See actual creatives, and more case studies of direct mail for onsite action, at http://americanmuseummembership.org/uploads_ed/files/Using%20Direct%20Mail%20to%20Drive%20Action_AMMC%202017.pdf

Year-end Fundraising Needs Multi-Channel, Multi-Touch Effort

December 12, 2017/in Digital Marketing, Direct Mail, E-mail Marketing, Fundraising, Marketing Research, Multi-Channel Marketing, Nonprofit Marketing, Response Rates, Seasonal Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Telemarketing, Video Marketing, Website /by Katherine Sharma

Even though AccuList USA’s nonprofit clients are deep into year-end donation drives, it’s worth checking off fundraising benchmarks to give those final tweaks and finishes before New Year’s. MobileCause, a fundraising software and strategy firm, has developed a handy infographic based on marketing research and insights gleaned from its webinar attendees.

Multi-channel Campaigns Maximize Giving

A key takeaway is that branded, multi-channel campaigns raise both more immediate dollars and have more long-term value, with 61% of donors more likely to give again. The infographic cites Japs-Olson Company data to prove the point: Response rates are 6% for direct mail only, 27% for direct mail and web, 27% for direct mail and e-mail, and 37% for the combination of direct mail, web and e-mail. While direct mail remains the centerpiece of donation drives, with 71% to 81% of donations from mail, greater success requires combining and coordinating channels.

Multiple Appeals Drive Donor Action

It is also essential to make multiple appeals across channels, since research shows that it takes a minimum of three exposures to a message to generate a decision. MobileCause suggests the following tactics for maximum impact: a warm-up letter, an appeal letter, a follow-up letter, and e-mails every two weeks, all supported by website home page articles, customized donation form and personal communication (such as phone calls). Don’t neglect to craft social media ads, too. Plus, plan to use video to drive engagement and response across channels–on social pages, e-mail, and website (Augmented Reality can even add video to paper mail, too). You’ll be in sync with MobileCause attendees: 61% plan to add video to campaigns, 23% plan a custom donation page, and 21% plan an online landing page.

Timing and Planning Make the Difference

By December, fundraisers should be reaping the results of efforts that launched in October, when website, donation page and videos were readied and the first year-end appeal mailed. November should have leveraged Giving Tuesday and e-mail follow-ups. But now that we’re in December, there’s still time for the extra push. Consider a Dec. 26 year-end e-appeal and a Dec. 31 last chance e-appeal, for example.

Check out the year-end giving infographic from MobileCause for more data and tips.

Social Sharing Can Turbocharge Direct Mail Response

October 5, 2017/in Acquisition, B2C Marketing, Creative, Digital2Direct, Direct Mail, Multi-Channel Marketing, Response Rates, Retail Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Targeting, Viral Marketing /by Katherine Sharma

In working with direct mail marketers, AccuList USA has seen how integrating the targeted power of direct mail with the viral power of social media can turbocharge results. Our Digital2Direct program was designed with that in mind. A recent article in Target Marketing magazine offers some good case studies as models for how direct mailers can harness social sharing to significantly boost response.

Cases in Point: Mail + Social Sharing

Article author Summer Gould cites two examples: 1) Chick-fil-A, which integrated social sharing with a mailing of 5,000 plastic postcards for a whopping 279.8% response to grow its store traffic and customer database, and 2) Stein Mart, which used viral social sharing with a 20,000-postcard mailing to earn 150.58% response for a referral program and in-store redemption. Put simply, the formula involves directing the target audience of a proven direct mail package to a landing page/social page to provide data, get a reward and share the promotion.

Design, Data and a Deadly Offer

But of course, it’s not simple. The secret to success lies in executing the details, starting with eye-catching, call-to-action design for the direct mail and the landing page and social media creatives. The goal is to not only push response but capture customer data for reward delivery and database growth. It means defining the objectives, the target audience and the desired data capture carefully. Most of all, it means developing a killer offer, which has to be the same for mail and social venues. It has to be the right offer for the right audience at the right time. It must grab attention, drive action, and inspire viral sharing. Of course, sharing is helped by extra incentives offered to any who share, from coupons to freebies to whatever wows the target audience.

Although the case studies both come from retail marketing, the lessons can apply to other verticals, including nonprofits. For links to the case studies, see Gould’s article.

E-mail Regaining Its Lead Role in Fundraising Digital Strategy

April 18, 2017/in Digital Marketing, E-mail Lists, E-mail Marketing, Fundraising, Mobile Marketing, Multi-Channel Marketing, Nonprofit Marketing, Uncategorized /by Katherine Sharma

In 2017, e-mail is expected to regain its lead role in the digital efforts of nonprofit fundraisers, per numerous nonprofit marketing pros. Certainly, AccuList USA is ready to support that trend with a proprietary compilation of the top fundraising direct mail and opt-in e-mail lists (check out our free download). In addition to smart list selection, fundraisers and fundraising consultants can make the most of a renewed e-mail focus with tactics like those provided in a recent post for thedatabank.com by Michael Stein, a nonprofit consultant and digital strategist.

Plan for a Successful E-mail Reboot

To maximize response, e-mail outreach in 2017 may require nonprofits to reboot, refresh and rethink, says Stein. He urges marketers to address four basic issues before blasting out e-mails: Check to see if your e-mail template or e-newsletter needs a creative refresh; make sure the e-mail works well for mobile viewers; consider a rewrite of your welcome e-mail to new subscribers for better engagement; and develop new creative and messaging ideas to test for boosted e-mail fundraising appeal.

‘Mobilize,’ Personalize, Automate

Mobile readiness is essential for wooing donors, especially given, as Stein cites, the recent Movable Ink report that, across industries, 69% of e-mail opens were on a mobile device. A good mobile experience should extend from the e-mail subject line to the website landing page and, most importantly, to the donation page, advises Stein. Personalizing is another proven way to maximize e-mail response, and that means more than dropping in a first-name greeting. It means digital messaging with relevant, timely content based on smart e-mail list segmentation, using data such as event attendance, website downloads, and donation amount or frequency. Finally, marketers need e-mail automation, especially for timely engagement of new e-mail subscribers and donors. Automated responses should include key transactions such as e-mail subscription, event signups, and online giving, since these are often the most opened and read e-mails, says Stein.

Make It Graphic & Multi-channel

Testing by nonprofits has shown that use of graphics and video significantly boosts fundraising response rates. So write fewer words and show more images, urges Stein. Use a graphic to present a call to action or embed a video to replace a paragraph, for example. Finally, e-mail’s fundraising effectiveness is higher when it is part of an integrated multi-channel effort. That should include social media platforms since including social media advertising in digital campaigns often delivers a lift in revenues taken in by e-mails and websites.

For more advice from Stein, go to https://www.thedatabank.com/2017/03/harness-the-latest-giving-trends-for-digital-fundraising-success/ And if you like infographics and want benchmark data on what other nonprofits are doing with e-mail, check out http://blog.winspireme.com/nonprofit-email-marketing-infographic-ebook.

Posts

Brain Science, Industry Data Bolster Direct Mail Fundraising

Science Shows Donor Brains Respond to Direct Mail

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The Right Fundraising Tactics Capitalize on Mail’s Strengths

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