Direct mail fund raising is a direct marketing form widely used by nonprofit organizations in North America and Europe to recruit or "get" new donors or members and to inform, nurture, finalize and "raise" the level of contribution or their dues. This technique has been proven to work well in many other countries around the world. Its use spread rapidly.
Professional use of direct mail raising requires a good understanding of the principles and practices of direct marketing and fundraising discipline. In direct marketing, practitioners see a large number of prospects or donors through statistical lenses. Fundraising teaches us how to view prospects or donors as individuals, with unique values, beliefs, and preferences.
Video Direct mail fundraising
History and growth in the United States
In its modern form, direct fundraising emerged in the United States after World War II, when national charities such as the National Easter Seal Society sought ways to expand their fundraising base.
Only with the advent of the 1960s ZIP codes and, later, the computers that directed the mail-raising began to be widely used. Before the zip code, it was difficult to target the right recipient of a direct mail-raising request, and before the computer, collecting and maintaining a support list was tedious and expensive. During the 1970s, as computers became more affordable, the use of direct mail-raising was widespread. This is quickly becoming the means by which most Americans learn and first provide financial support to their chosen charities.
The explosive growth of the nonprofit sector in the United States - a fourfold increase in the 1980s and doubling again in the 1990s and early 2000s - led to a massive expansion in the use of direct mail to build and maintain large, donor lists and national membership. Today, direct mail-raising accounts for at least a fifth of more than $ 250 billion of contributions annually in the US to 1.6 million non-profit state organizations.
Direct mail raising has its own unique jargon, mostly related to the art and science of creating, producing and submitting the right appeal to the right list at the right time, and measuring the results.
In recent years, electronic communication media has been used more commonly among nonprofits. Online campaigns, emails, and social media, collectively referred to as digital fundraising, have been used in coordination with direct fundraising. Nonprofit complements direct mail campaigns with email blasts and social media posts, using similar messages and visuals to connect various communications together. However, digital fundraising is not fast enough to replace direct mail for most nonprofit organizations. In 2012, digital fundraising accounts for 7 percent of charity donations in the United States.
Maps Direct mail fundraising
See also
- Direct mail
References
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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