3 Direct Mail Strategies Charities Should Use to Increase Donor Loyalty

Regular Donors are More Valuable

Regular donors are the lifeblood of all charities. However, some regular donors are more valuable than others. If charities can highlight their most valuable givers, it is worth investing in them. As you will learn in this article, postal solutions are one of the most potent ways to do this.

Understanding their lifetime value is the key to successfully nurturing donors through direct mail. Most people understand the concept of a donor's lifetime value: lifetime value drives acquisition marketing budgets. Lifetime value can be calculated using a combination of the donor's lifespan, the average donation amount, and the donation frequency. This article provides a more detailed understanding of lifetime value calculations and some of the issues surrounding them. 

One of the most important concepts to understand about lifetime value is that there is excellent value in calculating the lifetime value for different list segments. In some cases, you may have a good idea of who is more likely to be the most generous donors based on their demographics or the acquisition channel used. At other times, more profitable donors may become apparent only after you monitor their behaviour. For more ideas about segmenting these calculations, see here.

Whichever method you use, we highly recommend keeping a list of the most generous donors and those likely to become more generous. These donors deserve special treatment. You can do this via mail delivery in several ways.

Why Should Charities Use Direct Mail to Nurture High-Value Donors?

Research from JICMAIL shows the potential of postal solutions. The top 20% of people who engage with direct mail are more likely to donate their time and money to charity frequently. This is particularly relevant for young people. 24% of recipients in the 17-34 age group discuss receiving direct mail, 185% more than average. Charities that segment their most valuable donors have the opportunity to build profitable relationships through targeted mail delivery. This allows them to have more control over a valuable donor pipeline. They have a higher likelihood of achieving a greater total of donations for their causes.

Here are three strategies that use direct mail to achieve these aims

Three Winning Direct Mail Strategies

Increase donations from regular givers

High-value givers deserve high-value campaigns. Sending personalised direct mail that references their donations makes them feel appreciated.  This campaign should thank them and acknowledge the personal achievements they have made for a charity. They could also receive a personalised newsletter with more information about what they have sponsored. 

This type of communication also merits more than the standard level of direct mail. Naturally, a careful line has to be drawn to ensure that donors do not feel that money is being spent on marketing that could be better spent on the charity’s main aims. However, as an example, this type of campaign deserves a higher quality of paper for the letter. A personal signature also says a lot and costs nothing.

• Promote special donor events

Some donors may be invited to special, limited-attendance webinars, behind-the-scenes tours, or other online events. If this is the case, consider sending them a personalised, printed invitation. This will be more noticeable than a standard e-invite. It is also likely to result in higher attendance, and there is a chance to achieve extra donations from more people.

• Reactivate lapsed donors

Sadly, some donors stop giving. High-value donors are worthy of a direct mail reactivation campaign. 

What about the costs associated with direct mail?

It is important to remember the high-value return on investment that mail delivery achieves. Recent JICMAIL research shows that postal solutions achieved excellent results for charities during the lockdown. In Q2 2020, Charity Mail achieved a 9% response rate. Investing in direct mail can be highly worthwhile.

How do you find the right mailing services supplier for campaigns like this?

Sometimes, charities may need a different type of mailing services supplier, mainly if they haven’t run a similar campaign before. At Posthub, we work closely with our clients to provide support throughout the mailing process for both regular and one-time campaigns. With several clients in the charity sector, we offer expertise in data and mail management to enhance the overall return on investment from postal activities. 

Here are three action points to get you started with a high-value donor campaign

• Build a profile (or multiple profiles) for your highest value donors
• Segment your donor list (the right mailing services provider should be able to help with this)
• Talk to Posthub, and we will show you precisely what you can achieve with a high-value donor strategy.

Remember the value of regular donations

Sometimes, the world of charity is very focused on new donor acquisition. Of course, this is an essential strategy. But remember the lifetime of the best donors. Ensure they are also nurtured and feel cared for. You want to give them every opportunity to donate larger sums and more frequently.