Creating Events that Attract Sponsors
All of the experts in the direct mail presentation shown below stressed the value of a multi-level and multi-disciplined approach. They also mentioned the value of "high touch" strategies in a climate that continues to rely on effective but less personal fundraising campaigns such as direct mail. That's where special events come into the picture. Events are a proven means of reaching an organization's supporters in a more personal way. Events provide a vehicle for thanking people for volunteering and donating to support the organization's mission. Events provide a means for having fun with your supporters and knowing them as individuals--not just asking them for help. The "high touch" quality of special events therefore makes a targeted and well-planned event an excellent compliment to a direct mail campaign.
Unfortunately, fundraisers and other events are sometimes ineffective because the organization does not go through a process to identify how to connect the event to the organization's mission or to identify its target audience.
In my presentation I provided a model for including sponsors, staff, directors on an organization's board and members in the event design process. By holding focus groups, town meetings and brainstorming sessions among those that support an organization, the event design becomes a reflection of the organization's uniqueness and builds audiences for the organization along the way. This process begins with identifying the context of the event--its purpose, then choosing a theme each year to keep the event fresh. Circumstances such as the location of the event, time of year presented, other events held on the same date that are potential competition, target audience, and other important "influencers" are identified.
Skyline then works with all relevant groups from staff to volunteers to design and produce an event that is on budget and designed to meet specific financial and strategic goals.
For more information on Skyline's event design and production services and my consulting package designed to build an appeal to sponsors right into the event design, contact Skye Griffith at 303-595-8747, skye@skylineusa.com.
Joe Contrino from the Contrino Group stated that direct mail is still the most efficient way for nonprofits to appeal for funds. Although most organizations in both the public and private sectors use a multi-disciplinary approach to fundraising and marketing
respectively, direct mail is still number one for nonprofits, partly because individual donors still make up the largest piece of the contributions pie. Although direct mail is down overall for the first time in 40 years, Joe stated that it is still projected to be 80% of the budget nonprofits allocate for fundraising over the next five years. Joe recommended that organizations make their direct mail campaign more targeted. He also suggested investing more in client retention. joec@contrino.com
Katherine Contrino of the Contrino Group stated that there are three types of direct mail campaigns: Acquisition, Retention and Lapsed Reactivation. Acquisition campaigns are more of a broadcast effort geared toward generating new donors, while retention campaigns are designed to keep current supporter on board as members and regular donors. Reactivation campaigns seek to bring back former donors, She stressed that direct mail for nonprofits is an ongoing program, not a project, and it needs to be managed as such. katherinec@contrino.com
Doug Yost, an IT professional from the Colorado Symphony Orchestra emphasized that any direct mail campaign is only as good as your list! It's essential to rigorously maintain current addresses and other important details such as the level of the donation. Doug stressed the importance of follow-up and said that a second mailing sent shortly after the first works pretty well. It's better to combine the second mailing with calls to the recipients. He also indicated that the impact of direct mail is usually only two to three weeks, which is why follow-up is critical. dyost@coloradosymphony.org
Jim Moore of Commulinks stressed the importance of including appeal codes so that an organization can keep track of which appeals were most successful and when they were sent. He stated that a first-time acquisition campaign is more like a broadcast, and using appeal codes is helpful in narrowing down which strategies were most effective.
jim@communlinks.com
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