Maximize Donor Engagement With Multichannel Integration

OMRF’s goal was to tell a story that engaged emotion and motivated donors. The organization decided on the story of Meagan McLain, a 21-year-old college student who was ill and dying until an OMRF discovery saved her life.

“It was a simple, dramatic story with a happy ending, and we paired this story with a secondary message with a tax credit, providing further motivation,” Lee said.

On Nov. 15, OMRF sent the targeted direct-mail piece, which included the appeal, reply card, outer envelope and the “Help Fight Disease and Get a Tax Credit!” insert highlighting the tax credit. The mailer focused on Meagan’s story, and OMRF used the reply card to introduce some more survivors thanks to OMRF’s work.

Then on Dec. 1, the organization sent a follow-up e-mail with a large graphic coupled with a dramatic subject line. It generated an open rate of nearly 40 percent. Coinciding with the e-mail, OMRF mailed a postcard on Dec. 1 as well, this time shifting the focus from Meagan’s story to the tax credit. That was followed by a personal e-mail sent on Dec. 15 from OMRF’s president, senior staff and development officers, again focused on the tax credit.

This integrated campaign generated tremendous results for OMRF: nearly $850,000 raised, compared to five years ago when the end-of-year appeal struggled to raise $25,000. Lee attributes the success of the campaign to its integrated approach and simple focus.

“For us, it’s really important that each piece stands on its own. One story. Simple action to take,” she shared. “A simple message is key. Find a story that’s simple and direct, and make it easy for your donors to act. That’s what works for us.”

Telemarketing and e-mail integration
To wrap up the session, Sotelo shared World Wildlife Fund’s online-offline integration testing. World Wildlife Fund has 900,000 e-newsletter subscribers. It raised $12.5 million in online revenue in 2009, and 25 percent of membership revenue is generated online. That doesn’t seem to be slowing anytime soon, with WWF seeing year-over-year growth of 39 percent in online giving.