Nonprofit Special Appeal Campaign Wins a DMAW Gold MAXI for Lautman Maska Neill & Company
Who hasn’t received Heifer International’s iconic holiday gift catalog? You know the one. The one where you “purchase” an animal for a family in need, giving this gift in honor of a loved one? While this fundraising program has worked well, the organization had lofty goals to increase revenue from its already generous donors. What could they do to get donors to give more in a mid-year appeal? Taking a big risk, Heifer scrapped their traditional appeal of telling the story of a family and, instead, put the spotlight on the power of not an animal, but a single insect: bees. Donors received a No. 10 envelope with a whimsical bee graphic and a “Fill the Hive. Feed a Child” teaser.
2019 DMAW Gold MAXI Winner for Nonprofit Special Appeal Campaign
The letter briefly mentioned child hunger, focusing on the life-changing impact of bees, and asked the donor to support Heifer’s campaign to provide 300 beehives to 300 struggling families around the world. It further encouraged donors to become a “worker bee” with monthly donations.
A lift note from a donor further emphasized this message. The four-color reply form included coupons, showing the donor how many beehives their gift would help provide. Sending the appeal to core donors who made at least one gift to an appeal mailing, the campaign was a runaway success! The change in messaging resonated with a 62% response increase and an average gift of $94. Further, it generated 66 new “worker bee” monthly donors. And the benefits of this new appeal are already evident in their year-end appeals. This August fundraiser was no fluke, but rather the start of a new long-term strategy for Heifer International.
This Gold MAXI was awarded to Lautman Maska Neill & Company at the 40th Annual MAXI Awards, held July 10, 2019 at the Gaylord Hotel & Convention Center, National Harbor, Maryland.
The entry deadline for the 2020 MAXI Awards is February 28, 2020. For more information please contact Ann Walsh at ann@dmaw.org.
