Winners of the 2014 Gold Awards for Fundraising Excellence

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

BRONZE: People for the American Way — Repeal Citizens United Campaign (Submitted by CCAH)

The Numbers
Recipients: 4,958,816
Response rate: 0.08 percent
Total cost: $8,163
Income generated: %156,189.49
Average gift: $38.99
Cost to raise a dollar: $0.05

This four-month campaign was a stellar exercise in testing that also brought in a significant amount of money. The audience for the campaign was People for the American Way’s entire list, including recent donors, lapsed donors, reinstate donors and non-donors. In addition to raising money, the goal for the campaign was to test PFAW’s Repeal Citizens United messaging against other possible topics to gauge supporters’ interest. Was the long-standing Citizens United messaging wearing thin?

Over the course of nine tests in the four-month period, the Citizens United messaging continually beat other issues (with the exception of one). In the end, the campaign generated 3,787 gifts worth $145,352.36. And while the money is vital, the campaign also ensured that PFAW was engaging its supporters on the best possible messaging and thus not leaving anything — opens, clicks, gifts or dollars — on the table.

Telefundraising ($10 million And Over)
Core Member Major Donor Series
Democratic National Committee
(Submitted by Chapman Cubine Adams + Hussey)

The Numbers
Recipients: 25,860 contacts
Response rate: 7.13 percent
Total cost: $373,251
Income generated: $1,821,628
Average gift: $988.94
Cost to raise a dollar: $0.20

What’s a political fundraiser to do when an election ends and supporters had truly given until it hurt?

While the impulse might be to hang back and let the spent donors chill a while, the Democratic National Committee knew it couldn’t ease up too much; high-dollar donors are a cornerstone of the organization’s annual income. The goal of this campaign was “to communicate person to person with major donors about the DNC’s priorities in the coming months, using the importance of early money to build a foundation for election victory as a touchstone for multiple gifts,” writes Lon Chapman, executive vice president at Chapman Cubine Adams + Hussey.