American Cancer Society's Pioneering Decision: One Year Later
One year ago, I wrote an article that detailed what may be one of the boldest moves by a top brand in the nonprofit industry. In a move that took the industry by surprise, the American Cancer Society (ACS) made the following decisions in late 2012 with immediate action in 2013:
- Stop all direct mail acquisition to generate new direct mail donors for the organization.
- Stop all direct mail conversion to offer non-direct mail Society donors (online donors, event-participants/donors, information seekers, etc.) an opportunity to give a direct mail gift.
- Remove the American Cancer Society direct mail donors from all exchange universes.
As a reminder, the Society mailed 41 million direct mail pieces to cold prospects and non-mail Society donors in its last year of the strategy. As many can imagine, this decision had the industry talking and everyone became a crystal ball reader for what the future would hold for ACS's program and revenue.
- Categories:
- Acquisition
- Direct Mail
- Multichannel
- Companies:
- American Cancer Society
Vice President, Strategy & Development
Eleventy Marketing Group
Angie is ridiculously passionate about EVERYTHING she’s involved in — including the future and success of our nonprofit industry.
Angie is a senior exec with 25 years of experience in direct and relationship marketing. She is a C-suite consultant with experience over the years at both nonprofits and agencies. She currently leads strategy and development for marketing intelligence agency Eleventy Marketing Group. Previously she has worked at the innovative startup DonorVoice and as general manager of Merkle’s Nonprofit Group, as well as serving as that firm’s CRM officer charged with driving change within the industry. She also spent more 14 years leading the marketing, fundraising and CRM areas for two nationwide charities, The Arthritis Foundation and the American Cancer Society. Angie is a thought leader in the industry and is frequent speaker at events, and author of articles and whitepapers on the nonprofit industry. She also has received recognition for innovation and influence over the years.
