Comfort For Direct Mail Fundraisers
DirectMarketingIQ offers this article reporting on an Epsilon study of consumer preferences (in US and Canada) for various marketing channels.
Direct mail comes though with flying colors. The most important reason seems to be that consumers trust information in the mail more than online. Says Epsilon: “Consumers stated loud and clear that information is more private if sent through the mail versus email or online. In a similar vein, they feel strongly that a lot of online information can’t be trusted, and, in fact, consumers in both nations trust information received by mail more than online.”
In addition, according to Epsilon: “Survey takers also indicated they feel valued when they receive mail. And they said mail is more convenient and easy to use.”
Epsilon doesn’t argue against other channels. They’re study confirms that consumers use multiple channels, and rely on different channels for different purposes and in different categories. For example, online is the preferred channel for travel-related communications.
Their data says that the factors driving consumers to certain channels are trust, convenience, richness and relevance of information and environmental concerns.
Their overall conclusion: “Overall, our research confirms the proliferation of channel choices but shows that a unique combination or balance of favored channels needs to be identified, and that combination likely includes direct mail and other offline options, despite the notion by some that offline is no longer effective.”
More detail from Epsilon, including the full study, here.
Tom
2 responses to “Comfort For Direct Mail Fundraisers”
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Tom,
A well-done survey and report by Epsilon. And a welcomed addition to the knowledge base, too.
Personally, I’ve always been of the mind that direct-mail marketing and fund raising were, are and will remain far from dead. Direct-response always has been an effective and viable part of the mix of methodologies in advancement/philanthropy, and this research by Epsilon (obviously with a vested interest) proves the point.
Like Epsilon, I will not denigrate any of the other available channels today, particularly the electronic/digital and online channels such as websites and social-media networks. All of these are welcomed and helpful additions to the mix of available methods.
Like any confident “old-timer,” however, I’ll remind anyone who’ll listen that, when it comes to the solicitation of major gifts (in a capital or endowment campaign, for example), neither direct-mail nor any of the newfangled digital channels is an appropriate method. Nobody will secure a million-dollar gift solely through direct mail, Facebook or Twitter.
To be successful, that level and intensity of fund raising still requires person-to-person, face-to-face, hand-to-hand communication, cultivation and solicitation. All the other methodologies or channels — including direct mail and the new, electronic ones — serve in a support role to that kind of solicitation and can help with the cultivation and relationship-management process.
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