Magic Fundraising Machine At Work
Roger’s post yesterday is well on its way to being one of The Agitator’s ‘most-read’ ever.
How could it not be — Magic Fundraising Machine Boosts ROI. What self-respecting fundraiser could resist a claim like that?!
Numerous readers have emailed The Agitator, asking Roger to open his trench coat … “show me the money”!
We’re pleased to show you the two treatments of the National Wildlife Federation appeal Roger wrote about that illustrate ‘The Magic Fundraising Machine’ at work.
PDF 1 is the original NWF letter … the control.
PDF 2 overlays ReadSmart’s ‘Machine’ treatment onto the control … giving you a sense of the degree of formatting/spacing change.
PDF 3 is the ‘Machine’ version … that substantially out-performed the control.
Sorry to make you work so hard, but given the nature of the changes, there’s no easier way to illustrate the differences between the two versions.
OK, let’s hear from you skeptics!
Tom & Roger
7 responses to “Magic Fundraising Machine At Work”
Behavioral Science Q & A
Integrating an individual giving appeal with other communications from a charity can have both positive and negative effects, and the outcome largely depends on how it’s executed. Advantages of Integration Brand Consistency: Maintaining a consistent appearance and messaging across all communications can reinforce the org’s brand identity and strengthen brand recognition and trust among your […]
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I’m not aware of any in-market tests specifically comparing recurring vs. gift frequency language. I suspect the answer might not be the same with all gift frequencies, nor with all people. It sounds like a great opportunity for you to test and find out what works for your audience. Based on the literature, here’s a couple […]
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Based on what we know from existing data, those renewal notices can actually be pretty effective in getting people to donate. They tap into our psychology – creating a sense of urgency, reminding us of past support, and using personalization to make the message hit home. They’re playing on our natural tendencies to feel obligated […]
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Interesting question. I had a quick look at the testing done on this topic. On the positive side, in all cases, over half of donors decide to cover the fee. In some cases, it goes as high as 65%. Not a negligible percentage at all. Here’s another test from iRaiser showing consistent results (see point […]
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There’s just one thing to consider when designing a supporter journey: the supporter. More specifically, you need to take into account: Who the supporter is i.e. their identity, which is the reason they support this cause, and their personality, which describes the way they “see” and process the world. These will determine the kind of […]
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I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]
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I am impressed. I am always trying to get charities to use courier or American typewriter font, and do hand underlining and star points etc, but they all want it to look like a business letter.
Now here’s even more evidence for making letters look authentically impulsive – rather than polished and practiced.
Love it!
This was great information and a new angle. I went through and looked at the overlay yesterday on the Readsmart website but thanks for sending the whole letter.
Fascinating stuff. Anything that makes for an easier reading experience is going to keep eyeballs on the page longer, giving your great copy a chance to make an even greater impact.
Very helpful – thanks!
We were super excited to try this tactic and really wanted it to work, but were disappointed! We tested on two different clients in both an acquisition and a renewal and while both saw minimal boosts from this formatting (6% revenue boost on an acquisition and 3% revenue boost on a renewal), neither had the overall performance to make the results statistically significant or to rollout for future mailings.
I just got our first-ever Readsmart-enhanced letter back from the vendor. Now it’s showtime, stay tuned!
Thanks for the update, Matt. Please keep us posted on the results.
We’re staying tuned!