Imagine that today, by sheer coincidence, you received mail solicitations from two different organizations with international child sponsorship programs, neither of which you presently support. Take off your professional fundraiser’s cap if you can, and explain to me what would happen.

Would you open neither, one or both?

If neither, are you simply not interested in the ‘category’ or did something turn you off (if so, what)? Either way, skip the rest of this post and have a nice day. But note that either response was emotional.

If you opened only one, some filtering process was already triggered — brand recognition, more compelling creative? Somehow you’ve already made a comparative or competitive judgment.

Having opened just one, and perusing it, what transpired? Did you lose interest; were you disappointed in some way (how)? Or did something (what) appeal to you? Were you having an emotional or reasoning experience (or both)? What finally determined your decision to respond or not respond? And if you decided against responding, did you then turn to the second package?

Now, say you opened and browsed both mailings. And you decided to support one of the two groups. What drove your decision? Familiarity? A case somehow better made (e.g., some persuasive claim about program effectiveness)? A case somehow better presented (e.g., more engaging creative/layout, more compelling imagery)? A premium? An easier way to respond?

What established for you the greater appeal of the organization you decided to support? Be as specific as possible.

Now, put your fundraiser hat back on.

On a very lucky day, your organization’s appeal is the only one in the mailbox. No direct competition. You just need to make an instant connection (and we all know that’s not easy). You might not even make it over the first threshold … being in a category holding even a remote interest for the recipient!

But, nevertheless, run your appeal through the inquiry outlined above. How would it stand up to those questions?

My point in all this is simply: Why you? It’s not enough to care about children or the environment or cancer. Plenty of your competitors do.

What each of your appeals must also answer is: Why you?

How well are your marketing communications doing that? When was the last time you did a ruthless side-by-side comparison of their case/presentation against yours?

Tom