Tip
of the Month
Top 10 Common Mistakes in Acquisition
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November, 2005 |
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Acquisition can be an expensive investment but if done well can produce
great results and help build your donor file. A succesful acquisition
campaign can be achieved if you avoid the following mistakes:
1. Overcomplicated Creative Design
- Keep it simple, creative should be clear and effective. Flashy design lessens the value and message of the acquisition.
2. Not Studying Historical Data Results.
Looking at the results of previous tests can help steer you in a clearer direction.
3. Testing Too Many New Lists in a Campaign. This is very risky. Always try to test a safe amount of lists (dependent on the size of your acquisition, the number of lists, etc.) so that you can learn from the testing without hurting acquisition performance.
4. Testing Too Many Variables. If you test too many variables, all too often you will be unable to decipher why one package, list or concept beat another.
5. Not Using Results to Guide Strategy. Using results to guide your next steps is helpful in planning a strong acquistion plan.
6. Just Rolling Out/ Not Re-Testing
- Always re-test. You should always verify your results.
7.Cutting Off Analysis Too Early
- Little things like post office issues that lead to staggered mail dates of certain packages can result in shifts in package performance.
8. Testing Package/ Design that would be too costly to roll out. If is not cost effective to roll out then why test the package.
9. Testing for the sake of testing with no clear goal or strategy in
mind. Why test just to test? There should be clear strategies (test result assumptions, expectations, etc.).
10. Testing variables and factors whose results are irrelevant - Testing things like the length of a letter, highlighting or bolding copy and others that would not really make an impact on performance.
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George Whelan
Vice President of Marketing & Business Development
Carl Bloom Associates, Inc. |
Past Tips
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May, 2006 |
Data Management and Hygiene Tips |
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November, 2005 |
Top 10 Common Mistakes in Acquisition |
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July, 2003 |
Summer tests |
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June, 2003 |
Take advantage of those slow summer months! |
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May, 2003 |
Are You Violating Your Online Privacy Policy? |
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April, 2003 |
The Little Message: penny-wise and pound-foolish |
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March, 2003 |
Newsletter as Fundraising Tool |
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February, 2003 |
Member vs. Donor |
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January, 2003 |
Live stamps vs. indicia |
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May, 2002 |
Ask for Free Lists |
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April, 2002 |
Should You Suppress Deceased Donors From Your Database? |
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March, 2002 |
Three Proven Strategies to Reach Lapsed Donors |
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February, 2002 |
Postal Sorting Tip |
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January, 2002 |
Piggyback Your Test Package Onto A Larger Run of Someone Else's Roll Out |
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November, 2001 |
Identify yourself on the outer envelope |
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November, 2001 |
Add a lift note to your year-end appeal |
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May, 2001 |
Promote Planned Giving at Tax Time |
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April, 2001 |
Convert your annual report into a brochure |
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March, 2001 |
Welcome Package |
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February, 2001 |
Tips for Reinstating Lapsed Donors |
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January, 2001 |
Look at your package with fresh eyes |
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December, 2000 |
Successful Online Holiday Appeal |
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November, 2000 |
Undeliverable? NOT! |
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October, 2000 |
Learn Before You Leap |
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September, 2000 |
Select Nth Names for Prospect Creative Tests |
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August, 2000 |
Use a Double Control Periodically When Testing |
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Utilize those summer months! |
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Meet the Winners of the 2010 Package of the Year Awards!