Salvation Army

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Behind on your Christmas Appeal? The Salvos put us to shame

Do you feel like you are behind on your non-profit’s Christmas Appeal? Salvation Army has the first wave of their Christmas Appeal produced and mailed. I receive hundreds of appeals from Australian and international charitable organisations. As has been true in years prior, the Salvos appeal is the first in my letterbox again this year. It arrived on 12 October.

Salvos

Why does it matter?

Any charity getting a jump start on their calendar year-end appeal gives themselves plenty of time to conduct a multitude of waves. It matters because if, for example, the Salvos find their Christmas Appeal not performing in ways predicted or if they find changed behaviour from the plan, Salvos have ample time on the calendar to make adjustments to accommodate the changed behaviour. Additionally, in the case of the Salvo’s appeal, a gift catalogue is the focus of the appeal. Salvos want to ensure donors include the Salvation Army service recipients in their “Christmas shopping” plans. By mailing their appeal well before most of us have even thought about our Christmas shopping, Salvos become front of mind.

Mailing early matters in 2020, more than, ever. Some will find their year end budgets tighter than in years prior. It is important to get your appeal out earlier so you can ensure you get your piece of the pie.

It takes a lot of planning and effort to be this far ahead of the “game”. Salvation Army have spent months, if not years, perfecting their game and ensuring they are able to have maximum impact. Kudos to the Salvation Army for appearing first in our letterboxes for multiple years in a row.

Christmas

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Salvation Army – first with their Christmas Appeal

My Mom always used to say it felt like Christmas came earlier each and every year. Each year I watch to see which non-profit organisation will be first to send their Christmas appeal. The Salvation Army is first with their Christmas appeal this year.

The Salvation Army appeal arrived on 1 October. For the fourth year in a row, Salvos are first in sending their appeal. In fact, I have did not receive another in the three weeks following the arrival of the Salvos appeal and none until early November.

Why does this matter?

Any charitable organisation which sends their appeal early allows for ample time to conduct further waves/follow up appeals. In fact, Salvos have allowed themselves nearly three months to measure, monitor, and adjust strategy. Charities that send their appeals in November (and, others in December) cut themselves short and do not allow much wiggle room to adjust their strategy should the initial wave not prove to be successful.

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Which charity is first this year with a Christmas appeal?

My mother used to complain about the speed in which retailers put out Christmas merchandise. It seemed, at least by her book, the retailers started the Christmas season earlier and earlier each year. Each year I write a blog post about the charity which sends me their Christmas appeal first. Last year it was the Salvation Army and it arrived in the later part of Oct. Which charity is the first this year with a Christmas appeal?

For the third year in a row, it’s the Salvation Army – this year sending their Christmas appeal to me on 3 October. Following, as a close second, is White Ribbon Australia. White Ribbon sent their appeal on 5 October.

What are the benefits to send the first charity appeal?

By sending their Christmas appeal first, the Salvos and White Ribbon stand out in the letterbox. Additionally, both also increase the number of potential waves to their appeal because, just by nature of the time on the calendar, both allow for more waves to be sent in the 11 weeks we have remaining before Christmas.

Since receiving these Christmas appeals, I have not received others – whether via AUS Post or an EDM. Therefore, the Salvos and White Ribbon have continued to stand out – at least in my letterbox and Email inbox.

I guess Mom was right. Christmas does come earlier each year – especially for charitable organisations.

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The first charity Christmas appeal received from….

It’s something I report on each year via the FundraisingForce blog. The first charity Christmas appeal was received from…The Salvation Army.

The Salvation Army has been the first for the past several years.

I’ve talked about the need for a charitable organisation to stand out in the letterbox in several past FundraisingForce blog posts. It’s really the key to successful direct mail. Your piece has to stand out amongst all the postal mail one receives. If the letter does not get opened, it is not going to get a response.

Salvation Army stood out in my letterbox because it arrived in early October and it was the first charitable organisation to send me their Christmas appeal! The organisation also stood out amongst my other mail because of the the art on the package.

As in the past, the appeal is a Christmas Wish catalogue, which is full of items I can purchase to change the lives of those Salvation Army supports. Once purchased, I will receive a gift card and envelope to give to a person on my list to share the joy of giving. A simple concept and something that stood out in my letterbox the beginning of October.

Many charitable organisations likely do not have their segmented direct marketing lists prepared and sent to their mailing house. Some may still be working on the letter copy, package content, and various approvals that go with the task. Where is your non-profit organisation in the process? Is the data pull and the segmentation all a little too hard in your CRM? It does not have to be. Hire experts like FundraisingForce to properly segment your data and to create that segmentation inside your CRM. Once set up, this segmentation may be tweaked and pulled for appeals in the future.

Don’t delay setting up your segmentation for your Christmas appeal because it is too difficult, too time consuming, or something you do not have knowledge to do. Let’s get the data ready so you can get the appeal in the mail and then you’ll be able to focus your time on other tasks – like assisting in the processing of the donations and the receipts!

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Excellent examples of EOY receipts and donor care

Last week I wrote a blog post about End of Year (EOY) receipting and I suggested some staff of organisations prefer a root canal over their EOY receipt process. I received interesting feedback about that blog post and I think it resonated with more than a few readers. I have received some excellent examples of EOY receipts and donor care over the last few weeks. I want to share some of them with you today and to highlight the pros and cons I see with each.

Not just about the receipt – it’s about donor care

Zoos VictoriaEOY

Pros: Zoos Victoria point out the impact of my giving in my EOY receipt. In this receipt, I learned about dog training, captive breeding programs, the birth of some lion cubs, and various animal research projects. I was also given key contact details (web, email and phone) if I am interested in learning more.

Cons: Since Zoos Victoria is such a public space, and as a long-term monthly supporter, I wished they had invited me in for a tour.

CARE AustraliaDonor care

Pros: CARE Australia sent an eMail message of thanks, along with an automated slide show of people from all over the world. The images are real people in real locations. In the eMail, CARE included a link to a video message containing people worldwide offering their thanks.

Cons: I wish CARE Australia had asked me for an additional gift in this message (this is the aggressive American fundraiser in me).

Salvation Army

Pros: Salvation Army sent their EOY receipt in a clearly marked envelope containing teaser copy highlighting the content. Inside, the pack thanks me repeatedly and also tells the story about a gentleman named Paul. The letter makes an additional ask AND there is a return envelope for ease in making a donation. The EOY receipt is clear and concise, containing all my contributions.

Cons: Salvation Army could have followed up with a thank you video similar to CARE Australia. Salvation Army has much to show in terms of programs helping countless Australians. Why not put this to video?

In sum – use the EOY receipt as an opportunity to make an additional ask. At the same time, ensure the message of thank you is repeated throughout the piece. Finally, use video to tell your story and don’t forget your EOY receipt may be multi-channel.

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It’s a Christmas appeal? No, it is simply a thank you

It’s that time of year when charities across Australia ask you and I for a donation. It’s the last hoorah of the calendar year. If you think Australian charities are aggressive this time of the year, you should live in the US and experience not just the season of giving, but also end of tax year all at once.

I have received many Christmas appeals this year from Australian charitable organisations. I wrote about the first to arrive, from Salvation Army, back in October when we were still wishing for warmer weather. Some appeals arrived as late as last week. One envelope, which I thought was going to be the final appeal of the season. turned out to not be a Christmas. Instead, it turned out to simply be a Christmas card and note of thanks from the Burnet Institute.

The simple message caught me by surprise. I am not used to charitable organisations sending simplyburnett-institute-2 a thank you. Amongst all the pieces of mail and eDMs I have received from Australian charitable organisations throughout the years of conducting a mystery shopping study of the Australian, New Zealand, and Asian non-profit sector, I could count on one hand the number of times a charity simply wrote to say thank you.

The thank you from Burnet Institute will go a long way – with this donor and others. Merry Christmas. And, thank you.

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Salvation Army does it again

I’ve talked about standing out in the letterbox in several past blog posts. It’s really the key to successful direct mail. Your piece has to stand out amongst all the postal mail one receives. If the letter does not get opened, it is not going to get a response.

wishesSalvation Army stood out in my letterbox last Friday by being the first charitable organisation to send me their Christmas appeal!

The appeal is a Christmas Wish catalogue, which is full of items I can purchase to change the lives of those Salvation Army supports. Once purchased, I will receive a gift card and envelope to give to a person on my list to share the joy of giving. A simple concept and something that stood out in my letterbox on the last day of September.