COURSE RELEASE – Database Configuration For Successful Mailings
Published
The Postal Shuffle
Each day, I walk down my driveway to see what treasures my mailbox holds. While monotonously combing through the onslaught of everyday ads, bills, and the white envelopes addressed to Current Resident (sigh), I’m always delighted to find a letter addressed to me, personally. I get a rush of excitement when I uncover that unexpected, correctly addressed, and personalized letter. I imagine I share this excitement with many of you—and hopefully many of your donors!
Maybe you’re gearing up to send out your end-of-year direct mail appeal. Your mailing list will likely include individual donors or families, some of which will spend the winter at a second, seasonal residence. Why not give these recipients a rush of excitement with a personalized thank-you note and appeal—delivered to their primary residence or their seasonal home?
Your end-of-year mailing list might also include organizations, some with hundreds or thousands of employees. Rather than having your treasured mailing get lost in the clutter of a mailbox or mailroom, imagine identifying the individual in charge of corporate donations, tailoring the envelope with the formal addressee, including the appropriate salutation in your greeting, and having the perfect letter land directly on that contact’s desk. Rush of excitement guaranteed!
Is your database prepared to delight your donors with personalized mailings wherever they are—at their permanent residences, their seasonal homes, or at work?
In Raiser’s Edge, you have the option to mail to constituents in a variety of ways, to a variety of addresses, and to a variety of organizations. Sorting through the details of contact types, contact attributes, when to mail to contacts, what addressees and salutations to use, or whether or not to add an address attribute is certainly a daunting task and requires thoughtful decision making.
Does setting up your database to accommodate precise data entry and support efficient and successful mailings feel overwhelming? Not to worry! Learn how to configure your database for mailing success in our new three-hour instructor-led class, Raiser’s Edge: Database Configuration for Successful Mailings.
Let’s conquer this vital task together—and avert having your treasured mailings get lost in the postal shuffle!
Your end-of-year mailing list might also include organizations, some with hundreds or thousands of employees. Rather than having your treasured mailing get lost in the clutter of a mailbox or mailroom, imagine identifying the individual in charge of corporate donations, tailoring the envelope with the formal addressee, including the appropriate salutation in your greeting, and having the perfect letter land directly on that contact’s desk. Rush of excitement guaranteed!
Is your database prepared to delight your donors with personalized mailings wherever they are—at their permanent residences, their seasonal homes, or at work?
In Raiser’s Edge, you have the option to mail to constituents in a variety of ways, to a variety of addresses, and to a variety of organizations. Sorting through the details of contact types, contact attributes, when to mail to contacts, what addressees and salutations to use, or whether or not to add an address attribute is certainly a daunting task and requires thoughtful decision making.
Does setting up your database to accommodate precise data entry and support efficient and successful mailings feel overwhelming? Not to worry! Learn how to configure your database for mailing success in our new three-hour instructor-led class, Raiser’s Edge: Database Configuration for Successful Mailings.
Let’s conquer this vital task together—and avert having your treasured mailings get lost in the postal shuffle!
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Raiser's Edge® Blog
10/03/2016 1:35pm EDT
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I love your question! I was at a fundraising conference last week where participants discussed the worst thing you can do when mailing to a constituent - the winner was not personalizing the letter. They all said that you send a "Dear Friend" letter to only those donors who you want to lose.
Hopefully, the class and my comment above will help you convince your TPTB.
Melissa
Ooops...sorry still lost in the not real world of the weekend. Thankfully, many of my TPTB do know the benefit...it's usually others planning something last minute that think "Dear Friend" is ok.
This class should be great in helping folks maximize the power that their Raiser's Edge database is capable of!!!