Appeal Codes & Package Codes

Laura Moretti

For any given appeal (i.e. activity / topic / ask that we send out to donors or prospects), is it best to identify the “tactics” (aka medium: direct mail, email, etc.) through Package Codes within one Appeal Code? Assume that we would send both tactics to the target audience.

Here is an example I am imagining: We want to send a newsletter by mail (postal) to a group of donors and then we want to follow-up several days later with an email to that same group of donors. Appeal = Spring Newsletter; Package 1 = direct mail, Package 2 = email.

Or, is it better to assign a different Appeal to each tactic? In which case, there would be two Appeals: Spring Newsletter DM and Spring Newsletter EM

Which of these two approaches would be ‘best practice’ and allow for clarity and efficiency when viewing and analyzing results?

As another layer, I am accustomed to using Package Codes to identify donor segments within an appeal (so that we can use variable copy, etc.). Would it then become too cumbersome to manage tactics AND segments through Package Codes?

Any insight or experience on this would be appreciated! Thank you!

p.s. I did watch the Webinar called Collect, Fund, Analyze – it was helpful. Though here, my question is even more granular. ?

Jess Moxsky

I know that typically, package codes denote versions of the same appeal. The example given in the Blackbaud University RE Fundamentals: Gifts class is typically something like your Spring Newsletter Appeal, with a package for Donors and a package for Prospects. Packages are great for A/B testing and comparing. I believe the other route you described would also work. As long as your Policies & Procedures Guide outlines your org's definition for those fields and their use-cases, you should be good to go! Consistency & documentation are the #1 best practices I can recommend

JoAnn Strommen

Ditto @Jess Moxley on use of package denoting different message/audience.

To me another factor is can you differentiate between a response to the direct mail and to the email?

Do both pieces have the same link for online giving? If so, then it seems unnecessary to have them be different appeals as you don't know what triggered the gift. If email says to mail in a gift, will they be given specific coding so that you can record it is response to the email. Without the details, analyzing is tough.

Dariel Dixon

I think it depends on the reporting you want to do. Can you do the reporting on packages as easily as reporting on appeal? I know in regards to certain gifts we get online, we have the ability to add the appeal, but not a package.

TBH, since you're doing a comparison, I think the packages are an excellent way to go, barring there is no other sub-segregation going on. Especially since you can break down the appeal by package in some reports.

Angela Tuttle

In the past we used packages for the different donors. Parents (LYBUNT), Parents (Non Donors), Alumni, Fac/Staff, etc. We would do Non Donors or other categories for each constituent code.

Frank Richter

We use the packages within an appeal to identify the means by which the constituent came to donate. While we usually know, for example, that a gift came in via the Fall Appeal, the package offers more insight. For reporting purposes, all of the packages are identifiable as the gifts come in. For example, our SYBUNT Package, Employee Package, Mailhouse package, In-Person Ask Package, In-house Package, Email Package, etc. can all easily be identified (by the color of the reply card or specific online form the donor uses) by our gift processors. The gift processor then selects the package on the gift in RE. We can then query or run reports based on packages and compare a package's success verses other packages, or compare year-to-year, etc. It also gives our solicitors talking points (i.e, they might notice the donor gave because of the story we told in a particular package).

Laura Moretti

Thank you to all who replied. It's helpful insight and I appreciate it! Will be tackling this in the new year.