Posts Tagged Campaign
Rescue Mission Exceeds Campaign Donation Expectations
Posted by curtis1000 in Directmail on April 30, 2012
Challenge
Shirley’s House of Hope is a mission that provides
emergency shelter and care for abused women and
children, and helps meet the physical,
emotional,
social and spiritual needs of those who want to break
the cycle of abuse. The mission’s goal was to acquire
new donors through a direct mail campaign and
perhaps break even on this mailing with the idea of
cultivating those new donors in years to come. Their
house list consisted of 226 records.
Solution
Our first campaign was an acquisition year-end mailing
that dropped the first of November. The format was a
control package plus a premium package, which was a
Gift Labels product in a #10 display window. The
customer supplied their house list of 226 and the rest
were “cold” prospects. The database was divided
between gift labels and no premium for a total mailing
of 10,111 records, which were segmented by income
level.
Results
Of the 194 total gifts that resulted from the campaign,
156 were from the list of cold prospects and 38 were
from the from house list. The average gift on
Acquisition (first-time gift) was $56.35. The average
gift in Cultivation was $99.13.
At a nearly 2% cumulative response rate (1.6% on the
Acquisition and 17% on the Cultivation), and bringing
in donations that were almost twice the investment,
this campaign exceeded the mission’s expectations.
With the initial goal to acquire new donors and perhaps
break even on this mailing—cultivating those donors in
years to come—the results speak for themselves:
mission accomplished.
Need a boost for your upcoming trade show?
Posted by curtis1000 in Directmarketing on January 10, 2012
Multi-Channel Campaign Helps Producers
Hybrids Compete for Trade Show Attendees
CHALLENGE:
Producers Hybrids, a seed company, sells its products in eight Midwestern states. In business since 1987, Producers Hybrids is becoming one of the top 15 seed companies in the U.S. Preparing to exhibit at four farm tradeshows, in different locations, from late July to early September 2010, this client’s goal was to drive farmers who were past customers to their booth, along with prospects, and ultimately engage them to order corn seed from Producers Hybrids. In the process of communicating with their customers and prospects, they also solicited email addresses and cell phone numbers for future communications.
SOLUTION:
Producers Hybrids utilized Curtis 1000 to increase their trade show traffic and sales by engaging attendees prior to the show through a combination of direct mail and eMarketing efforts. Their data list, compiled by each of their district sales managers, was segmented into prospects and current customers. The first contact piece, self-generated, was a mailing with a Producers Hybrids logoed baseball cap. Curtis 1000 then timed a custom CreatiFont™ postcard mailing with personalized URLs (PURLs) to remind the attendees to visit the Producers Hybrids booth just prior to each show. The front of the postcard used a background image of dirt, specific to the regions, with each recipient’s name spelled out in corn seed. Each mailing was segmented into the two groups: prospects and customers.
The PURLs, which were highlighted on the back of each postcard, drove the recipients to a personalized landing page, welcoming them and promoting Producers Hybrids products through text and an animated glider. In addition, there was a link to sign up for a free Producers Hybrids pocket knife, produced by Curtis 1000. The link took the recipient to a second landing page, where they could register by submitting their contact information and details regarding their farming and seed needs. This led them to a thankyou page with a unique confirmation code, enabling them to pick up their pocket knife at the show, and a link to sign up for free market updates. Also, carried throughout the PURL was a button to “Tell a Friend.”
The postcard mailing and PURL were updated for each show location, changing regional copy, including a customer testimonial, and images to match each show location. In addition, the PURL was set to send a lead trigger email to the sales managers of Producers Hybrids after each recipient completed their information on the PURL.
RESULTS:
In the past, with competition from the big tractors and farm equipment, Producers Hybrids had difficulty attracting show attendees. This year, however, Producers Hybrids had great booth traffic and feedback from the attendees on the pre-show communication. The PURL returned a unique visit rate of more than 9% with a 100% completion rate from the 98% of visitors who continued beyond the welcome page.
University enjoys double-digit response rates
Posted by curtis1000 in Directmarketing on October 24, 2011
Alumni Relations Multi-Channel Case Study
Xavier University – Cincinnati, OH
Situation:
Xavier University is a Jesuit, Catholic university in Cincinnati, Ohio, with a powerful network of more than 60,000 alumni members across the globe. Following a Curtis CampusWise™ workshop, the Annual Funds Coordinator reached out to the local Curtis 1000 Direct Marketing Consultant. After a presentation and discovery meeting, a campaign was created for the Alumni Relations Department to target young alumni to update their contact information and make a soft ask for donations to the annual fund.
Approach:
Xavier University’s Alumni Relations Department utilized Curtis 1000 to put together a four-part campaign to two young alumni segments: 1-5 years out of school and 6-10 years out of school. The campaign dropped in June and consisted of approximately 8,000 postcards with a PURL and two follow-up email campaigns to non-responders. Xavier University designed all of the pieces, with help from Curtis 1000, and did an outstanding job of capturing a recipient’s attention and appealing to young alumni.
The first piece the target audience received was the postcard with PURL. Upon 
visiting the PURL, the recipient would first see a short message and be asked to update their contact information. The short message was unique to each segment and addressed their stages of life after graduation. Any contact information currently on file was pre-populated in the fields to make the process faster for the alumni. After updating their contact information, 
each visitor was taken to a thank-you page with two links: Make a Donation or Visit the Young Alumni Site. Follow-up emails were sent, initiating a spike in visits to the PURL each time.
Results:
Xavier University was so happy with the results—a 12% response rate on the PURL, a 13% open rate on the first email, and a 14% open rate on the second email—they have already begun discussions about follow-up campaigns with the updated data received.
New Approach Nets University Donations and Updated Information
Posted by curtis1000 in Directmail on October 11, 2011
Annual Giving Multi-Channel Case Study
Indiana Wesleyan University – Marion, IN
Situation:
Indiana Wesleyan University is a Christ-centered academic community committed to developing students in character, scholarship and leadership. The Annual Giving department was already using Curtis 1000 for direct mail campaigns. The Director of Annual Giving was interested in trying a new approach to reach out to alumni, get updated contact information, and solicit donations.
Approach:
The Annual Giving department utilized Curtis 1000 to put together a four-part campaign to four segments: traditional student alumni, non-traditional student alumni, family, and friends. The campaign dropped in late May and consisted of approximately 20,000 postcards with a personalized URL, a follow-up email campaign, and a follow-up letter campaign. Curtis 1000 designed the full campaign and created high-impact pieces.
The first piece the target audience received was the postcard with personalized URL. Upon visiting the PURL, the recipient would first see a letter from the Dean of the Chapel, and then they would be taken through two survey landing pages, a story request to share a memory, and lastly a thank-you page with a link to Donate Now. Two weeks following the postcard, a follow-up email was sent to anyone who did not respond, which generated a big spike in activity. Later that month, a follow-up traditional direct mail response-marketing piece was sent, still highlighting the PURL but also including a donation form and business reply envelope.
Results:
The Annual Giving Director was thrilled with the survey response and the information that was gathered. In the past, they had paid outside firms more and received a lot less information.
Customer Feedback:
Annual Giving Director Kevin Stirratt was impressed with the campaign creativity, commenting that “you get it” and “your design was as creative as anything we have ever produced.”
Survey enables new marketing view
Posted by curtis1000 in Directmarketing, Financial on August 25, 2011
Curtis 1000 Gives Credit Union Fresh
New Look at Marketing to Members
CHALLENGE:
Members First Credit Union of Manchester, New Hampshire, has three branches and approximately 13,000 members. The demographics of the credit union membership are mostly middleclass, highly blue collar, with moderate incomes. Members First was looking to put together their yearly marketing strategy. To help them with this process, the Curtis 1000 MarketWise Group ran a geodatabase demographic report and built an executive summary of the findings. Members First was eager to incorporate this information into their plan, but they also needed a better idea of what their current members thought of the credit union.
SOLUTION:
Curtis 1000 helped the credit union put together a customer satisfaction survey. The multi-channel campaign consisted of a direct mail postcard with a personalized URL (PURL), printed surveys for inside the branches, and signage to promote the survey. The goal of the survey was to define how Members First should position themselves throughout the upcoming year, what products and services to promote, and any changes that should be made inside the branch locations. The postcard and corresponding PURL survey were divided into two distinct age segments: 18 to 39 and 40 plus. Both groups saw the same message, but the images changed to better fit the target audience in each age segment. The postcard clearly displayed the PURL and the offer on the front and the back of the postcard for high visibility and response rate. In addition to the postcard/PURL being sent to all their members, signage was posted at each branch location promoting the survey and offer. The members had two options to complete the survey —visiting their PURL or completing a printed copy at their local branch. In return for completing the survey, the credit union’s members would be entered in a drawing to win $1,000 toward their homeheating expense (or gas card if they were not a homeowner).
RESULTS:
The survey was active for two months. There were 702 visits to the PURL survey (5.1% visit rate) and 645 completed responses to the survey (4.7%). Based on the two age demographic segments, 152 (24%) of the responses were from the 18-39 age group and 493 (76%) responses were from the 40+ group.
CUSTOMER FEEDBACK:
Marcell Cruz, Director of Sales and Marketing for Members First Credit Union, says, “Working with Curtis 1000 has given our credit union a new, fresh look on how we should be marketing to our members to bring in the business.”
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