February 6, 2011 | Read Time: 1 minute
Many charities have realized that online gifts are larger than the ones they get in the mail, but few are taking creative steps to persuade their traditional donors to move to the Internet.
The Salvation Army Kentucky and Tennessee Division, however, is testing an effort to turn its mail donors into Internet supporters. The charity decided to take that step after it figured out that its online donors give an average of $98 apiece. Many of those donors had made previous mail gifts that were much smaller, only about $38 on average.
So this month, the Salvation Army is sending a direct-mail solicitation that teases readers by telling them only part of the real-life story of “Sally,” a homeless alcoholic woman who came to the charity’s shelter on one of the coldest nights of the year.
The mailing urges recipients to go online to get the rest of Sally’s story. There they will learn how she turned her life around with help from the charity, and they can also watch a video interview with her that the charity made with an inexpensive hand-held camera.
“We are hoping this will pay off, not just donation-wise but getting the fuller story out about the full breadth of services we provide,” says Christopher McGown, the charity’s divisional development director. “This is a real-life example of what we do every day.
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