June 11, 2008 | Read Time: 1 minute
How long should charities wait before they begin soliciting donations from people who signed up to receive information via e-mail?
Jeff Patrick, president of Common Knowledge, a San Francisco consulting company that helps charities conduct online fund-raising campaigns, says the rule of thumb is one month.
Mr. Patrick said in an online discussion Tuesday with Chronicle readers that his company has tested sending the first appeal after 30 days, 45 days, 60 days, and 90 days and has found that the rate of donations is much higher for those who get their first solicitation after 30 days.
To get that return, however, he says charities have to communicate regularly with the prospective donor during the first 30 days.
“It is critical that you groom the new e-subscribers during the 30 days,” Mr. Patrick said. “We actually have a program for our clients where we send two e-mails a week — yes, that was two a week — during the four-week run-up to that first ask. It works outstandingly well, and organizations love it because the fund raising program ROI is tremendous.”
For more tips on running successful fund-raising campaigns online, read the transcript of the Chronicle’s live discussion.
