The DMAW 2024 List Bazaar: Attribution, Data, Production & AI all walk into a bar …
No, this isn’t the start of a dad joke – though, who doesn’t love those?
This year’s beloved DMAW List Bazaar was held at Crooked Run Fermentation and was meant to brew up some ideas for better fundraising results!
The jam-packed line-up covered the most important trends pertaining to lists, data, and their intersection with essential areas of fundraising.
Here are some of our team’s top takeaways from this year’s event.
The Importance of Matchback Analyses
In an era where donor journeys are complex, attribution is a challenge. A matchback analysis can help get a better idea of holistic results by understanding who received a direct mail package and went online to make their gift. Looking at DM URL revenue is only a piece of the puzzle. Donors often go straight to Google or the organization’s homepage to make their gifts directly so without doing this analysis you are missing out on a holistic view of how your direct mail investment is paying off.
Garbage In = Garbage Out
While data from outside sources should not be manipulated when mailed in acquisition, taking opportunities to prioritize data hygiene processes once a prospect becomes a donor is worth the hassle.
Get rid of duplicates, correct misspellings, fix wonky addresses, etc. This type of attention to detail and ‘showing them we know them’ matters to your donors and can cut down on frustration and confusion.
Ensuring your data is clean also helps improve efficiency during caging so that gifts and donor returns can be logged quickly without messy data hindering these processes.
AI's Impact on Donor Acquisition & The List Industry
While AI offers alternative approaches to co-ops and models, its challenges still pose some concerns among list managers. A panel of all-star list managers at the List Bazaar shared insights on the pros and cons of AI and list generation.
Some key takeaways:
Although AI can help to narrow down audiences for individualized campaigns, it may inadvertently open up access to Personally Identifiable Information (PII), causing major privacy and compliance concerns for organizations.
While AI thrives on machine learning and new data, there is concern that new information could be manipulated in a negative way. This becomes an ethical dilemma when it comes to how donor data is reviewed, what criteria is used to select the record, and access to donor giving histories.
AI should not be considered an end-all-be-all tool for generating lists. While it is an impressive and significant tool that can be leveraged, list managers still need to monitor and adjust criteria as AI grows to ensure ethical considerations are top of mind information is being funneled into it.
Balance List Strategies with Production Efficiencies
Acquisition is an investment and is often one of the first places that ends up on the chopping block if budget cuts are needed, and we all know these types of shifts can have long-term impacts for a program.
When looking for ways to limit investment, take a look at opportunities in production before making drastic changes to your acquisition strategy.
Some things to consider:
Leverage common components and campaigns where possible. Keeping packages simple to minimize production costs.
Take advantage of USPS promotions, and stay up to date on any changes and new promotions taking place.
Be mindful of overall rate increases. Costs are slated to increase up to 20% over the next 2 years, and it is important to adjust budgets and strategies accordingly in a way that won’t affect your ability to bring on new donors.
Thank you DMAW for the wonderful time at The List Bazaar! We are already counting down to DMAW’s next List Bazaar in 2025 - hope to see you there!
In the meantime, if you’re looking for a strategic partner to ensure your list and acquisition strategies are bringing in the right donors, connect with us – we’d love to put our heads together!
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