I’ve been involved in fundraising for over 17 years, working initially in data entry and other front and back-end services. Early on in my career I wrote standard operating procedures for donation processing at the American Red Cross. From my perspective, security in donation processing is hugely important.

Stories about security related to payment cards are increasingly common in the media. Recently, we’ve heard about the theft of consumer data at big box retailers like Target and Home Depot.

As the President of Merkle Response Management Group, I lead the many facets of our business – from client satisfaction, product enhancements and new services, to sales presentations, business strategy, employee engagement and process improvement. No two days are ever alike. In my free time, I like to explore my creative side. I am a frustrated artist at heart who enjoys Plein Air landscape painting, and crafting wood furniture. I also enjoy tinkering on my restored VW ’66 bug.

Recently a prospective client made a second visit to our facility in Hagerstown, Maryland, to do a deeper dive into our capabilities and how we’d handle the nonprofit organization’s direct mail responses.  As part of that process we asked the Director of Development to bring samples of their primary direct mail packages to review.

One of the most important activities for a nonprofit is the handling of incoming communications from donors. Because nonprofits depend on donors to fund the programs and operations that serve the organization’s mission, using these interactions to build and maintain a strong donor base is fundamentally important. Below, I’ve outlined some best practices for using your contact center to enhance donor lifetime value.

As the President of Merkle Response Management Group, I lead the many facets of our business – from client satisfaction, product enhancements and new services, to sales presentations, business strategy, employee engagement and process improvement. No two days are ever alike. In my free time, I like to create things. I am a frustrated artist at heart who enjoys Plein Air landscape painting, and crafting furniture and home accessories from wood. I also enjoy working on my restored ’66 VW Bug.

As the President of Merkle Response Management Group, I lead the many facets of our business – from client satisfaction, product enhancements and new services, to sales presentations, business strategy, employee engagement and process improvement. No two days are ever alike. In my free time, I like to create things. I am a frustrated artist at heart who enjoys Plein Air landscape painting, and crafting furniture and home accessories from wood. I also enjoy working on my restored ’66 VW Bug.

With the current prevalence of digital media, I’m often asked if traditional direct mail is still relevant for nonprofit fundraisers. And despite the constantly changing digital landscape, the answer is yes — it’s definitely relevant. When I was in college, beepers were all the rage and cell phones weren’t even in existence. In the past decade, we’ve seen phones evolve from “just a phone” to complex mini computers. Who knows what the next communications development will be?

Here in Hagerstown, Maryland, like in many small towns, we are close to our friends, neighbors and co-workers. We’re familiar with each other, so communicating is easy and straightforward.

Can you say the same about your donor contact management? Unlike our small community, your donor base is huge and diverse. And even though you want to know your donors personally, the sheer numbers make it really hard. It’s important though, to get to know your donors as well as possible and manage your contact with them carefully at every opportunity.

I’m not sure about you, but after the sub-zero temperatures and the relentless snow that we experienced this winter, I’m happy to see blue skies and the spring flowers blooming outside my office window.

Springtime is about renewal and getting a fresh start. For many nonprofits, it marks the beginning of a new fundraising season. This allows organizations to open the door to new and creative ideas to engage and interact with donors.

So what can you do to impress the new donors you’ll be attracting this spring? To help get the ball rolling, I’ve listed a few ideas: