I’m an unabashed direct marketer. Turned fundraiser. Or if we’re being pedantic, direct response fundraiser.
I live and die by results. It’s why (I think) our clients like working with us. No fluff, no window dressing. Just out-and-out obsession with producing great results.
Facetiously, it’s in part why I never really got events. When I started fundraising and met event fundraisers, I felt uneasy when told that their event didn’t raise much cash but generated a “heap of awareness,” and “was great for stewarding some major donor prospects.”
Squirm.
Seriously?
You’re a fundraiser. I’d accept this drivel if the event really was the conduit to asking for a big gift (as opposed to what was cobbled together for a board report) or actually raised a shedload of income, but short of that, what a waste of time.
Fast forward several years (cough, cough) and here I am running a digital and direct response agency that, amongst others things, helps clients drive income from events.
Oh, the irony!
The role of direct marketing
For some time, I’d worked on the (incorrect) belief that events were a law unto themselves. I really had little idea on how people found themselves at the local 10k run, or the glitzy gala dinner.
And then suddenly we were thrust into the events sphere when a client asked us to give them a hand recruiting some participants for a local walk.
“Sure, we can do that.” Gulp. Enter panic mode. How will we do that?
After peeling away the mystery and allure it suddenly dawned on me that really this was all about asking individuals (real people) to do something. Hmmm, let me think. Have I done that before?
Dear fundraising events, meet direct marketing.
Over the past couple of years we’ve recruited thousands of participants online for charity walks, driven enormous growth for a mature peer-to-peer event, increased net income for a golf weekend, helped deliver inspiring content for gala balls.
And now I’m hooked.
All of these insights, successes and wins driven by what was right in front of me:
Get the point?
Direct marketing plays a role. An increasingly large one when it comes to developing successful events.
Tying it all together
We’ve managed to combine the science of direct marketing with the intricacies of fundraising events. Galas, challenges, peer-to-peer.
We’re continually understanding what it should cost to recruit a participant for a month-long walking challenge. The sweet spot for number of videos to use for a welcome and registration cycle. The number of opens and clicks we can expect from that electronic direct mail renewal stream. And how much net income all of this can deliver? Let’s face it, it’s all about the net.
I had my head in the sand for a long time. It’s well and truly extricated now, and I’m making up for it.
My name is Jonathon Grapsas. And I really like events. I might even add events fundraiser to my skills on LinkedIn.
Jonathon Grapsas is a fundraising development director for the Pareto Group, a global fundraising agency focused on data-driven direct response. Jonathon was previously the regional director for Pareto Fundraising in North America. He currently works with charities all around the globe, including the BC Cancer Foundation, WWF Canada and the Canadian Red Cross. You can contact Jonathon at jonathon.grapsas@paretofundraising.com
