Faith-based Nonprofit to Employ Cutting Edge Program

to Improve Quality of Donor Outreach

 

KANSAS CITY, MO - Less is more. That’s the new mantra at Lutheran Hour Ministries, where development executives have pledged to deepen relationships with donors by actually mailing them less. To accomplish the goal, the nonprofit Christian outreach ministry has turned to nonprofit database marketing specialist StrategicOne for the analytics and modeling necessary to revamp their communications.  

 

         The Kansas City-based firm has begun work on a groundbreaking predictive model that will show Lutheran Hour Ministries what segment of their database has the greatest propensity to respond, based on several customized variables. This represents a departure from the industry norm of RFM (recency, frequency, monetary amount) modeling that the ministry has traditionally used. The StrategicOne predictive model, which relies on sophisticated regression analysis, offers greater flexibility – and, typically, fewer errors than RFM-based models.

 

            Using the findings from the new model, Lutheran Hour Ministries fundraisers can be guided on variables such as timing, targeting and themes needed to optimize net income. Correspondingly, they can identify those segments of the donor database most likely to be non-responsive. This not only improves efficiency, but minimizes the biggest problem facing nonprofits today: donor fatigue.

 

         Marv Schatz, Director of Ministry Support for Lutheran Hour Ministries, said, "We are blessed by our donors and want to do everything possible to nurture those relationships. The StrategicOne technology shows us how and when to reach out for support. It is the blueprint for the future of fundraising."

 

         Like many nonprofits, LHM mails large numbers of appeals over the course of a year, many going to a substantial portion of the database. That degree of penetration will likely be reduced in favor of a series of specialized appeals tailored to different subsets of the overall donor base. Cost savings from the smaller mailing (or telemarketing) universe can then be invested in new ministry programs.

 

         The new modeling strategy stems from a comprehensive data audit performed by StrategicOne last year.

 

         "We saw distinct trend lines in the analysis that led us to recommend this particular model," said StrategicOne President Mike Rogers. "To their credit, Lutheran Hour Ministries embraced the findings and the need for change – an outcome that will reward both the donor and the ministry."

 

        

 

About StrategicOne

 

StrategicOne, founded in 1997, is a 30-person firm with offices in Kansas City, Lincoln, NE and Washington, D.C. StrategicOne enables non-profit and commercial clients to make better marketing decisions by learning from past donor behaviors, understanding the present and anticipating the future. Such clients include: The Salvation Army, American Red Cross, Lutheran Hour Ministries, Prison Fellowship Ministries, and Concerned Women for America. For more information, visit www.strategic-one.com.