January 15, 2008 — In the thrifty world of nonprofits, every penny counts. That’s why nonprofit organizations value direct marketing. In 2007, every dollar that membership organizations spent on direct marketing yielded a return on investment of $14.47 — and that figure is only going to rise through 2012, according to the newly released Direct Marketing Association (DMA) report “Direct Marketing Facts & Figures in the Nonprofit Sector.”
“Overall, this report is valuable for those in the nonprofit direct marketing community because it shows where this important segment was, where it is today, and where it’s headed in the near future,” DMA Research Manager Michelle Tiletnick said. “Any organization can easily benchmark its direct marketing efforts against this DMA report.”
According to Tiletnick, this 144-page report is divided into nine chapters, including an overview chapter on the nonprofit sector, and eight chapters categorized by advertising media type: catalog, direct mail, insert media, commercial email, Internet marketing, print media, broadcast media, and telephone marketing. Also, nearly 100 graphs help readers benchmark their own direct marketing expenditures, ROI, donations, employment, and employment.
Some of the key findings from this report include:
· Nonprofit advertising expenditures are expected to grow 2.4 percent annually from 2007 to 1012, while DM-driven sales are expected to grow 6.8 percent annually.
· Nonprofit organizations’ catalog advertising expenditures are expected to reach $485.9 million in 2012.
· Conversely, DM-driven nonprofit employment is expected to decrease 1.4 percent annually from 2007 to 2012.
· Of the nonprofit divisions — which includes educational services, museums, religious organizations, and membership organizations — educational services sees the lowest ROI, at $9.38 per dollar spent in 2007.
· However, educational services are projected to experience the greatest increase in DM-driven catalog sales, at 7.6 percent a year.
· Membership organizations will see the highest ROI in 2012, projected at $17.04 for every dollar spent.
· Museums, botanical gardens, and zoos are expected to see the largest increase in email advertising expenditures, with an annualized rate of 24.1 percent.
· DM spending by religious organizations that market to businesses will spike in coming years, with email expenditures increasing 51.8 percent each year, and Internet spending climbing 45.8 percent.
· Religious organizations spent the most of all four nonprofit sectors on direct mail advertising in 2007, at $1.3 billion, and on insert media, at $29.3 million.
· Educational services and religious organizations tied for the top spot in 2007 in Internet advertising expenditures, at $161.6 million each.
“Direct Marketing Facts & Figures in the Nonprofit Sector” costs $79 for DMA members and $149 for non-members and is now available for download at DMA’s Bookstore. To purchase, click here.
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