You’re probably aware of the public perception that a non-profit needs to stretch its dollars as far as they will go. Donors will support a non-profit for a cause they believe in, but only if they’re convinced the organization will be spending their money wisely and effectively. For this reason, many non-profits prefer digital efforts at outreach because the average consumer doesn’t consider the research and marketing dollars behind them. However, a direct mail campaign could still be your best solution.
You don’t want people thinking that you are wasting money on postage and you need to avoid pouring unnecessary money into postage. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to reduce the real cost of your direct mailings; depending on the size of your organization, you could save thousands of dollars each year by making smarter choices with how you send mail. We’ll tackle the issue of perception in a moment.
Plan Your Campaigns Carefully
You can avoid unnecessary postal fees if you take the time to put a little thought into the logistics of your direct mail campaign.
Use an Indicia
An indicia is a rectangle shaped mark that shows postage prepayment for an authorized sender (you, in this case). Used in lieu of a stamp, an indicia shows the permit information used for sending your letter, postcard or envelope. In order to use an indicia, you must mail a minimum of 200 pieces or the entire weight of the pieces must equal at least 50 pounds.
Guidelines for an Indicia
You must place the indicia above and to the right of the delivery address and it must be clearly legible with font no smaller than 4 pt. These four lines in an indicia give the non-profit information you’ve paid for to the USPS:
Savings From an Indicia
The savings you’ll get from using an indicia are fairly large, though they vary depending on various factors. For example, a #10 envelope with an indicia weighing less than 3.3 ounces will ship for as little as $0.136 per piece. If you chose to ship the same envelope first class, your cost would be $1.13. In the end, the indicia saved you 88%, which is nothing to scoff at if your non-profit is pumping out direct mail at the 200-piece rate required to obtain the indicia in the first place. If you multiply that over a year’s worth of mailings, the savings get even more significant.
There are other ways to save with an indicia as well. If you send at least 150 pieces to the same zip code each year, the USPS agrees to charge you a still lower rate. If your non-profit is more regional than local, consider the fact that if you send those 150 pieces to different zip codes all beginning with the same three digits, your rate will be just $0.172 per piece.
With savings like these, most non-profits find that it’s usually worth the extra effort to get their own indicia or use the indicia from a mailing house. An added bonus (this is where we keep our promise to tackle the wasted postage/perception issue) is that use of an indicia not only cements your non-profit status in the minds of your potential donors, but it gives the impression that you’ve either foregone or saved a ton of money on reaching them by mail.
Put It All Together and Save Money
You can meld most of these suggestions to craft the perfect mailing solution for your non-profit, so take a look at all the different aspects of your direct mail campaign and see what your cost savings could be. It will prove worthwhile to get acquainted with the rules and regulations, so be sure to plan your campaigns with postage in mind. Not only will your efforts free more money to go towards your cause, they’ll help convince your donor base that you’re getting the most mileage you can from their donations, making them more likely to donate in the future.
Boingo offers design help or full service solutions for your direct mail campaign and can even organize and automate your direct mailings so you don’t waste time at the post office. Contact us today and see why Boingo is right for you.