What Works on Facebook: Old Fashioned Direct Mail Offers

It is great to see that the techniques we learned in direct mail seem to apply in the digital space too.

I reckon that in direct marketing, nothing has actually changed in how the 'offer' works. Just we deliver it differently with different technology.

Soi Dog Foundation - a dog pound in Phuket, Thailand - is leading the way in Facebook direct marketing. Raising nearly $8,000,000 through Facebook so far AND achieving amazing advocacy goals they are one to watch.

Here I have just a few of the 'direct mail on Facebook ads' and posts they run.

1. The Soi Dog Facebook page today. No messing, straight in with a strong offer.

2. Classic strong headline, 'person' in need looking straight to camera, clear offer of what you can do.

3. And again, strong headline, 'person' in need looking straight to camera, clear offer of what you can do.

4. Make the donor the hero. Literally.

5. Consequences of not giving made very clear. Great before and after imagery. If you dig through archives you'll find an ad like this somewhere in a magazine, direct mail or newspaper in the 1960s.

6. Classic two step. Get a lead and convert them. Not dissimilar to the long running 'improve your memory' and 'free investment guide' that appeared in newspapers 1950s-1980s.

Zooming in on the live Facebook page, I noticed 1,008 people reached within 31 minutes of posting this. Amazing.

If you are serious about raising money online, read the old stuff - all of Mal Warwick's old direct mail stuff, Ogilvy on Advertising and more.

Three Secrets to Fundraising on Facebook

Fundraising on Facebook - including regular giver (sustainer) acquisition works.

Join me and find out how!

Americas edition: Monday 7th September. 4pm New York, 1pm LA (This will be 9pm UK, 10pm Paris/Milan/Brussels and Tuesday 8th September. 8am NZ, 6am(!) Australia East Coast)   YES, I WILL ATTEND (America edition)  OR

European (and Americas) edition: Thursday 10 September 2pm UK, 3pm Paris/Milan/Brussels and 9am New York, 6am LA.  11pm in Sydney!   YES, I WILL ATTEND (American and Europe edition)

In a nutshell Social media fundraising has been a bandwagon for a long time, with no gold on the wagon for most charities.  Outside of emergencies, most charities have struggled to raise ongoing funds through social media. Well, we have made it work - and I will show you how.  With cost per acquisitions comparable to the best channels when you want regular givers (sustainers) my three secrets should be able to help you turn 'likes' into dollars.  But it won't work for everyone. Attending this webinar will help you decide if getting donors through Facebook is for you, and if it is - some great tips for making it work.  If you are already picking up 200+ regular givers (sustainers) from Facebook every month, you probably already know the secrets - but you are welcome to come! Why should you come along? Because you have a brilliant job and you care about your  organisation. And I think you can raise more money by attending this webinar. And I bet you want to find a good alternative source of regular givers (sustainers). But for me, I want to help more people like you. I really think it is going to be mutually beneficial - but I am not alone in thinking that! "Taking part in Sean's webinar helped us focus our thinking around our strategy for social media and put in place simple building blocks and principles for fundraising through Facebook." -   Duncan Batty, Director of Fundraising Sheffield Hospitals Charity But ultimately - I am going to talk to you about some of the key lessons that I learned through some incredibly successful regular giving donor acquisition campaigns.   Perhaps with some of the things I share with you, someone somewhere within your organisation will say 'we do that'.  The question is - how well do you monetise campaigns and Facebook posts? If you are already getting 200 or so regular givers every month, plus maybe a thousand from every big campaign through Facebook, then you maybe don't need to come - but if you do I may well ask you some questions! What will you be seeing and hearing? In the webinar I plan to showcase a truly amazing example - that is repeatable - of making fundraising work on Facebook! Real results, real creative and real insights. In fact, the most frank data set you have probably ever seen.  One of the case studies I will share gets 200-400 regular givers a month from our 'bread and butter' programme. They also run occasional campaigns, and just picked up nearly 4000 regular givers and well over US$1.5m / £1m / €1.4m from one campaign over three months.   The campaign actually reached beyond social media, to include phone, email and more, but Facebook is at the heart of the success.  I will show you what this charity does to acquire thousands of regular givers at profit and tens of thousands of donors - every year. And then I will share the three 'secrets' they tap into to make it work every month. Americas edition: Monday 7th September. 4pm New York, 1pm LA (This will be 9pm UK, 10pm Paris/Milan/Brussels and Tuesday 8th September. 8am NZ, 6am(!) Australia East Coast)   YES, I WILL ATTEND (America edition)  OR European (and Americas) edition: Thursday 10 September 2pm UK, 3pm Paris/Milan/Brussels and 9am New York, 6am LA.  11pm in Sydney!   YES, I WILL ATTEND (American and Europe edition)   Thank you for being part of this exciting new venture, I will speak to you very soon, Sean