Maren Bergeson, New Donor Acquisition Manager Development, International Fund for Animal Welfare

I was able to attend a number of lectures spanning different aspects of the direct marketing industry including the following.

• Like Milk and Cookies: Advocacy & Fundraising are a Perfect Pairing – which provided valuable insight and examples of conservation and how it can be brought to the forefront of the donor responsiveness.
• From Zoomers to Boomers: Data-Backed Strategies to Engage and Inspire Donors of all Ages- was interesting insight into what tactics are most appealing to the varied demographics that direct mail gears itself to. Learning new strategies to engage younger donors, such as the use of QR codes and other digital-based tactics show how it is complimentary to the traditional letter-only appeal that makes up the portion of mature donors.
• Troubleshooting a Crisis in Direct Mail Production – While this did not pertain specifically to my role as a fundraiser, it provided information from a production angle on how to maneuver and overcome unforeseen challenges once a campaign has reached the final stages of the direct mail process.
• Making Video Advertising Work for You – This interesting discussion explains and provides examples of the optimization of CRTV, DRTV and web-based video spots including the primary demographics each version tends to be most impactful.
• Donor Privacy + Fundraising: A Discussion Between a Privacy Expert and Fundraisers – As most of my fundraising takes place outside of the US, this was a particularly interesting discussion on the importance of personal information. While GDPR can be limiting in foreign markets, compelling strategies for US based fundraising was also discussed as well as certain success stories based on a donor’s appreciation for the straightforwardness of organizations to provide information in the earliest stages of the acquisition process.

The exhibition hall, as usual, was bountiful with experts willing to discuss my organization’s needs while providing pros and cons of utilizing their techniques. I was personally most intrigued by front and back-end premiums- including discussions on what can be machinable at a mailshop to cut down on costs that come with hand-insertion mailers.

I was also able to obtain samples of unique and eye-catching envelope designs that provided me with ideas of how they can be utilized in our organization.

The mail campaign winners and honorable mailers were also extremely fascinating and spurred ideas of what other organizations have found successful by utilizing techniques like gen-pen and uncommon components aside from the traditional letter and reply device