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In response to
"How early is too early to be receiving membership renewal notices? I have one due July 1st and have been receiving reminders for about 2 months now."
by
Meg
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And they actually responded...although they answered more concerns than I actually raised so I'm sure it's a canned response.
Posted by
Meg (aka Mojave)
Mar 29 '13, 10:11
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Thank you for writing to us.
Because NMAI memberships are linked to a quarterly magazine subscription, the first renewal notice is sent out about 90 days prior to the membership expiration month. This is also a practice of the magazine industry and most membership organizations. Sending out a notice this early ensures that there will be no gap in receiving issues of American Indian. We allow 60 days to pass before mailing the second renewal notice to give members enough time to respond to this first renewal notice. If no response is received before the time window closes, a follow-up notice is sent and the process continues with a third, fourth, fifth, and sixth notice.
Our analysis has shown that a donor typically receives three mailings before they renew. This is consistent with trends in direct mail fundraising programs at other similar non-profit organizations. We even see an uptick in responses to the 1st and 2nd notices when the 3rd notice is mailed, as if donors are holding on to the earlier notices�which have been set aside, forgotten, etc.�and then respond to the reminder from the 3rd notice by mailing a gift with the reply form from the earlier notices. (Interestingly, this also happens to a lesser extent with email notices.)
In the end, the more notices we send, the more donors who renew. The fewer notices we send, the fewer donors who renew. The funds raised through the additional notices more than cover the cost of sending those notices, resulting in a net gain financially for the museum. And when members respond to an email before the first paper notice is mailed, the expense of mailing a paper notice is eliminated altogether.
I just want to assure you that we are not deliberately wasting resources, but merely following industry best practices for membership fundraising. Also, if you renewed today, your membership would still be extended through July2014 � we certainly don�t penalize donors for renewing early.
Thank you very much for your goodwill and direct support of the museum�s programs as a Charter Member since 2001.
With kind regards,
David Saunders
David Saunders, Member Services
Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian
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