We’ve all heard it before: “Why should I mail premiums to my file? Our cause is compelling, and our donors don’t need premiums as an incentive to give.”

My answer usually goes something like this…

“That may be true for a core group of donors, but what about everyone else? What is your plan to recapture lapsed names? What about the donors who are deciding between you and another cause? Also, what is your plan for acquisition? As the universe of available acquisition names continues to shrink, how are you going to find enough names to mail to bring on the new donors that you need to grow your file and counter attrition?

Enter . . . the premium.

We like to say that premiums act like a “stick of dynamite” in all these scenarios – increasing response rates and overall program performance well beyond a standard appeal. They will help you reactivate more donors, keep more existing donors, and allow you to mail less acquisition and bring more new names onto your file.

So what kind of premiums should you mail?

There is not one simple answer to that question. It depends on your budget, the quality of the names you are mailing, and the other packages you are mailing around the same time period.

If you are not already including premiums in your mail plan, start off by testing some bundling items in your control. Examples would include decals, address labels, notepads, and cards. We find that bundling – done correctly – will increase your response rates and net revenue.

If you are already using premiums, take a look at what you are including and see what other premiums you could include to complement your control. If you are mailing cards, you could include additional stationery products like address labels, note sheets, gift tags, gift bags, or gift wrap. If you are mailing a calendar, you might want to test including calendar reminder stickers or even an additional calendar. Again, we find that bundling additional premiums will increase your response rates and net revenue.

If you really want to push the proverbial envelope, you may want to test a high-end premium, like a tote bag. We’ve done some recent testing of a nylon tote bag versus a control card package in renewal, lapsed, and acquisition. The results were through the roof, and even though the tote was more expensive, it netted the client much more money and significantly reduced the cost-to-acquire.

Of course, there is a point of diminishing returns when you mail premiums. You have to find the sweet spot, and that is why we would always recommend a methodical testing strategy.

Have questions about premiums? Let us know. We’ll empower you to leverage the power of premiums!

Jen Harker is VP of Creative Strategy & Innovation at Innovairre Communications, which supports more than 500 nonprofit organizations around the world. For more information about fundraising using premiums, contact us at Answers@Innovairre.com. Subscribe to our newsletter here. Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.