Improve Direct Mail Performance Using Behavioral Science & Personality Traits with Kevin Schulman

19/11/2025 46 min Episodio 211
Improve Direct Mail Performance Using Behavioral Science & Personality Traits with Kevin Schulman

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Episode Synopsis

Fewer than five of charity: water’s donors wrote a check during a 75,000-piece direct mail test, yet direct mail STILL lifted revenue by 1.5-2%!Behavioral science expert and DonorVoice founder Kevin Schulman is here to talk about why traditional direct mail metrics fall short, why your “non-check-writers” may be your biggest missed opportunity, and how personality-based messaging can transform donor engagement.You’ll hear the inside story of a charity: water experiment that tested postcards vs. full letters, QR codes on the outer envelope, and personality trait targeting based on the Big Five framework. Kevin and I also dig into measuring donor commitment, what predicts retention, and how some nonprofits are increasing their first-year monthly donor retention by 6-9 percentage points simply by adjusting their communication volume. If you’re rethinking how direct mail fits into your world, this episode will reshape how you design, segment, and evaluate your campaigns.Resources & LinksConnect with Kevin on LinkedIn and learn more about DonorVoice on their website.Check out the book I’m currently reading, Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect, by Will Guidara.Already have a monthly giving program? The Mini Monthly Giving Mastermind starts in January and is just for you. Register now for the FREE Monthly Giving Summit on February 25-26th, the only virtual event where nonprofits unite to master monthly giving, attract committed believers, and fund the future with confidence. Let's Connect! Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show! My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good. Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

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