The direct mail, door drops and household deliveries showcase
Congratulations! You’ve just found the world’s best and biggest collection of fundraising direct mail, right here on sofii.org. There are more than 160 detailed case histories and articles here for you to learn from, crib from, adapt or copy. And lots more besides. Enjoy!
Click here for the full contents and index for SOFII’s direct mail showcase.
The summary report of the Commission on the Donor Experience into direct mail fundraising can be found here.
Ontario Nature: ‘Ruby the hummingbird’ mailing
by SOFII
This unusual example of direct mail tells a complex, moving story in an imaginative and very engaging way.
Read moreHarvard University: how Harvard got its name. Major gift fundraising in the seventeenth century.
by SOFII
The examples in this exhibit are almost 400 years old, yet it would seem that we are still making the same mistakes today when it comes to major gift fundraising.
Read moreHelp the Aged: ‘you have this gift’ direct mail pack
by SOFII
Both the text on the envelope and the incentive in this classic direct mail pack from the 1980s have been copied frequently.
Read moreHow I wrote it: Jules Brown talks about the Women’s Aid fundraising letter
by Fergal Byrne & Jules Brown
In Fergal Byrne’s seventh interview with leading fundraising copywriters, Jules Brown from New Zealand explains why he begins with a case study. ‘I immerse myself in the case study. For me, it forms the guts of what fundraising direct mail is all about.’ Click here to see the powerful case history he used in the featured letter that he wrote for Women’s Aid in Ireland.
Read moreHow I wrote it: Alan Sharpe’s War Child fundraising letter.
by Fergal Byrne & Alan Sharpe
In this, the sixth of a series of interviews with leading fundraising writers, Alan Sharpe talks with Fergal Byrne about a fundraising letter written for Canadian charity War Child in 2011. During this conversation, Alan reveals the thinking that went into his letter and what really matters in making a letter a success.
Read moreDr Barnardo’s Homes: how the death of Carrots led to a powerful slogan, from 1866
by SOFII
The death of a lonely young boy led Dr Barnardo to declare that the children’s homes that bore his name should never, ever close their doors to any child. A great example of fine writing combined with sincerity.
Read moreHow I wrote it: the Starlight Children’s Foundation emergency appeal
by Fergal Byrne & Sean Triner
In this, the fourth of a series of interviews with leading fundraising writers, Sean Triner talks with Fergal Byrne about a fundraising appeal letter he wrote on spec for the Starlight Children’s Foundation, Australia, in 2009. In this conversation Sean tells Fergal how he wrote the letter and what really matters in making sure this kind of letter is a success.
Read moreDeerfield Academy: Bruce Barton’s fundraising letters from 1960, letter 22
by SOFII
It has been a pleasure and a privilege to bring you all these letters from that master of direct mail letter-writing, Bruce Barton. But, as the infamous ‘they’ say, ‘all good things must come to an end’. Yes, this is the last SOFII has. But, of course, as they also say, ‘the glass is half full’, so maybe there are more out there that will find their way to SOFII.
Read moreDeerfield Academy: Bruce Barton’s fundraising letters from 1957 and 1958, letters 20 and 21
by SOFII
Bruce Barton’s letters are all about the donors’ achievements, so are welcome news packed with flattery and tales of selflessness and fine motives.
Read moreDeerfield Academy: Bruce Barton’s fundraising letters from 1956 and 1957, letters 18 and 19
by SOFII
There’s no trickery in these letters, no artifice, no phoney PSs. Just direct, honest talking put in such an endearing and charming way as to become irresistible for those recipients who share the writer’s enthusiasm for Deerfield Academy and his passionate belief that it should give the best education possible to its students.
Read moreDeerfield Academy: Bruce Barton’s fundraising letters from 1955 and 1956, letters 16 and 17
by SOFII
A four-year gap between Bruce Barton's letters for Deerfield Academy in no way diminished his exceptional capacity for penning a powerful appeal. Read, reflect and recycle, for there is real treasure here.
Read moreDeerfield Academy: Bruce Barton’s fundraising letters from 1951, letter 15
by SOFII
With all the usual captivation and craftsmanship of a classic Bruce Barton letter, this provides a very valuable lesson in donor care from 60 years ago that is just as relevant today.
Read more
