Insights from Senior Citizens Inc. Vice President of Development on Successful Holiday Marketing Campaigns
Senior Citizens Inc., a nonprofit based in Savannah, Georgia, dedicated to helping people age successfully, has partnered with United Direct Solutions to enhance their holiday donor outreach. In this interview, Vice President of Development Anne Cordeiro shares valuable insights into the nonprofit’s successful holiday campaigns and offers tips for other organizations looking to strengthen donor connections during the giving season.
What is Senior Citizens Inc. and what services does it provide?
Senior Citizens Inc. was founded in 1959 as a community-driven initiative where neighbors helped neighbors. It started with a local businessman who saw older adults in his neighborhood struggling to get enough food. He and some friends began by delivering 13 bagged lunches. Today, we deliver about 1,600 meals daily across four counties in coastal Georgia, and we’ve recently expanded to three more counties adding another 300 – 400 meals per day. Beyond that, we also offer adult day health services and lifelong learning, through The Learning Center, which we describe as college for adults without the high tuition or final exams, and more.
Why is it so important to reach donors during the holiday season and what have been the past results?
About 75% of our annual donations come in during the holidays, so it’s an important time for us. Initially, we focused solely on direct mail, but now we’ve evolved into a multichannel approach that includes social media, Google ads and email outreach. While online giving has grown, most of our donations still come from mail, likely because of our donor demographic. We’ve also seen an increase in donor-advised fund gifts, which has been a nice boost.
We sent about 1,700 letters and 760 donors responded with gifts totaling over $125,000, which resulted in a response rate of 45%. The entire project cost around $8,500, which included two mailings and an online package to promote the campaign.
What is the timing of your direct mail campaigns?
The first holiday mailing is sent by October 25, well before Thanksgiving so it doesn’t get mixed in with the holiday rush, and a second mailing is sent on December 1 to ensure it reaches recipients before the end of the year.
How do you make your campaign stand out?
Our holiday campaign focuses on special Thanksgiving meal donations for Meals on Wheels, ensuring recipients feel supported and cared for during this meaningful time of year. To add a personal and emotional touch, we include holiday placemat templates that donors can color or write messages on and send back. It’s been incredibly touching to receive many of these often decorated by children or grandchildren of donors, which brings a special warmth to the campaign.
How do you use emotional storytelling in your holiday outreach?
We always feature a story in the letters to create that emotional connection. For example, last year we wrote about Willie, one of our recipients. In the first letter, we shared how much he looked forward to the knock from his Meals on Wheels volunteer, and in the second letter we talked about his family – his children and grandchildren to paint a fuller picture. We also make sure the story is consistent across all our platforms with the same information on social media ads, on our website, and in our Google ads. This kind of storytelling really makes a difference in helping donors connect with the people they’re supporting.
At the same time, we balance the story with the important details about our programs and why we need donations. We sprinkle bits of the story throughout, just enough to make that emotional connection while still conveying our mission. We focus on messages of hope like Willie’s journey after his stroke and his improvement since then. This year’s story is about Mary, who had a series of heart attacks – we want donors to see the resilience of the people we help, and how their support makes a real difference in their lives.
Do you personalize your donation requests, and how do you encourage donors to give more?
Yes, in each letter we include two donation amounts: “X” is the amount the donor gave last time, and “Y” is a slightly higher amount to encourage them to give more. For instance, we’ll say, “If you donate X dollars, it will provide this much help, but if you donate Y dollars, it will make an even bigger impact” with an example. This shows donors the tangible results of both amounts, and it’s an effective way to encourage a bit of an increase in their giving, though we also remind donors that support is appreciated year-round.
We also repeat the “X” and “Y” amounts on the reply card, so it’s fresh in their minds when they make their final decision. And we always provide a line for them to write in another amount if they prefer. It’s a gentle, subtle way to inspire larger donations without making people feel pressured.
How do you track engagement and donations from these campaigns?
We track both the donations and engagement metrics like leads, clicks and even non-monetary actions like returning colored placemats. While the main goal is to raise funds, we also view engagement as a key metric for future outreach.
Do you have any advice for other nonprofits trying to reach donors during the holidays?
One tip I would give is to include a community leader’s signature, like we do with the executive director. Even if you can’t sign each letter by hand, there are tools that allow you to use a digital signature that looks authentic. It helps make the communication feel more personal, and donors respond well to that.
Another piece of advice is to avoid long paragraphs. People don’t read things from top to bottom anymore – we’re skimmers. Use bold text, underline key points and don’t be afraid to make it look a little messy, like a handwritten note. Think about how we write personal notes today: we circle things, draw arrows, or add stars next to important details. Incorporating these informal touches can make your letter stand out and feel more genuine.
To learn more or donate to Senior Citizens Inc. please visit seniorcitizensinc.org/holiday.
Contact United Direct Solutions to learn how our team can assist in achieving your holiday fundraising goal by streamlining the process and maximizing both engagement and campaign results.