With charities facing a triple-whammy of intense media scrutiny, marketing consent regulation and collapsing response rates, some are predicting that DRTV will be one of the main beneficiaries of the new era of fundraising.
However, the discipline does not come without its own challenges, as there is a danger that charities planning DRTV campaigns will struggle to stand out in a crowded market.
In addition, the fixed cost of full production ads and TV media spend is high and finally, the learning cycle, the time to understand what is working and what is not, is far longer than for other channels.
In response to these issues, fastMAP has created a benchmarking guide, which it claims will help reduce the risk of DRTV failing. It has already won the backing of both the Fundraising Regulator and the Institute of Fundraising.
The guide considers the technical structure of a DRTV ad and the impact that a commercial has on a donor in a holistic way, as well as the likelihood to respond.
Fast.MAP managing director David Cole said: “The evolution of fundraising to a more donor-focused, relationship based activity is to be welcomed and will apply in DRTV too. This important guide is a helpful step in that direction and will support charities to understand the real outcomes of DRTV, how long they may take, and steps to consider to mitigate risk in an expensive fundraising method.”
Macmillan Cancer Support (pictured) has used DRTV for a number of years to promote its World’s Biggest Coffee Morning fundraising event, and is one of the first charities to trial the scheme. The organisation’s acquisition dialogue manager Andrea Jones said: “This guide explains how a new kind of DRTV benchmark measurement can complement live testing to help reduce the risk of DRTV failing. It considers….the impact that advert will have on a donor in an holistic way as well as the likelihood to respond. It provides Macmillan with early indications of an advert’s relative strengths and weaknesses prior to launch.”
Decision Marketing readers can get a free copy of the fast.MAP guide (normal price is £50) at the fast.Map website> Decision Marketing download code FMTV2
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