Comment 4 - Arnold & Tapp & Cacija's Article on Direct Marketing

The article, “Direct Marketing in Nonprofit Services” elaborates on the importance of nonprofits using direct marketing as a way to reach their audiences, to increase profit and revenue, and to gain long-term relationships faster. This article also emphasized the importance of how direct marketing is now becoming “a vital strategic and tactical component” in our day in age in order to build relationships, to improve the effectiveness of fundraising and “overall marketing approach of US nonprofits.” In addition, Arnold and Tapp investigate the extent to which non-profit arts organizations use direct marketing and the effect this has on their business performance. The research being showcased in this article reveals that both the size of the organization and the extent of formal procedures in the organization play a significant role in the extent to which the organization allocates resources to its marketing effort. In other words, the article is stating that more unique marketing techniques tend to be the ones that dedicate more resources to their marketing efforts. Some of the most broad range of direct marketing are examples of direct mail, magazine or newspaper advertisements, publicity videos, and telephone solicitation. Moreover, the article also states that season-ticket sales are the best bet in order to acquire more profit and long-term members to the organization. Another point that stood out to me in this article was that keeping in contact with customers is crucial for customers to identify with the organization and for them to stay loyal in the long run.

Next, “Fundraising in the Context of Nonprofit Strategic Marketing” demonstrates how nonprofits should use theoretical fundraising models and generic fundraising performance indicators to give customers the sense of success the organization is earning with their help. The article implies that doing so will create even longer relationships with clients because they are seeing the success of the organization for themselves. This article states that nonprofits need resources to achieve and grow organizational goals and fulfill their mission statements. There are two fundamental categories that are crucial to the performance of nonprofit organizations such as financial resources (revenues from products and services) and human resources (volunteers and employees.) A key idea that was demonstrated in this article was that fundraising is not a request for money but is an exchange of values that meets the donor's needs being the establishment of long term relationships.