Public TV FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions on the Future of Public Television Membership Development
As we plan strategies and budgets with our public television clients, a number of commonly asked questions regularly surface. Here are a few of them with our thoughts on the issues:
How do we grow our membership base in a weakening PBS environment and saturated market?
WNET's Bill Baker may have said it best when he challenged the industry to play to its strengths. "The explosion of specialty cable and satellite channels is giving us a run for our money, but we should neither fear nor panic ... from challenge we have mined our great equity, building a well-defined base of passionately loyal supporters."
There are steps we can take immediately. Baker suggests, and we agree, we should pay renewed attention to the older demographic, which has been largely shunned by commercial television. "They are the people with financial resources who have shown their enthusiasm for supporting the kind of programming that only public television provides." Further, we agree with Baker that we must continue to strengthen our ties to our local communities. When the nation entered the September 11th crisis, viewers switched to public TV for their children and for information they could trust.
We see two opportunities. First, most everyone agrees the PBS new fall season is stronger than it has been in the past few years and should bring many new and traditional viewers to PTV. Second, direct mail is a medium uniquely qualified to attract a response from an older, educated, involved audience who are being increasingly disenfranchised by other media.
DMW possesses the proprietary analytical tools and wealth of creative ideas to find and develop relationships with new members.
How can we better integrate our direct mail, telemarketing, on-air and on-line fundraising efforts to maximize revenue as well as strengthen our relationship with our donors?
We believe effective membership programs carefully balance fundraising media to maximize return on investment and to communicate a consistent message to donors. To that end and using past performance data, we would formulate a matrix with the divisions of your membership department and their vendors to ensure all are working together to adopt shared goals and a common theme. Our role as objective "outsiders" would be to actively build mutual understanding and expectations among all the players on your fundraising team.
How can we improve the retention rates of our on-air acquired donors who are more transactional and premium driven?
First, accept that not all premium-acquired donors have the same transactional relationship with your station. Some premium offers such as Ken Burns' 'New York' video documentary reflect a wholly different approach than that of Suze Orman tapes or James Brown dolls. We suggest that some programs are merely "one-shots" in which the full lifetime value of the acquired member must be realized with the initial offer of the premium ... without the expectation of a renewal. However, we also suggest that many other premium offers that are closely tied to core programming do generate new members who will renew provided they are thanked appropriately and the premium is positioned as a 'welcome gift'. We explore ways to improve clients' communication streams to new donors early in their member relationship.
How do we determine the proper number of DM/TM/EM contacts to our file to avoid over-soliciting our donors and jeopardizing our relationships with them?
Research and our own anecdotal experience clearly indicate that the quality and timing of communication with members rather than set quantities determine the "proper" number of solicitation efforts. Is the station overstating the need rather than acknowledging each member's partnership? Are direct mail and telemarketing campaigns, for example, competing rather than complementing each other with common themes? As a first step in determining how many donor contacts will yield maximum results in terms of revenue and relationship building, we suggest you review the content, timing and results for a minimum of eight DM/TM/EM campaigns - roughly the past two fiscal years. Following analysis of past data, we suggest carefully designing tests at each giving level to determine at what point cumulative and average gifts, giving frequency, and response rates are optimum. After all, when donors decide you are over-soliciting, they will let you know by not giving!
We sincerely believe you cannot communicate too often with your members. It is what you ask and how you state the case for support that determines your relationship with donors.
How do we develop a strong case for additional gifts for donors accustomed to giving annual membership amounts?
While many consider their renewal an annual "membership fee", we believe a larger percentage of members welcome additional giving opportunities provided:
- The appeal is "guilt-free." Active members have fulfilled their responsibility by giving once during the year. Additional appeals should enhance the relationship by saying "thank-you" and then give the member an opportunity to give again.
- The appeal is engaging. The formats, messages and designs must reflect the taste and style of the public broadcaster, but not be predictable. Concepts include greeting cards, management memos, and even specially designed tax receipts.
- The appeal deepens the relationship. Any chance to communicate information about the station or to discuss shared values with a member is a chance to ask for an additional gift.
How can we improve our upgrading efforts?
The key to upgrading members lies in:
- Clearly articulating the value of your service and defining benefits to the member and his/her community as a result of individual support
- Identifying prospective donors in each donor category - and various levels within those categories - who would be most receptive to your message and therefore likely to increase support
Looking at a station's donor pyramid, we would segment donors according to longevity and frequency of giving and then design incentives and communications appropriate to each identified segment.
Our recommendations on giving incentives and benefits of making a commitment at the highest levels would be contingent on a review of your current upgrading strategies and station philosophy.
How can we as an annual membership organization grow our monthly sustainer program, especially when our "product" (public television) is something that viewers can receive for free?
We'd like to challenge the premise that your 'product' is public television. Instead we suggest that all of a station's direct marketing be focused on selling not programs but a personal relationship with the station. While it's true that, as a public broadcaster, you 'give away your product', the fact is a relationship with the community public television station and program producer is of great value. All donors control their level and frequency of giving to suit their needs without regard to the giving model. We suggest that there are a significant number of donors, who if invited in an appropriate way, would join the sustainer program as a way to enjoy a closer, more valuable ongoing relationship with a station.
What kind of agency/client relationship is most effective?
We have discovered that the most successful client/agency relationships are grounded in a shared understanding of and commitment to each client's goals. This requires full and ongoing collaboration rooted in our respect for what you are trying to accomplish. After acquiring hundreds of thousands of members and raising tens of millions of dollars for stations over thirty years, DMW understands public TV and it's relationship with members.
From the initial situation analysis, market and competitive intelligence, and opportunity assessment, through strategy development, execution, and analysis, our "style" may be described as a combination of client/agency interaction and performance-based learning and refinement. Few agencies have the depth and breadth of direct marketing expertise resident at DMW. Leveraging our strengths and our clients' specific business acumen has been the key to successful working relationships.
In practice, DMW's philosophy is to provide program management while, at the same time, including our clients in all stages of the process. Account teams are responsible for a client's direct marketing programs, including day-to-day management of each campaign, and serve as the focal point for all interactions. Critical players on the team, along with account services, include our strategy/research, database, and interactive groups, as well as creative, production, and media representatives.
Perhaps the most significant factor in our relationship with public television clients is reflected in the backgrounds and composite experience of the agency's senior executives. All of DMW's senior executives have spent extensive time as clients. They bring a strong awareness of member value, the need to fully leverage that value, and eliminate internal and external barriers that can impede successful membership development programs. For more than thirty years we have believed that public television is a national treasure and that members are our most important constituency.