How including a gift handle with the corresponding impact described in a fundraising email affects revenue
The Navigators
Experiment Summary
Ended On: 04/22/2024
The Navigators are running their bi-annual Eagle Lake Campaign to raise money for this kids’ camp that operates every summer. In the kickoff email of this campaign, they wanted to test how including gift handles in the email would affect donor conversion rate. Each gift amount described what that amount would provide for Eagle Lake.
This experiment idea came from their direct mail piece which included “tickets” for people to purchase. Each ticket was for a different amount (same as the email) and described what each level of ticket would provide for the kids at Eagle Lake.
To keep the language consistent between the email and the donation page, the treatment donation page also had the gift handles in the body copy.
Research Question
We believe that including gift handles with the corresponding impact described for potential donors to Eagle Lake will achieve more revenue because we’re providing clear, tangible examples of how different donation amounts will be used .
Design
Results
| Treatment Name | Revenue per Visitor | Relative Difference | Confidence | Average Gift | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C: | Control | $0.02 | $72.12 | ||
| T1: | Treatment #1 | $0.03 | 41.1% | 82.0% | $119.86 |
This experiment was validated using 3rd party testing tools. Based upon those calculations, a significant level of confidence was not met so these experiment results are not valid.
Key Learnings
The key learning from this experiment is that including gift handles with the corresponding impact described for potential donors to Eagle Lake can significantly increase revenue. The treatment group saw a 40.2% increase in revenue for all traffic, which indicates that providing clear, tangible examples of how different donation amounts will be used can motivate donors to give more.
However, it’s important to note that the statistical level of confidence was only 82.0%, which is below the generally accepted threshold of 85%. This means that while the results show a positive impact, they are not completely reliable and should not be used for future decision making.
In future experimentation, it would be beneficial to continue testing the inclusion of gift handles and impact descriptions in donation appeals to see if the results can be replicated and validated. Additionally, it may be helpful to investigate other factors that could influence donor behavior and revenue generation to further optimize fundraising efforts for Eagle Lake.