# Centrepoint launches new Summer donor recruitment campaign

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2003/06/03/centrepoint-launches-new-summer-donor-recruitment-campaign/
- Published: 2003-06-03T23:00:00+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

Centrepoint, the national charity for homeless young people, is testing cold mail
recruitment over the summer for the first time this year, with a new mail pack focusing
on the special needs of homeless teenagers who have suffered abuse at home.
This
approach differs from the past when the charity has found it far more cost-effective
to recruit new donors in the winter, when the needs of the homeless are particularly
obvious because of the cold weather.

The addition of a summer campaign to the annual recruitment programme reflects the
expansion of Centrepoint’s mailing activity, following its withdrawal from face-
to-face recruitment last year.

“Over the last two years we have achieved consistently strong results with our winter
cold mail programme, to the point at which we have now focused on this as our primary
recruitment channel”, says Rachel Brady, Centrepoint’s Direct Marketing Manager.“
However, we’re keen to overcome the restriction of only having winter recruitment
campaigns if at all possible. The needs of the young people we work with certainly
don’t go away over the summer months, it’s just that they’re less obvious to donors
on the street.”

## Advertisement

The test campaign has been developed by charity specialist direct marketing agency
Whitewater, which has been responsible for all of Centrepoint’s direct marketing
fundraising activity for the last two years.

The mailer focuses on Centrepoint’s work with young runaways who have fled their
family home after suffering sexual and physical abuse – one of the most frequent
reasons for young people to become homeless.

Initial testing will involve a selection of lifestyle and consumer lists which have
performed well for the charity in the past.

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