Anthony Nolan Trust uses simulated cord blood in high-value donor appeal
Howard Lake | 7 October 2008 | News
Leukaemia charity The Anthony Nolan Trust has begun a fundraising campaign that targets 3,000 selected high-net-worth supporters using direct mail, telephone and a grand opening event. The charity is seeking funding for the UK’s first charitable cord blood bank and the new Anthony Nolan Cell Therapy Centre that will lead the UK in umbilical cord stem cell research and stem cell transplants.
Brand response agency Tangible Response has planned a series of "interactive mailings", including the use of a simulated cord blood sample. The messages build awareness first without overtly asking for donations.
The first mailing is a straightforward personalised letter from the charity’s chief executive saying thank you for previous support and introducing the new project. The second mailing carries an A4 Proposal Folder with blueprint plans of the new centre building, a list of the complex and expensive medical equipment needed, photographs, case studies and a personal invitation to the Grand Opening with a formal RSVP.
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The final mailing includes the fundraising appeal for high-value donations of £8,000 to £60,000 plus. A distinctive box format contains a fountain pen and laying alongside it a cartridge of red ink representing the small amount of cord blood needed from a new born baby’s umbilical cord for stem cell treatment that could save someone’s life.
Inside the box lid a message in red ink states: ‘A little cord blood could save a life’.
The letter says that the appeal’s organiser would like to contact them personally by telephone to discuss how they could help, and the supporter is invited to use the pen by inserting the red ink cartridge to fill in the ‘please call me’ form enclosed.
Paul Handley, Managing Director of Tangible Response, said: "This is a capital appeal with an incredibly tangible product that supporters can engage with. It’s a prime example of how a mutual relationship can work offering the donor real involvement – in this case, through enabling the charity’s work the supporter can be part of writing the next chapter in medical history."
www.anthonynolan.org.uk
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.