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RKD Group

RKD Group is a notable fundraising and marketing provider to hundreds of various nonprofit organizations. They have creative leadership a team of experts with deep skill sets in direct response marketing.

RKD Group Services

RKD Group is a marketing services provider to hundreds of nonprofit organizations, including hospitals, social service, health, disease research, animal welfare, and faith-based charities. RKD Group’s multichannel approach leverages technology, advanced data science, and award-winning strategic leadership to accelerate net revenue growth.

Lists

RKD Group use the power of data and analytics to hone in on lists with the greatest direct response potential.

Creative

RKD Group's award-winning team’s work will do more than move you, it will move the needle for you.

Analytics

Discover how to turn big data into big results for your fundraising program.

Media

An aggressive acquisition strategy through list and media services target your most ideal prospects.

Direct Mail

Direct response programs thrive through advanced analytics, list segmentation and multivariate testing.

Digital

There’s data behind our digital with actionable insights pulled from every piece of information.

Skills

Locations

Headquarter Information

3400 Waterview Parkway, Richardson, TX 75080, USA
1 800 222 6070

All Locations

Dallas . Lincoln . Ontario . Boston

RKD Group Case Studies

Digital media campaign targets prayer requests

The Seraphic Mass Association (SMA) is dedicated to supporting Capuchin missionaries around the world. They invite ordinary Catholics to participate in the mission work of the Church by their prayers, interest and concern, and financial support for the Capuchin missionaries and the people they serve. RKD had a goal to increase the number of new digital donors acquired for SMA in 2020.

RKD quickly edited our media creative to collect prayer requests for those with health concerns. There was no hard ask associated with the messaging. After submitting a prayer request, the donor was taken to a thank-you page, which gave them the opportunity to “Request a Mass.” This timely message was implemented due to the number of churches closed because of local shelter-in-place orders.

THE RESULTS:

Disaster relief optimizations resulted in:

- 51.01% increase in new donors year over year

- 53.32% year over year increase in mass requests

- 66% of sessions in April led to donations

Multichannel package beats revenue projections

UNHCR is the world’s leading organization aiding and protecting people forced to flee their homes due to violence, conflict, and persecution. It also provides shelter, food, water, medical care, and other life-saving assistance to refugees around the world. They wanted to build a compelling fundraising offer.

RKD Group’s team started this by gaining a deeper understanding of their field program work so they could translate it into a compelling fundraising offer. They chose to launch the cash assistance program for Syrian refugees living in urban areas of Jordan and Lebanon as the primary offer for their initial fundraising campaigns. A multichannel campaign was designed, featuring a distinctive package tailored for the $500+ middle donors.

THE RESULTS:

Multichannel package achieved:

- 7.75% response rate

- $207 average gift

- 80% higher than the net revenue goal

Omnichannel strategy leads to year-over-year program growth

The Salvation Army Northwest Division is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination. Core donors – those who give two or more consecutive years and have the highest likelihood of becoming major donors – were also on the decline. The organization came to us looking for a way to turn this decline around.

RKD implemented an omnichannel strategy that combined data & analytics, creative, direct mail, and digital strategies to generate growth. We worked with the organization to re-establish core donors, remain consistent in the acquisition, and stabilize retention. In the midst of all this, COVID-19 hit. RKD and The Salvation Army Northwest Division immediately pivoted, shifting media spend to focus on COVID-19 response ads, creating a pandemic-focused email campaign, and expedited a new emergency mailing to highlight their efforts throughout the pandemic.

THE RESULTS:

RKD’s omnichannel strategy lead to YOY program results:

- 39% increase in direct mail gross revenue

- 90% lift in digital gross revenue

- 206% rise in new digital donor counts

A digital focus on monthly donors increases revenue

The Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina (The Food Bank) is a nonprofit organization that has provided food for friends and neighbors facing hunger in 34 counties in central and eastern North Carolina for 40 years. Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina was looking for a way to increase the number of sustainers on their file during a busy time of year without jeopardizing one-time revenue.

Our solution was to take an “always-on” approach to a monthly giving ask, by adding more frequent touchpoints about monthly giving options. We began testing this in December by including monthly gift asks in many of the P.S.’s of emails. Although the primary focus was on one-time gifts, they saw early success in acquiring monthly donors through this method.

THE SOLUTION:

An “always-on” approach to sustainer giving brought in:

- 239 new sustainers acquired in December and January

- $12,491 in additional revenue attributed to new sustainers

- 5.8% increase in overall total sustainers

Forming deeper connections with thank-you calls, handwritten notes

City Rescue Mission offers a path back to hope. Instead of indefinite shelter, they offer a clean, safe, temporary place to stay and successful programs and services to help people transform their lives for the better. They saw a large influx of gifts from new and reactivated donors in the fall of 2020. They needed to find a way to thank these donors and invite them into the organization without taxing existing staff resources.

RKD Connect is a solution that allows our partners to outsource thank-you calls and handwritten cards to ensure that every donor feels welcomed, thanked, and affirmed. Beginning in November, City Rescue Mission began utilizing RKD Connect to conduct weekly thank you call campaigns to cultivate responders, new and reactivated donors who gave gifts under $250.

THE SOLUTION:

Through RKD Connect, City Rescue Mission was able to reach:

- 6,833 donors through connected calls

- 3,371 donors through handwritten cards

Virtual event promotes engagement, lifts revenue

The Cleveland Animal Protective League’s mission is to foster compassion and end animal suffering. Incorporated in 1913, the APL is an independent, nonprofit humane society located in Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood. Due to COVID-19’s continued impact on in-person events across the country, the Cleveland Animal Protective League had to make the difficult decision to take its annual Fur Ball virtual.

RKD Group’s team worked with Cleveland Animal Protective League to develop an engaging event that would help them raise revenue. Because auctions were a large source of event funds, we helped them convert their in-person auctions to online and developed communication materials so that attendees knew how to access the auction portion of the event.

THE RESULTS:

This engaging virtual experience resulted in:

- $204,000 in revenue raised

- 188 screens engaged throughout the event

- 93 min average viewing time

Strategic approach breathes new life into fundraising

Operation Smile has provided hundreds of thousands of safe surgeries for those born with cleft lip and cleft palate. With more than three decades of expertise, Operation Smile creates solutions that deliver free surgery to people where it’s needed most.

RKD Group’s team conducted a full analysis of donor performance and overhauled the segmentation based on new insights. We also revamped the communication calendar to include a balance of hard-working and seasonally relevant fundraising appeals alongside donor-centric stewardship materials. Finally, they recommended addition to the calendar in late 2019—a simple, crisis appeal focused on a funding shortage in a particular region.

THE RESULTS:

After RKD’s first full year of managing the program, year-over-year highlights include:

- 10% increase in gross revenue

- 14% decrease in expenses

- 4,372 new donors through direct mail

RKD Group Mission

It’s in our DNA not only to serve great, world-changing causes but to do so with such excellence that we create breakthroughs never thought possible. Sort by cause or service to find out how we’re helping nonprofit organizations with donor engagement and creating fundraising and marketing breakthroughs for our clients.