Each year THON's Donor/Alumni Relations (DAR) committee sends out thousands of "Alumni Mailers." These postcards are meant to reach out to Penn State alumni for donations to the philanthropy. Recently, DAR's research has shown that targeted mailers, taking into account the graduation year of the alumnus, are most effective, as they can appeal to the different ways an alum may connect to THON.
1) THON Appeal
This card is sent to recent graduates: those who are likely remember and recognize THON as what it is today. The design is a less conservative than the others, and prominently features a photo of THON Weekend 2015.
2) Emotional Appeal
This card targets older alumni who might have been been involved in THON less recently, when it was a much smaller organization, or just a dance marathon in a gym. But regardless, this demographic is most likely to have young kids of their own. With this card we want communicate the emotional impact of THON, though it doesn't hurt to have some THON or Penn State things in there as well, since this is a middle range alumnus.
This card targets older alumni who might have been been involved in THON less recently, when it was a much smaller organization, or just a dance marathon in a gym. But regardless, this demographic is most likely to have young kids of their own. With this card we want communicate the emotional impact of THON, though it doesn't hurt to have some THON or Penn State things in there as well, since this is a middle range alumnus.
3) Penn State Appeal
There are some Penn Staters who have never participated in THON, or perhaps have never even heard of it. These are most likely to be our older alumni. However, since Penn State is the largest active alumni network in the country, appealing to the PSU Pride in an alum can go a long way.
