Welcome to the Donor Doctor with your host James Newberry. On today’s show, James interviews Wendy Newman Charitable Direct Mail Copywriter.
Meet Wendy Newman
Wendy is the Senior Account Executive at Fund Raising Strategies. She was one of the first batch of female students at the University of Virginia in 1970. She graduated with a major in English, and worked for nonprofit organizations.
Wendy used to work at Garfinckel’s department store after graduating from college. She eventually transitioned in career and became the secretary in a mailroom of a trade association. Later she coordinated direct mail campaigns for different organizations, including the PBA.
Writing One’s Passion
After 3 years of coordinating direct mails, Wendy went to work for Fund Raising Strategies. There she wrote about the things that she was most passionate about—animals, children, and veterans. Doing so, she reached out to clients online.
It’s surely helpful to work on something that you truly love. Wendy shares that she aimed to make herself cry in every letter she wrote. She knows her message is really good when she finds herself convinced that it’s powerful.
A Pair of Clean, Dry Socks
Wendy is very good at techniques. For this, she shares how a wonderful guy inspired her. The man used to work in the military and got a care package every once in awhile. What he liked most among the items he received were clean, dry socks.
This resonated with Wendy’s past experiences in camping. She recalls how dry socks proved to be really valuable. With this idea, she started mailing white socks to people for the organization she worked for.
To hear the rest of Wendy’s success story as direct mail copywriter, download and listen to Wendy Newman Charitable Direct Mail Copywriter.
If you’re short on time, here are the highlights of Wendy Newman Charitable Direct Mail Copywriter:
Who is Wendy Newman? (0:32)
Wendy’s take away from nonprofit organizations? (3:48)
Insights on working on the things you love most? (5:10)
Mailing techniques? (5:48)
Wendy’s storytelling technique? (7:33)
Same mail every year? (12:38)
Wendy’s advice to copywriters? (16:00)
In Memory of…
In 1970, Wendy Newman was one of the original 450 women to enter the University of Virginia, her father’s alma mater. This trailblazing spirit would define her fundraising career at Paralyzed Veterans of America, the Epilepsy Foundation, and at Fund Raising Strategies where she worked the last 17 years of her life. She passed away on Nov. 26th.
Wendy was an active member of DMAW who won numerous MAXIS, Caples and Echo Awards for her copywriting on behalf of charitable clients.
“Wendy was a great storyteller. She said it was her goal to make people cry when they read her letters. She will be missed by her direct mail family at Fund Raising Strategies (FRS),” said Bruce Eberle, FRS Founder. But she is perhaps most loved by her clients such as Ellen Karnofel of Noah’s Lost Ark, who said: “Wendy was an amazing selfless woman whose kindness will live on forever through what she accomplished here on earth. Wendy will always be with us in the animals she has helped and the work she has helped us accomplish. Wendy will be missed forever.”
