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SOFII’s view:
Both the text on the envelope and the incentive in this classic direct mail pack from the 1980s have been copied frequently but seldom if ever equalled, far less bettered. It is a tragedy that the contents of the pack are not available to us as, from memory, they were just as good. The gift so cryptically referred to, of course, is the gift of sight. When intrigued recipients opened the envelope they found inside a rectangle of opaque plastic and instructions to hold it up to their eye, which gave them a fair idea of what it’s like to look on the world through cataracts. The offer was that for a few pounds you could pay for a simple operation to remove someone’s cataract and so restore his or her sight.
If any SOFII user* can help shed light on the rest of this pack, please do let us know so we can fill in some of the blanks. |
Name of exhibitor: Maxine Delahunty/SOFII Homeless section.
Email: maxine@sofii.org
Name of exhibit: The Help the Aged ‘You have this gift’ pack.
Date of first appearance: Sometime in the 1980s, we think.
Category/area of fundraising: Direct mail to individuals.
Country of origin: UK.
Summary/objectives:
To create intrigue, to get the mailing opened and then, immediately, to involve the recipient immediately and completely in the proposition.
Background:
Help the Aged at the time was trying many creative approaches under the experienced creative oversight of fundraising legend Harold Sumption. See ‘related pages’, below.
Creator/originator:
Unknown.
Special characteristics:
Brilliant involvement device.
Influence/impact:
Many have aspired to copy and adapt this classic pack.
Test details:
N/A.
Costs:
N/A.
Results:
N/A. But it must have worked, and well, because the pack was HTA’s banker (control) package for many years.
Why do you think this exhibit merits a place in SOFII?:
It’s a classic, still well worth copying. Or at least, adapting (if your organisation doesn’t work with people with cataracts).
Any other relevant information:
Please tell SOFII if you know anything more about this pack.
