Summer Fundraising? Direct Mail Still Delivers.

Summer is officially here, it’s an off-cycle election year, and no one is on their phones or at their computer – so how do we keep our political fundraising efforts in the positive? 

Direct mail. 

Other political advertising channels either require paying for engagement with ineligible voters in that specific election in order to also reach the right voters — or are not able to guarantee total voter reach.

In contrast, every voter has a mailing address and can be reached with customized messaging and direct mail engagement from campaigns.

Take, for instance, the 2024 election; Voters were less predictable than they once seemed.

Different demographics voted in surprising ways, making it more challenging for campaigns to reach specific voters as they had in the past. 

The United States Postal Service and American Association of Political Consultants (AAPC) performed a joint study to delve deeper into voter actions and reactions and confirmed that; 

• The majority of voters believe that receiving direct mail once a week is just right

• 86% of surveyed consultants believe that direct mail was strategically important in 2024

• Direct mail is actually increasing in popularity, with 84% of surveyed voters receiving direct mail in 2024 —up from 77% in 2020.

While that full study can be found here, it’s clear that direct mail isn’t going anywhere, and if anything is only gaining in importance and influence. 

However, USPS has announced postage rate changes starting Sunday, July 13, 2025, directly impacting all campaigns that utilize direct mail as a source of marketing or revenue. Here are the key updates to first-class mail:

Stamped Letter: From $0.73 to $0.78.

Metered Letter: From $0.69 to $0.74.

Postcards: From $0.56 to $0.62.

Flats: From $1.50 to $1.65

While these price increases add to the fundraising challenges many campaigns face in the long term, in the short term, the solution is simple; 

Send your mail today. 

Get ahead of the increase in cost, get your mail out, and level with donors. 

Let them know no one’s online. Let them know that mail costs are increasing. Drive them to your social channels, your e-mail lists, and encourage them to give now to help you long term. 

Political donors have never been better informed. They’re on to gimmicks, fake deadlines, and elaborations of the truth. 

That’s why, when something is real and tangible, like this price increase, like the increasing importance of direct mail, or like the obstacles fundraising during the summer poses, it’s critical that you get with them and tell them the truth – because that’s what they’re going to respond to, and that’s what’s going to build a healthy, long term donor base.

To learn more about ways to mitigate the increasing cost of direct mail, please refer to this blog put forth by Direct One. 

• Quinn HuckebaHead Copywriter @ Campaign Engine