An innovative way to fund social-service programs is slowly catching on in the United States—and it has the potential to transform the way larger nonprofits and mission-driven companies go about their business.

Pay for Success (PFS) is a funding model that relies on public-private partnerships to provide services that have traditionally been provided by the government. The idea originated in Great Britain in the early 2010s and gradually made its way across the Atlantic to the U.S., where it is now being employed in the social-service, healthcare, criminal-justice, and housing sectors.

Even with the rise of social media and text messaging, good old-fashioned email remains one of the most effective marketing tools used in the for-profit world—and it continues to play a significant role in nonprofit fundraising, as well. Why? There are many reasons, but arguably the most compelling is cost. In general, it is estimated that it costs about 80 percent less to send a cultivated prospect an email than a printed direct mail package.

For nonprofit organizations, donor acquisition is the necessary foundation for every fundraising program. Two of the most common ways to identify new donors and also to re-engage existing contributors are direct mail and telemarketing.

Perhaps the most effective way to acquire a large number of first-time donors is to solicit their support by mail. Nonprofits use mail solicitation most frequently for annual campaigns. Using direct mail successfully, however, is not easy.