A report on the challenges facing charities in 2013 01708 733 111 ray@acumendesign.co.uk www.acumendesign.co.uk/charity 6 Stanton Gate, 49 Mawney Road, Romford, Essex RM7 7HL SURVIVE OR THRIVE
Giving up on giving Last year was not a good year for charities. Several key reports have shown that donations are down and many face closure. In order to ensure their financial security for the future they may need to take a fresh look at how they market themselves. Reports in November indicated that charitable donations fell by 20% in real terms in the past year with 1.7bn less being given. The number of people donating fell, as did the amounts they gave. The report was based on a survey of 3000 people and was compiled by Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) and National Council of Voluntary Organisations (NCVO). Small or medium sized charities are being disproportionately affected by these reductions in giving. Donations to charities have fallen by 20% in the last year 20%
Who gets what and how Raising awareness Religious causes 17% Medical research 15% Hospitals 15% Children s charities 11% Cash remained the most common method of giving with more than half of donors using this method. Direct Debit was the next most popular at 31% followed by Buying goods at 25% and Raffle tickets at 22%. Only 5% gave using Membership fees or subscriptions and just 3% used Payroll giving. Overseas charities 10% Animal charities 5% So what next for the 160,000 charities in the UK? For some at risk, mergers or takeovers could be a way to secure the future of their hard work. And for the others, investing in a clear marketing strategy may be the most practical way forward. This doesn t mean having to spend precious funds they don t have. It means having clear ideas and strategies in place to raise awareness of their charity whilst respecting the budgetary constraints. A poll commissioned by the CAF confirmed that public spending cutbacks and falling donations could result in as many as one in six charities facing closure in 2013. Nearly half say they are being forced to dip into their financial reserves and one in three fear having to cut services or jobs. Almost all of the 252 charities questioned for the CAF put generating income as their greatest challenge in the coming year. Raise awareness of your brand by investing in a clear strategy
Following the leader Many charities adopt a follow the leader approach to their marketing. Here s some examples: 1. Plastic collection bags through your letterbox what was once an innovative idea has now been adopted by many. Unfortunately less scrupulous profit-making companies have also jumped on the bandwagon. 2 Face-to-face street fundraising or chugging as the media has now branded it is now rampant in most high streets. 3. Charity capitalism buy a product and a portion of the price is given to the charity. 4. Direct Debit just 2 a month sponsors... Is it time for a rethink for charities relying on the same old techniques? Do people actually sign up for charities on their doorstep? How about handing over a calling card with details of the charity and starting the conversation, I m sure you re busy so we are just asking people to read our card and make an informed decision about our cause. There s lots of really easy ways you can donate or get involved... A less intrusive yet more informative approach that need not eat too much into a marketing budget. There has been a marked increase recently in charity events and entertainment. Charities such as Prostate Cancer UK, Save the Children and Cancer Research UK are seeking to engage potential donors with campaigns that aim to both entertain and raise awareness at the same time as fundraising. These charities risk treading a fine line between entertainment and brand awareness. They need to ensure that the activity aligns with the cause or they run the risk of the event s popularity overtaking the brand. Movember is a good example of this. A recent study of social media found that Prostate Cancer UK was being sidelined by the success of Movember as it becomes more of a fashion movement. Of the 1.6 million mentions of Movember in social media less than 10% actually related to raising awareness of men s health and prostate cancer, and only around 17% discussed fundraising and donating to charity [report by Precise]. Amongst all the hype, the public can very quickly lose sight of the underlying cause they are supporting. The charity needs to more closely align itself with the Movember brand to ensure the men s health message is not left behind. This is even more crucial as more charities jump on the coat tails of these success stories and further water down the messages. Following Movember, Beating Bowel Cancer is planning to launch Decembeard. What next Octashber?
What s working well There is sometimes a discord between a fundraising initiative and the core brand of the charity. This can be because different teams are responsible for each. Fundraising initiatives should be treated in the same way as sub-brands and not just be bolted on ad hoc. Consistency and synergy is crucial to avoid watering down the main brand or worse, showing no connection to it at all. Other recently launched events have included Dryathon TM, a Cancer Research UK initiative to give up alcohol for January. And in December Save the Children held it s first Christmas Jumper Day. It hopes the growing popularity of novelty festive sweaters will help it raise both funds and awareness for the charity. They have worked to integrate this with their main brand by having the logo wear it s own novelty knitwear. Maybe this campaign could go further this year by encouraging people to donate their jumpers to the Save the Children shops and then displaying them throughout November to encourage even more people to get involved for Jumper Day by buying direct from the charity. There are a lot of campaigns that have worked well in the last year. The partnership between Barnardo s and Argos has raised 700,000 through a six week toy exchange campaign. Argos shoppers donated over 71,000 bags of unwanted toys with an average value of 10 per bag. These were then sold in Barnardo s shops. The benefits to Barnardos were two fold; not only was their brand profile raised by being highly visible throughout the Argos chain but it also enabled them to boost stock levels to their stores and provided valuable income for the charity. The British Red Cross have now launched a Give and Gain loyalty card programme nationwide. Shoppers earn a loyalty point for every 1 they spend. These can then be redeemed as discounts and rewards against things like first aid courses. This is a great example of a charity thinking differently about its marketing. A loyalty card may seem more appropriate for a supermarket but what this allows the charity to do is gain a better understanding of their customers. Data on the shopping habits of those using the cards can be monitored and then used with a carefully targeted marketing and fundraising campaign. Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research have also come up with an innovative way of raising money. They have developed a digital fundraising platform called Pledgeit which encourages people to challenge their friends to take on activities in return for donations. Challengers pledge money to the charity and invite others to do the same. If the challenge is completed all the monies go directly to the charity. Key to Pledgeit s success has been to integrate it with Facebook and Twitter so that challengers can take advantage of the viral nature of social media. This demonstrates both a creative and more innovative approach than traditional sponsorship.
Facing the challenges We ve highlighted just a few of the more original ideas that charities are using to tackle the downturn in donations. Many are now looking outside the more traditional charity approach and learning from the marketing strategies of other sectors. The most important thing in a saturated marketplace is to differentiate your charity brand and define a clear marketing strategy so that funding can be directed effectively. You also need to ensure that you communicate effectively with existing supporters. How can we help? Acumen Design are a design and marketing company that specialise in helping brands maximise potential. We combine both a strategic and creative approach to help you differentiate your charity brand, raise its profile to help increase donations and communicate effectively. Over the years we ve worked with lots of charities large and small and helped them make the most of their marketing budgets. From helping deliver a rebrand for Breast Cancer Care to revitalising an annual event for a local hospice, we understand the challenges of working within the third sector. We know how important it is to truly understand the needs of your audience. From hard hitting messaging tackling teenage contraception, to the sensitivity required to tackle a domestic violence campaign, we can adapt our approach for any charity that will work in today s difficult financial climate. Above all else, we are proud to help. Lets start with a chat over tea or coffee. We ll even bring the doughnuts. With thanks to the following: Marketing Week, Third Sector, BBC News, The Guardian, and all the charities mentioned, amongst others.