The Future of Community Fundraising

As part of my master programme I recently led a seminar with my fellow students around some of the issues effecting regional and community fundraising. The part of my presentation which excited me most was about how community fundraising is developing and what it might look like in the future so I thought I would pick up on some of it here:


Community fundraising is the public face of charity. An average member of the public when asked about fundraising would probably talk about bake sales, sponsored walks and the such like. Community fundraising is about large volumes of small gifts. It can be a powerful way to raise awareness of a cause and when scaled up can bring in large amounts of money for charities. The power of mass mobilisation through community fundraising can be enormous. I love it. But, there are a few things I think community fundraisers should be thinking about:


How can we maximise the income and impact of community fundraising? How does community fundraising fit in to the donor journey? If someone takes part in community event how will they connect to the organisation itself? How do we equip our supporters in the community? 


I think that social media and technology has a lot to offer community fundraising - it is now quite accessible for people to play a video from a charity's YouTube channel at their community event which could really help to connect the audience with the cause. This is more cost effective than always sending a member of staff to speak at events and makes it easier for smaller organisations to develop their reach. As fundraisers we need to develop resources to help our supporters make their efforts as fruitful as possible.


John Baguley says that community fundraising is outside the donor pyramid - I think this is true and I like the concept; but it doesn't have to mean we can't bring them in to the pyramid. I think we should celebrate the contribution that people make through community fundraising but use the opportunity as a stepping stone to engage with them further. How can we capture information about community fundraising participants and start a conversation with them? How do we integrate community fundraising with the rest of the fundraising mix?


Community/Region fundraising structures must adapt to current trends and ways of working. I think that the traditional supporter group/committee structures are quite off putting for a lot of people which is reflected in the fact that most are made up of retired people and struggle to attract younger members. These existing committees shouldn't be abandoned but we should also seek other ways of engaging people. 


I think that a major barrier for a lot of people to joining a traditional fundraising group is "commitment phobia". Many people feel they are just too busy to make a long term commitment and imagine that if they joined they may never be able to leave. One way to address this is to define shorter term roles which people can take on for a set period of time. I think Oxfam's Oxjam initiative does this brilliantly - recruiting and training a number of volunteer area managers who oversee the events happening in their locality for one year's events. Not only do people know exactly what they are committing to for a fixed time, but they have a title and training which makes it a very appealing volunteering opportunity.


As well as thinking about how we introduce more flexible structures we should also be thinking about how we embrace those who Beth Kanter calls Free Agents. "Free agents are individuals working outside of organisations to mobilise, raise funds and communicate with constituents." (The Networked Nonprofit. Kanter and Fine, 2010) 


There have always been people who give a great deal of time and energy to our causes and use their skills and passions to raise money for us but we need to realise that these relationships may become more transient. In the same way that we must loosen the reins of our brand in the age of social media perhaps we need to loosen the reins of our fundraising as well.


I'd love to know other people's point of view about the future of community fundraising so please comment and tweet me!

A user generated brand

Each of the little pictures in Scope's new branding has been created by disabled people and their friends and family through their website which invites you to "Share your story and be part of our vision!". I think this user generated approach is really bold and communicates a lot about the organisation. In fact, the online platform where users can create their own icons and messages and view other people's creations could have been an impressive online campaign in it's own right but giving it a real purpose and utilisation makes the whole thing brilliantly integrated.

My only slight reservations is about the logo itself - I think the "to..." could have worked better as a part of a tagline and worry that giving it the same presence as the name of the organisation may lead to a little bit of initial confusion. Scope do address this in a FAQ on their site but for someone just walking past one of their charity shops it might not sink in. 

Overall though, I love this rebrand. I think the colour palette and the variety of the little images creates a really dynamic visual that tells me that Scope is a vibrant and energetic organisation. In a social, digital world where "brand" is no longer just about a voice from above telling people who they are and why they should buy their products/donate to their cause etc I think Scope are really forward thinking with this new look. I look forward to seeing how it translates in the charity's literature; as a some-times designer I think the potential for creating really eye-catching materials is huge and the whole project is just really exciting. 

If you've yet to see Scope's recent rebrand I recommend you have a little look on their website here. I'd love to hear people's thoughts so let me know what you think.

Y make an app?

I love apps. I've had an iPhone for a year now and I struggle to imagine how I survived without it (I carried an A-Z? I read my emails on a computer, really?)


One of the reasons I wanted to work for Depaul UK was I was really impressed by their iHobo app. I've been fortunate to be involved in the later stages of this amazing project and have got to speak at and attend some great events about digital fundraising. The original aim of iHobo was to raise awareness; I don't think anyone anticipated what a success it would be and sadly perhaps some of the fundraising potential wasn't capitalised on. We've been really frank about our experience and our learning (read more here).


What I find so disappointing about the vast majority of charity apps is that they don't really do anything. That might sound harsh but I think that people forget that "apps" are applications: a number of the charity apps I've seen have made me wish the charity had just spent the money on optimising their website for mobile rather than creating a stand alone information app which will require additional updating and is probably receiving minimal downloads. 


The best and most successful apps, charity or otherwise, either entertain us like games, music players etc or help us accomplish a task (my current favourite is my sleep sounds app!) An app can help deliver a charity's mission - such as BHF's healthy recipe app or Breakthrough Breast Cancer's iBreastCheck app and that's great, we just have to be careful we're not jumping on the bandwagon and creating apps for the sake of it.

What prompted me to write this blog is Mencap's current Spellathon app. I love this app! It's available on a number of platforms (web as well as smart phone) and there are several things which make the app great which I appreciate both as a user and as a fundraiser: 

• The characters in the app (bees of course) are fun and will appeal to all ages.
• There is an integrated celebrity endorsement with Stephen Fry voicing the "professor" character (rather than just tagging a celebrity on to the initiative.)
• The app is optimised for fundraising - you have to create a JustGiving page to be able to log in.
• There is a useful but not over the top amount of data capture increasing lifetime value of the project.
• There is an incentive to play and most importantly to raise money - everyone who spells enough words and raises over £15 will be able to play an online game against Mr Fry himself.
• It's educational and there's a synergy between the app and Mencap's mission.

What I like most about the whole project is that the Spellathon is something Mencap have been running for 18 years. Instead of scrapping it in favour of something new they have built on the initiative using technology to give it a new lease of life.

It really is a great app and a great example of a good charity app. I'm mildly dyslexic and my biggest problem is swapping letter round (thank goodness for spell check) so I struggled with this game a bit at the beginning but if you persevere you really feel you are learning something whilst having fun.

I'd love to know your thoughts about the app (and charity apps in general) so get in touch. 

I'm in love (with a charity!)

The causes people support can be very close to their heart and charities can experience some of the best brand loyalty because when someone chooses to support a cause they feel like there's a synergy between their values and aims and that of the organisation.

I think our relationships with the charities we work for and support are a bit like love affairs. Most of us are serial monogamists, some mate for life, some have a bit on the side and the consultants have "open relationships".

My first love when I graduated was St Wilfrid's Hospice, Chichester. However I wanted the bright lights of London and was too young to settle down, so I started looking around for something new. I fell in love with Safe the Children after my guides took part in their pop-up shop initiative and I was so excited when I got a date with them (you might call this an interview) and I suffered the heartbreak of unrequited love when I found out they didn't want me the way I wanted them :(

I was attracted to Depaul UK because they seemed pretty cool (what with the uber successful iHobo app) We hit it off and things are going pretty well, but now the honeymoon period is over I'm still deeply in love but must admit I've started to look lustfully at other charities. I was even tempted to play for the other team when I experienced the amazing hospitality of Google, but I know the reality of corporate world wouldn't live up to the fantasy.

I must admit I have a bit of a crush on UNICEF though. Their Easter Egg Facebook app drew me in, then their East Africa appeal and the subsequent telephone call (when I signed up as a regular donor) sealed the deal. Their Own a Colour appeal made me want to get a poster of them on my wall - the idea didn't initially grab me ( I was playing hard to get) but the website blew me away...

So, I've admitted my secret crush. Now I want to know how you've got a crush on! 

Y not charity?

I'm always fascinated to hear people's stories of how they came to work in the third sector. Within the small team of fundraisers I work in my colleagues have past-lives as diverse as Corporate Lawyer and Vicar! 


I've worked as a fundraiser since I graduated in 2008 so you might think I'm a career charity professional, but even I had a bit of a strange journey to the sector. When I was 17 my best friend and I started a youth theatre group at our local theatre so when it was time to go to university I decided I wanted to study drama and ended up going to a full blown drama school (yes, it was a bit like being one of the kids from Fame). Because our timetable was so sporadic I had some pretty crazy casual jobs during uni, including dressing up as banana to hand out leaflets.


Looking back some of the things I most enjoyed doing with my theatre group were the project management and event management elements, including organising a series of different fundraisers when the theatre was threatened with closure. Coming from a small town and a working class family no one ever suggested to me that a career in fundraising, or the charity sector as a whole, could be a great fit for my skills and interests. I ended up doing a fundraising internship in my final term at university, primarily to get events management experience, and everything fell in to place. Having been involved in Girlguiding my whole life I was passionate about community action, I just never realised that it could be a career.


I was very interested to read about this research recently that found that (of 1,132 14-15 year olds surveyed) 28.5 per cent of boys and 15 per cent of girls think charity is the most boring sector to work in. The survey also found that only 3.2 per cent wanted to work in the charity sector, fourth from the bottom of the 24 options. Whilst I am not entirely convinced that this survey really reflects the whole picture it does bring up some interesting points, especially in the article when the gentleman from the research organisation suggests that children associate charity with charity shops.


If charities are going to grow and be sustainable in the future I think it is vitally important that we are recruiting top talent in to the sector. What a shame it will be if passionate young people don't realise how great it is to work for a charity. I think sector bodies such as the IoF should be thinking about how they can promote the sector as a career prospect to young people, but we all have a part to play as well. 


Next time you go to give a talk in an assembly or to a youth group about your cause why not take a minute to explain about the people in your organisation and about the variety of exciting worthwhile jobs they do - even if the children don't choose to work in the sector increasing public awareness of how charities work could be really valuable. Who knows, maybe the next generation of charity professionals won't be asked if they get paid to do their job quite as much as we do!


I'd love to hear your stories of how you came to work in the sector. Until next time 

Getting LinkedIn

I've been using LinkedIn a lot more recently. Since they updated their iPhone app it has been much easier to access content on the go. I think the groups are particularly helpful to help you stay connected within your sector. If, like me, you aren't currently looking for a job then it's a great tool to build up your connections and if you are looking for work it could prove invaluable.

Last week a new volunteer experience section was added to profiles. Even if you don't work in the sector your volunteer experience can really help you differentiate yourself; if it's directly related to your line of work it shows your commitment and if not it shows how well rounded you are. Of course, all volunteering shows that you are compassionate, socially aware and engaged in your community.

I for one know that my CV is much stronger when I include my volunteer experience and it's good to be able to showcase this alongside my paid work. In a tough job market, with record youth unemployment, I think Gen Y-ers 

can particularly benefit from their volunteering being presented as a key aspect of their experience. I only graduated three years ago and am in my second job but there are voluntary projects which I worked on whilst I was a student that are a key part of why I have come to work as a fundraiser - our volunteer experience is what makes us stand out from the crowd.

At the same time as this new profile section LinkedIn have also given everyone the chance to show off which causes they support so whether or not you work for a charity you can tell people what is important to you - I think the causes we support can say a lot about us to it's another way to inject some personality into your profile.

I'd love to know what you think of the new features so check it out and get in touch (plus you can connect with me on LinkedIn here) 

How busy is too busy?

So, I haven't blogged for a while... I have just been so busy! Not woe is me I've got so much to do boo hoo but lots of exciting things going on, how can I fit all this stuff in and still get a few hours sleep kind of busy.

I think Gen Y can have a bit of a bad name for having a poor work ethic and expecting everything to come to them for the minimum amount of work. I'm sure there are people who fit in to that category but I know a lot of people my age from all different sectors who are all super busy doing lots of things to further themselves and their careers. It's a privilege to do a job that you love but there is a flip side to "finding a job you love and you'll never work again". It's hard to maintain any semblance of a work/life balance when your leisure time, work time and volunteering all blur in to one.

In February I started a new Guide unit which has been a really rewarding experience but more work than I envisaged. Until a couple of weeks ago I was also volunteering as coordinator for the opening ceremony of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts 34th World conference which was hosted in Edinburgh. As the ceremony itself approached the work load for this commitment escalated from a few hours a week at the start until it felt like I was working another full time job in the few weeks beforehand. Add to this myriad other little projects I have been helping friends with and getting involved in and my diary for the last couple of months has been a little too overcrowded.

I guess one of my problems is I never want to feel like I'm missing out. It was probably a bit much to volunteer on the IoF National Convention during the same week that I had to go to Edinburgh but I couldn't bear the thought of missing it and having to wait until next year for the next one!

I hadn't realised quite how stressed I had got with my overloaded diary until on my return from Edinburgh I kept having to tell myself to relax; I had got so tense that it took a few days to get myself to chill out. I also realised that I saw some of my London based friends more when I lived in West Sussex than I do now I live in London again and that I actually can't remember the last time I visited my Dad :( The up side is that now my diary has eased up over the summer, only having a full time job to contend with feels like being on holiday.

The next few weeks will be spent catching up with people I haven't seen in a while and enjoying any sunshine that comes our way, until the next project begins. I'd love to hear how you maintain a work/life balance, get in touch.