An award tells you more about the judges than the contestants
D&AD have just had their annual awards bash where they hand out their coveted yellow pencils in recognition of outstanding creative work. It's not just the big agencies who get their chance to shine, students have their opportunity too. And this year, one of the…
Donors don’t like giving when it doesn’t feel good
Face to face donor recruitment is back in the spotlight following the publication of a survey that reported 44% of respondents thought chugging was the most aggressive form of fundraising. The PFRA was quick to respond, questioning the validity of the sample, the questions and…
So what do people really dislike about direct mail appeals?
The FRSB has just released their Annual Report for 2010. Based on the detailed analysis of complaints received by 1,138 UK charities, I'd say it paints a pretty decent picture of our noble profession. Even when you look at the more 'engaging' fundraising techniques –…
So what’s going on in the digital fundraising world?
The 2011 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study has been published by M+R Strategic Services and the Nonprofit Technology Network. It's based on analysing the online giving and advocacy activity of donors to 40 charities and nonprofits. It is obviously a US study, but the figures are useful…
The web is older and so are (some of) its users
A rather interesting statistical view of the digital landscape in Europe has just been published by comScore. The report provides insights on content categories, trends in social networking (and the knock-on effects on email and instant messaging), with a great snapshot of what's happening in…
Are you local? Are you relevant?
Many years ago when I was fundraising for YMCA England, we undertook a direct mail campaign to assess the impact of asking people to support local work. YMCA England is comprised of over 130 independent community based charities that work together under the YMCA brand….
Lessons from A/B testing
Ramit Sethi, author of I Will Teach You To Be Rich, recently shared some of his findings on on-line A/B testing on Quora that were reproduced on Random.Andrew.Warner.com. They are worth sharing as they demonstrate that though we operate in an on-line world, people are…
Why do younger people seem to ignore your appeals?
An interesting set of studies has been published by UC Berkley that looks at how our emotional strategies for dealing with upsetting issues change as we age. As psychologist, Robert Levenson explains: "Increasingly, it appears that the meaning of late life centres on social relationships…
How to get a £1 million donation
The Coutts Million Pound Donors Report 2010 has just been published. It takes a look at the condition of British philanthropy at the very top of the giving scale – which, as you might guess, covers gifts of £1,000,000 and more. There were just 201…
The difference makes little difference
Of everything the International Fundraising Conference offers, it's the international part that's the best – the opportunity to share ideas and learn from fundraisers from throughout the world. In my experience, it doesn't matter where an idea comes from. I've learnt from fundraisers in many…