Telephone fundraising
RSPCA’s ‘sow tethering’ telephone campaign
Any marketing campaign that can have such an impact on members of parliament on the eve of taking their country to war has to be worth recording. This campaign is notable as one of the early UK examples of fundraisers using the telephone.
ANC – emergency pre-election fundraising, from 1992
The ANC campaign that pioneered professional political fundraising in the UK and offered the British public the chance to play an active role in getting rid of apartheid forever.The campaign raised £2 million in six months with no budget and just one paid member of staff.
Greenpeace Australia Pacific the welcome process
Think objectively about the experience a new donor has within the first few months of joining your organisation. Greenpeace Australia Pacific has developed a new and simplified process to ensure that new donors receive clear communications that both thank and further engage them. The result is that they’re reducing the number of donors who leave within the first three months.
The Chilean Bible Society: mobile phone texting campaign
SOFII’s first exhibit from Chile. This is a very clever use of text messaging with an intriguing involvement device built in, in the form of a Bible knowledge quiz. Each text generates a small donation and increases the sender’s bible knowledge, which must suit the Chilean Bible Society very well.
Defenders of Wildlife: multi-channel direct marketing integration
With more nonprofits engaging in online marketing, those that are coordinating their messages or campaigns across many channels are standing out above the crowd.Defenders of Wildlife are leaders in the field and here we look at three of their campaigns to highlight some of the best multi-channel integrated marketing in the sector.
UNICEF India: the ‘tele-facing’ campaign
This novel approach to re-qualifying potential major donors sits between telephone and face-to-face fundraising. It is an example of how telephone fundraising and face-to-face fundraising are evolving and being adapted in India to take account of the country’s large population and distinctive business culture – with quite impressive results.
Farm Africa ‘ask for what you need’
How do you ask a maojor donor for $50,000 when she’s at the other end of a telephone line and you’re in a very noisy tapas bar? Do you make ‘the ask’ in the worst possible surroundings? The lesson from this case study is that as long as ‘the ask’ is right, it doesn’t matter where you are.
Greenpeace India: SMS lead generation
Face-to-face fundraising everywhere faces the same problems of high cancellation rates and low retention. This innovative, adventurous approach to pre-qualifying leads for F2F is particularly interesting in that it was first developed and tested in India. The SMS lead generation campaign is a filter mechanism designed to source ‘warm prospects’.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art: capital campaign
How direct mail and the phone together can secure massive support from lower dollar donors. By following the approach described here, nonprofit organisations that find it difficult to reach very wealthy donors can supplement their capital campaign
Greenpeace: the virtual march for whales
If only whales everywhere could realise the great things that are being done all around the world by ordinary people to protect them and make this planet a safe place for them.
Strømme Foundation: ‘poverty buster’ (‘fattigdomsbekjemper’)
Strømme Foundation is an innovative Norwegian charity working to fight poverty in the developing world. The scheme is an imaginative way of engaging younger donors.
Bulgarian Red Cross: ‘one SMS, one hot meal for one Bulgarian child’ campaign
These campaigns successfully united several established fundraising techniques including building corporate alliances and the use of new and old media.
Croatian Dogs appeal for new building
This campaign to build a rehabilitation centre in Zagreb raised a large amount of money at an impressively low cost to income ratio.
Christian Aid’s text for nets
This exhibit is a great example of modern fundraising. While there is a lot of talk about fundraising by text messages, rarely do we find an appeal that makes it so easy, so compelling and so tangible.
Thunderbird School of Global Management: a 24-hour telethon to save their famous tower
There’s not much that’s new in alumni fundraising nor in running a ‘phoneathon’, but a 24-hour telephonic marathon so that you can call all your alumni wherever in the world they might be, that’s an idea well worth trying.
Plan International UK’s ‘prospecting’ campaign
Sampling has become the primary route for selling software, music and film. Could it be applied to child sponsorship, which is such a desirable ‘product’ for many charities?
