Challenges for Charity, interesting observation

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 Oogachooga 23 Mar 2018

After starting a year long fundrasing campaign for Marie Curie mid last year, I have been surprised by the lack of general interest people have in donating even a small amount, not to mention the lack of interest to even support a friend/collegue.

 

This isn't intended as a moan however, I'm genuinely interested in the psycology behind this.

 

Is it that there is too much of this fundrasing going on, most things now blend into the background? Lack of interest in the actual charity? Maybe even not wanting to submit to an "ego" boosting scheme for charity? (I presume people think like this)

 

What are your experiences?

 

Some family/friends jump to the chance to show support, some completly ignore it. Some even mention it but without donation, I find that odd.

 

Oh and my work, £7 raised! Makes me laugh as it's a big company.

 

If you are interested, my fundrasing page is here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/rob-key360

 

Cheers

 

 

 

 

 Jon Greengrass 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Charity donations are a tax paid by the kind hearted.

3
 Trangia 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I suspect that the scandals surrounding Oxfam and other similar fund raisers may have done untold damage, and the aggressive marketing carried out by some is counter productive?

1
 Route Adjuster 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

At work you might have more luck going around with a good old fashioned sponsor form for specific activities or events that you are doing.  Online sites that you direct people to are very easily ignored (or forgotten).

1
 GrahamD 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Personally I like to choose when and to whom I donate. 

Whether people sit in a tub of baked beans or not is their choice and doesn't influence where I make my charitable donations.

mick taylor 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Aye, interesting indeed.  I work in the charity sector. Agree with route adjuster - get a sponsor form.  Its very easy now to set up a form of just giving/crowdfunder page - too many of them.  Hope you don't mind me saying, but my top tip would be to sell the sizzle - your funding page describes what you are doing but may be better if you describe why, and what the money is for (specifics).  And get this down on the sponsor form or flyer that I would hand out.

Your chosen charity is brilliant at raising funds.

OP Oogachooga 23 Mar 2018
In reply to mick taylor:

Thanks Mick

and I will try that approach. A fact sheet of some sort on Marie Curie.

It's hard to know what to put on the page as I am well aware of the need to 'grab ones attention'. I've changed it a dozen times over the last few months.

Maybe it's a good time to go with the old school sponsor form approach. I've done the collection tin with a fact sheet but perhaps the psycology of seeing other names on a sheet (and to follow suit) may be the tried and tested method?

It would be interesting to hear on this thread from anyone who declines donating and their point of view against it. 

 

 balmybaldwin 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

It's a reasonable tactic.  and when you start make up 3-4 names (and donate yourself on their behalf) in order to set the tone of the donation amount...

I.e. have donor 1 give £5, doners 2&3 £10, donor 4 £5 (NOT in YOUR handwriting!)

The other thing is if you are doing a challenge, make it a real challenge (i.e. not walking half a marathon), if this is in memory of someone or because a loved one was saved, then say so and emphasise what the charity did for you/the patient personally and why it made a difference.

 

Edit: reading what you are doing, it does sound a little like you are asking people to sponsor your daily keep fit regime I appreciate you've upped it. increased distances etc, but realistically 80% of runners run daily in all weather and it's a bit too in reach for the normal person.

If you were to "Everest" a particular hill on a particular day/weekend I think that would be perceived differently

Post edited at 15:07
 profitofdoom 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

> I have been surprised by the lack of general interest people have in donating even a small amount

Sorry but I do not see why you are surprised. People have many, many calls on their money. They do not have the same agenda as you and may be donating to a different charity

Anyway I wish you all the best with your fundraising

 Philip 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I've not experienced this. I think most people give privately to charities (for me it's mostly wildlife) but at work I'll sponsor anyone I like. I think it's mostly personality based - I only sponsor the nice people at work, or perhaps also if the charity was particularly worthwhile - I never give to charities that look after pets.

Are you liked at work?

1
 Rampikino 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Seen both sides of this, and I agree with a number of the observations.

I've done a number of marathons and raised money for charities.  I think the key is, as stated, to bring your story alive and make sure people understand why you are doing it.  But similarly, people should not pretend that something is just for charity when it is often primarily for their own achievement or entertainment.  Over the last 2 years I have done some big events - marathons/ultra marathons.  I have been asked why I don't do them for charity and my response is that I have been doing them to challenge myself and nothing else.

I would argue that of all the "tandem parachute jumps for charity" that take place every year, the primary motivation is NOT charity but for the individual to enjoy the experience.  The charity is a happy by-product of the jump.  This leads to one of the key issues with raising funds - the tacit objection to funding someone's bit of fun in the name of charity.  Also the "challenge" which is not really a challenge.  Jogging a 10k in 90 minutes "for charity" is hardly the kind of challenge that is going to get the pounds pouring in whereas something more focused, personal and genuinely challenging can have better success.

I also feel that we tend to get overloaded with charity requests in the workplace.  In our operations centre there is always something going on "for charity" which is great but can leave you charity-weary and also very cynical when the next request hits the inbox.  Chuggers have not helped the image of charities, and the Oxfam situation has proved to be a seedy side to charities that we would like to think simply did not exist.

I think my own top tips would be:

1. Start early to give yourself the best chance of raising a good amount.

2. Make it personal.  Tell the story and give the audience a good understanding of why it is important.

3. Use different ways to raise funds - don't just have a webpage and keep begging, do something else such as a cake sale (always popular in the workplace) or raffle where the donors will feel that they have a chance to win something.

4. Make sure your campaign isn't just there to fund your experience and that, if it is down as a challenge, that it is challenging.

 

Oh, and good luck.  There is absolutely a place in this world for the combination of challenge/charity if it is done well.

M

OP Oogachooga 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Rampikino:

A few good points there for the psycology behind donating/not donating (and some good tips on fundraising, cheers).

There are a lot of challenges out there that do seem to generate a disproportional amount of money. Already mentioned, sitting in a bath of beans or remember the ice bucket challenge? None of which were anything particularly gruelling. Perhaps people are fed up of the hype.

If we go into the other points raised on the thread. Do people really want every challenge to be super gnarley though? and how do you compare a 24 hour bike ride for example, with a year long hopscotch challenge? but I think people probably pick and choose what interests them.

Am I liked at work? Well yeah and that gets interesting because one close collegue I spoke to today about this mentioned a lot of the reasons (against donating) mentioned above. Along with "When I donate, I may donate a large amount to a charity that I really feel for".

So for some it seems, it's almost a dig at the charities themselves.

My point to him was my fairly new view on this whole subject. Most people feel obliged to donate a large amount, donating £1 is still showing support to another human to ultimately aid someone less fortunate and do a good deed.

It brings about a good community spirit and helps promote a good nature in people.

Whether I like to admit it or not is another thing but I do feel slightly put out that someone in my circle of friends or family would rather by me a pint/breakfast or a coffee, than donate a quid or 2 to support a greater good on my behalf.

 

 ianstevens 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

May I suggest that its because people are becoming aware that this is often the case: http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/man-sponsored-to-do-thing-he-wou... ?

I'll happily give money to a charity of my choice, off my own back, when I see fit. Not a fan of being told what charity I should donate to by others. What is important to someone else may not be important to me, and vice versa. 

 Dax H 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Its been 2.5 years since I did any charity collecting but I found it the easiest thing in the world.

I dressed in a tutu and thing with fishnets, a bikini top and blond wig, my mate wore a mini skirt, high heel thigh boots and a black wig and we went out tin rattling. 

3k in Blackpool in 2 hours, 2 and a bit k in Settle, hawse and devil's Bridge, 2k at squires cafe in Leeds.

All you have to do is act the tit and make people laugh and they will throw money at you. 

 summo 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I only donate to a charity if they are;

-A challenge, if it's something average Joe can rock up to without any prior training, then it's showing a lack of effort on the fundraisers part.

-I'm not paying money towards lots of full time employed charity workers.

-I'm not effectively paying someone's entry fee, transport or costs to an external facilitator.

So if you tell me you are doing a charities own event of say Yorkshire Dales 3 peaks, bungee jump, abseil...  you'll be lucky to get a quid. But have a crack at the coast to coast unsupported etc and you are likely to get much more. 

 

OP Oogachooga 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Dax H:

Hahaha! Now I see. Straight up? That's what you raised?

pasbury 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

One aspect of socialism is that it is constitutional charity. As we move away from that we move to selfishness and protection of whatever income we have.

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 Yanis Nayu 23 Mar 2018
In reply to summo:

A bloke I work with grew a beard for charity, which is actually lazier than the alternative. Needless to say, I didn’t sponsor him. 

 JEF 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Yanis Nayu:

When I hiked the Hadrian’s Wall path as a holiday, camping each night, I met a bloke who asked me to sponsor him for hiking it too. He wasn’t even camping and had his gear ferried to his next B&B each day.

I didn’t donate.

 Damo 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

> ... I'm genuinely interested in the psycology behind this.

...my fundrasing page is here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/rob-key360

 

1. Your challenge is too vague and disparate. You're basically running a lot.

Where are the yardsticks? How will *they* know if you've completed the challenge? Will you?

Keep it simple and measurable - a target amount, a summit, a distance, a race finished etc.

2. You use the name Everest but what you are doing has nothing to do with Everest.

a) this is an inherent contradiction that will make people immediately suspicious - they're already looking for an excuse to say 'no' and you just gave them ammo

b) people are sick of Everest

 

 marsbar 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Make cakes for the office and sell them?  

 DaveHK 24 Mar 2018
In reply to profitofdoom:

> Sorry but I do not see why you are surprised. People have many, many calls on their money. They do not have the same agenda as you and may be donating to a different charity

That's kind of it for me. Most people donate to causes that mean something to them and it's not sustainable to donate to everything.

I really dislike some of the prevailing attitudes around charity in this country particularly the pressure to donate, the public nature of it and the assumption of many that some morally / environmentally questionable tactics / activities are justifiable in the name of charity.

I had colleague who rarely donated to anything at work but without fanfare made a substantial donation to the charity of his choice each year. I rather admire that approach.

 jonnie3430 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I, so assume others, have a few direct debits going out the bank each month to certain charities I believe in. On top of that, if someone puts the effort in, especially something that is stretching them a bit, or funny, then I'll support it. I had good sponsorship for doing a half marathon in specific time in a toilet suit and went round the office in the suit to show what I was about to do.  

As an example, I'd sponsor you to do a race dressed in a tutu, or I'd sponsor you to shave all your hair off, or buy pies off you if you made them and brought them into the office.

 freeflyer 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Some years ago a mate of mine, peculiar cove, went round the various charity, busking and begging pitches locally, and asked the incumbents what they were making. It seemed the average was about £8 per hour; not bad for sitting doing nothing, but not anywhere in Dax H's league, which sounds like a cracking effort.

I strongly suspect this mate was on some kind of scam, but never figured out what it was. Selling pitches or something.

Dave Gorman tells a story where they filmed a man doing the statue thing, then they put a real statue in the same place, and the statue apparently made more money than the man.

So maybe you need a statue of yourself with a charity tin, and the right pitch.

PS have a tenner - I like Marie Curie.

 Rampikino 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Damo:

I disagree.

i felt it was very clear and so I donated.

 Dax H 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

> Hahaha! Now I see. Straight up? That's what you raised?

Me and my mate Bob yes.  A lot of it was from photos, you want a pic with the 2 guys in drag, fine as long as you chuck some change in the bucket.

Being bikers we targeted other bikers in settle and hawse etc, bikers are very generous. 

Blackpool was like shooting fish in a barrel, we only managed to get a license to collect for a few hours but you wouldn't believe the amount of pissed up hen parties that showered us with cash, if you follow this route be prepared to be groped but it's for a good cause. 

 Michael Hood 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga: one technique is to make it into a competition. Have some kind of target that your sponsors can estimate or guess that you'll achieve with a prize (doesn't have to be big) for whoever gets closest to what you manage.

The hook is that people get competitive about who can make the best guess.

For example, one I did many years ago... We had a gym at work with rowing machines. The two best rowers (whose times were known) did a joint 2k (250m swop 250m swop etc or similar) as fast as possible. People had to guess what time they'd manage.

 

OP Oogachooga 25 Mar 2018
In reply to Michael Hood:

That's a really good idea. Good angle to take with it

Thanks guys for the donations aswell! It's great to raise some more, even when I am having a moan!

 subtle 26 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

Your work colleagues only raised £7 - hmm, either your marketing skills, or your people skills are waaaaaay off!

No offence but I would take it badly if my work colleague only coughed up a sponsorship of £7 and there's only two of us!

 Tall Clare 26 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I'm in a similar position with a sponsored swimming challenge for Diabetes UK, and I agree with what others say - what I'm doing is more than most people do on a weekly basis, but absolute peanuts to 'serious' swimmers; the timescale is too long for most people to get behind, as it's over a three month period; there isn't a specific tangible challenge within the overall challenge (e.g. the equivalent of 'climbing everest at the climbing wall in a day'), though I'm about to announce something that is a genuine personal challenge as part of it; people can't get behind the charity because it's not as 'sexy' as cancer charities, and is less likely to offer an obvious personal connection for people.

I did a 10k a few years ago, my first race, and raised more than I expected for the MS Society - I think people sponsored me because a) they knew the race was a massive big deal for me, and b) the personal angle was that my brother had just been diagnosed. It gave people a personal story to contribute to. 

Post edited at 12:44
 SAF 26 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I already donate to charities of my choice in 2 ways.

1.Donate to charity shops. I have upped my threshold for what I eBay, and therefore donate more and higher quality stuff. I have donated a huge amount in the last few years due to moving house.

2. Donate my time to local causes. Baking cakes, helping out marshelling at local events, local litter pick etc. A lot of events that benefit the community wouldn't happen without people volunteering their time. Rather than using their time to do a challenge for themselves and expecting other people to hand over their money in response to it.

I don't have a massive income, and feel that I give enough. I really don't like have a sponsorship form shoved in my face at work.

 

 

 ebygomm 27 Mar 2018
In reply to Tall Clare:

Off topic - how are you recording your swimming? On an app? Would like to log what i'm doing this year.

 Chris H 27 Mar 2018
In reply to Oogachooga:

I am more inclined to sponsor people if they are actually doing something useful to society like a litter pick or mopping up tramps piss.

In reply to Chris H:

Raising money for Marie Curie, Macmillan Nurses and the like is doing something that's useful for society, albeit down the line from the activity that raises the money.  I suspect that you meant raising money by doing 'something that's immediately useful to my local society'; which is also a valid way to go, even if you'd find it hard to measure accurately the volume of tramp's piss mopped.   

T.

 Tall Clare 27 Mar 2018
In reply to ebygomm:

Diabetes UK seem to trust people to use their record cards and app - but I have a Garmin Vivoactive 3. It’s reasonably accurate but seems to lose two lengths (50m), no matter how far I swim.

 Michael Hood 27 Mar 2018
In reply to Pursued by a bear:

I would have thought dead easy, just keep on squeezing the mop into a measured bucket.


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