Report slams charities' online strategies

Precision Marketing

27 May 2008

Back to Press coverage

Charities rely too heavily on passive online fundraising tactics like ‘donate now’ buttons that are a decade out of date, and fail to engage with habits, interests and lifestyles of the 21st century donor, according to a new report.

The research has been carried out by nfpSyngery, working with MissionFish – the group behind eBay for Charity and supported by the Institute of Fundraising.

The report has been published to mark the relaunch of eBay for Charity, which has so far raised £5m for charitable causes. The new eBay for Charity platform is the result of a 12-month project and will mean that every eBay user can donate to charity in a couple of clicks whenever they sell on eBay.

MissionFish UK chief executive Nick Aldridge says: “An online strategy now involves far more than ‘click here to donate’. The Web is full of possibilities, but charities – large and small – need passion, persistence and partnerships to effectively reap its rewards.”

Joe Saxton, nfpSynergy’s driver of ideas, adds:“Ten years ago, when the Internet was shiny, new and fast-proliferating, many charities thought they could just sit back and watch the money roll in.

“While they sat back, society – not least young, affluent professionals – did almost everything else online apart from click-and-donate. They paid bills, went shopping, bought cars, sought love – increasingly accessing the Web where-ever and when-ever they wanted. And what a missed bounty of opportunity for those charities unwilling or unable to mirror and integrate with this lifestyle – complete with its blogs and social network spaces – first engaging with potential donors where their interests and habits lie and, thereby, over time, subsequently motivating them to donate, whether on or offline.”

Back to Press coverage