It looks like I'm not going to get my moment in the sun. There are so many people trying to make comment on the Gambling Harm Reduction Bill that the only slot I could get was in Christchurch, and seeing as I'm based in Wellington, that's not going to happen.
So far the jury is out on whether this Bill will last the distance. My personal feeling is that there may be some sort of middle of the road solution which pops up, and let's face it, no one will be happy. In the meantime we've all been distracted from our real work - fundraising!
I heard an interview on the radio recently about the politics of the Pink Ribbon campaign. You may remember a few years ago in New Zealand that people were complaining that too many companies were tagging along with the Pink Ribbon, for minimal effort and minimal payment. The Breast Cancer Foundation responded to the criticism by putting aside a greater amount of money into research, rather than just focusing on awareness raising. Anyway the whole issue of corporate involvement in charity campaigns will become more transparent with the passing of the Fair Trading Amendment Act recently which will introduce a range of regulations governing fundraising. The most relevant to this issue being transparency around cause related marketing. It may be that corporates will have to disclose how much they are donating to charity through marketing campaigns.
On the corporate side of things, check out the website Business and Community Shares www.bacshares.org.nz This is a new hub of on-line corporate social responsibility (CSR) in New Zealand. There should be some good tools and information useful to fundraisers and also you could get yourself profiled there. Check out the flash survey they've undertaken - "who do you call?".
Also incredible freebies - if your organisation is based in Wellington and you want some help with your website or social media presence - talk to Wellington ICT - they have a fantastic range of volunteers who can help. www.wellingtonict.org.nz
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Corporate Endorsements
Met up with Jo Burrows recently. Jo is director of Rededge Fundraising Solutions, based in Victoria.
Funnily enough, a week later I was looking back on some fundraising resources and found an article by Jo written for the Aus magazine, Fundraising and Philanthropy.
Back then Jo had introduced The Sensitive Choice endorsement for the National Asthma Council in Australia.
The subject of endorsement is a fraught one and I noted that the board of the Asthma Council had asked how they could endorse products in a safe and low risk way.
Endorsements are difficult and should not be entered into without serious consideration of the risks. Too often I find that charities/nonprofits entering into any kind of business relationships fail to do any due diligence or risk assessment.
What should we be looking for?
First I would do a company search through the Companies Office. Check up on the shareholders and directors and their past history. How long has the company been around?
Don't forget the obvious - website and google search. If there is no website, or you can't easily find it, that's a bit of a red flag for me. If you find a website, make sure you look at the history, the annual report if it's attached, and any other links.
Look out for previous media coverage. Have their been any scandals or unfortunate headlines?
If they are reasonably big you might find more information in the Top 200 company's listing which is published in Management Magazine once a year.
Having found all the public information, create a risk register which outlines all the potential risks of partnering with the organisation. Capture all the "What If.s"...Think about things like the company being sued, managers with their hands in the till, product recalls, environmental pollution, bankruptcy etc.
The final thing is to make sure that you are happy to endorse the product or service. That's the absolute bottom line. If you can't eat or drink the product, or stay overnight, or drive the car with a smile on your face, then don't go any further with product endorsements!!!!
Funnily enough, a week later I was looking back on some fundraising resources and found an article by Jo written for the Aus magazine, Fundraising and Philanthropy.
Back then Jo had introduced The Sensitive Choice endorsement for the National Asthma Council in Australia.
The subject of endorsement is a fraught one and I noted that the board of the Asthma Council had asked how they could endorse products in a safe and low risk way.
Endorsements are difficult and should not be entered into without serious consideration of the risks. Too often I find that charities/nonprofits entering into any kind of business relationships fail to do any due diligence or risk assessment.
What should we be looking for?
First I would do a company search through the Companies Office. Check up on the shareholders and directors and their past history. How long has the company been around?
Don't forget the obvious - website and google search. If there is no website, or you can't easily find it, that's a bit of a red flag for me. If you find a website, make sure you look at the history, the annual report if it's attached, and any other links.
Look out for previous media coverage. Have their been any scandals or unfortunate headlines?
If they are reasonably big you might find more information in the Top 200 company's listing which is published in Management Magazine once a year.
Having found all the public information, create a risk register which outlines all the potential risks of partnering with the organisation. Capture all the "What If.s"...Think about things like the company being sued, managers with their hands in the till, product recalls, environmental pollution, bankruptcy etc.
The final thing is to make sure that you are happy to endorse the product or service. That's the absolute bottom line. If you can't eat or drink the product, or stay overnight, or drive the car with a smile on your face, then don't go any further with product endorsements!!!!
Monday, September 3, 2012
Fair Trading Amendment Bill
An amendment to the Fair Trading Act is not exactly exciting news unless you are a serious fundraiser who is keeping your knowledge up to date.
The passing of this legislation is a forewarning of regulation in the charitable sector, forcing transparency of fundraising practices including cost of fundraising. In a nutshell the Bill allows the Minister of Commerce to make regulations requiring organisations and professional fundraising companies to disclose the cost of their fundraising activities.
So there is small window of opportunity to stave off any regulations by ensuring that the sector is open and accountable and fully able to report on the cost of fundraising if required.
The legislation has serious implications for marketers also. As a specialist in corporate/charity relationships I've been frequently annoyed by cause related marketing campaigns which proudly announce that a donation is being made to a charity from a sale of a product or service. "How much?" is rarely explained. the new legislation now brings this under the realm of the Fair Trading Act, and if regulations are introduced, then marketers will need to be aware of what they say about such donations, including how much is being donated.
More information can be found about this legislation in the Fundraising Institute magazine Newz Viewz, August issue.
The passing of this legislation is a forewarning of regulation in the charitable sector, forcing transparency of fundraising practices including cost of fundraising. In a nutshell the Bill allows the Minister of Commerce to make regulations requiring organisations and professional fundraising companies to disclose the cost of their fundraising activities.
So there is small window of opportunity to stave off any regulations by ensuring that the sector is open and accountable and fully able to report on the cost of fundraising if required.
The legislation has serious implications for marketers also. As a specialist in corporate/charity relationships I've been frequently annoyed by cause related marketing campaigns which proudly announce that a donation is being made to a charity from a sale of a product or service. "How much?" is rarely explained. the new legislation now brings this under the realm of the Fair Trading Act, and if regulations are introduced, then marketers will need to be aware of what they say about such donations, including how much is being donated.
More information can be found about this legislation in the Fundraising Institute magazine Newz Viewz, August issue.
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