Fundraising Issues of the day

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

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.