The end of Fundraising Recession Watch...

Well, not quite. But I am not getting enough new stuff from other sources, and have lots of other blogs / newsletters and things to keep up to date so will only occasionally add things here. It will remain as a resource, a lot of useful articles and links here worth searching through.

Any new information will go up on my blog. Please subscribe to its feeds!

In the mean time, check out this recession busting story here all about Starlight and how they reacted to the crisis in Australia - including a pack they put out telling people how they had been affected. They raised over 100% more than last year!

You can download the entire pack and follow up letter here.

Mal Warwick liked it so much he featured it in his most recent newsletter.

You can also follow me on Twitter where I will highlight useful stuff occasionally. @seantriner.

Sean

Recession increasing demand on two-thirds of Australian charities

According to their recent survey, Aussie charity research agency Givewell tells us that "almost two-thirds of charities have experienced a material increase in the demand for their services for the 2009 financial year, with a near 5% increase in demand for the important services the charity sector provides."

Of the Humanitarian charities, and astonishing 100% said they had an increased demand, but only 63% blame the recession. Ninety-one per cent of welfare organsations said they had an increased demand and 78% blamed the recession. Of community support organisations, 76% said they had experienced increased demand and the same number blamed the recession.

You can get hold of the report summary here, and I thoroughly recommend subscribing - especially if you are an Australian charity or agency.

UK Trusts show commitment - or do they?

Two apparently contradictory stories in the current Charity Times Enewsalert:

"Falls in grant-making and asset value for top charities
New analysis of the impact of the recession on charity fundraising shows 41 percent of the top 300 charitable trusts saw a fall in the value of their grant-making in 2008..."

Says one intro but another report in the same Enewsalert says...

"Charitable trusts show commitment to supporting charities, reveals report
Charitable trusts and foundations realise now is not the time to turn off the tap of support for Britain’s charities, according to new research published today by the Charity Commission"

Reading on I hoped that maybe they weren't contradictory, with maybe just eye-catching headlines, and talking about different things - but no, they are totally at odds with each other.

The first, by ESRC Centre for Charitable Giving and Philanthropy at Cass Business School, London looked at the biggest charities and trusts. Charity Times tells us "Her results indicate grant-making by the major charitable trusts has been maintained as a result of gifts and endowments received over the last decade, but this is a hidden ‘time bomb’."

And then, the research by the Charity Commission says "There was a clear indication from these trusts that levels of grant-making are, despite the recession, being sustained.The report also found that trusts and foundations had adopted a sustainable approach which would allow them to offer this vital support not just now, but into the future."

Hmmn. Well, if you have a report to the board coming up, you can use either story to back up whatever case you are plumming for - just hope your board members don't subscribe to Charity Times!'

The good news story is here, and the bad one here. Take your pick.

Australian Tax Time Appeal Analysis

For most Australian charities who mail DM appeals, our winter appeals (May-June) are often the most important, often more so than Christmas. These are known as 'tax appeals' because the end of the tax year is 30 June.

Fiona Paterson, data expert and senior consultant at Pareto Fundraising analysed a load of charities actual results - and it makes for good reading.

Has the recession hit Australian individual giving yet?

Check out the article here.

Sean

Donor attitudes to giving in the credit crunch

Jonathan Waddingham, Charity Champion* at JustGiving sent me some research on donor attitudes in the UK, so an update. Data is from April.

Charities have raised over AUD$1bn through JustGiving so you'd hope he has good transactional data too... (I much prefer transactional data to opinion, but that's just my opinion).

Bottom line:

1. Slightly more people say they have been affected financially by the recent economic downturn (now 58%, 52% in Jan/Feb)
2. Slightly more say they are thinking harder about how much to give - now 57%, up from 47% in Jan/Feb.
3. The majority - 61% - are not reconsidering their gifts but 31% say they may consider giving a little less.

In summary:

"Throughout the first quarter of 2009, a number of trends have started to emerge. As time has gone on, more people have been affected by the credit crunch and, presumably as a consequence, reflected on their charitable giving as part of their personal finances. Encouragingly, more people have indicated that they will be giving more than those cutting back a lot, or stopping giving. However, in the last month, there has only been one large shift in the monitor – with more saying that they will be giving slightly less compared to March.

"We have seen over the first 3-4 months that more people are willing to cut down on household expenses than charitable giving, as well as the heartening statistic that 8% of those who have been affected by the economic downturn and thought harder are actually giving more. So whilst the downturn is certainly having an effect, the majority are still planning to give the same over the next three months, and the outlook is not as gloomy as many have predicted."

JustGiving are being a bit slack in publishing the latest info (I know, they are busy!) but email them to get the latest updates.

(*Imagine explaining to your mum that your job title is 'Charity Champion'. She'd be so chuffed.)

FIA release their 'Managing in a Downturn' report

The Fundraising Institute Australia (FIA), PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Centre for Social Impact collaborated in this comprehensive survey, conducted in April and May 2009.

Focusing on the impact that the last six months has had on the sector and the anticipated future impact, the survey was completed by 263 organisations.

Click here to download a PDF of the report.

Funding strategically during a recession

Fascinating report from The Institute for Philanthropy talking to donors and funders and offering them ten tips to maintain their giving in recession.

Download the report here.

Jan