Volunteer, Why?

All sorts of people volunteer for many different reasons, but one thing that unites them all is that they find it challenging, rewarding and varied.

Volunteering can add a great deal to your life and the lives of those for whom you volunteer. It offers you a chance to become involved in a project or with an organisation you really care about as well as an opportunity to meet new and like-minded people. It also gives you the chance to try out something different to your 'everyday' job, which may lead on to new career options.

Community groups and organisations benefit from the input of volunteers by gaining a new and valued perspective on their work as well as the precious resource of time. Even a small commitment can have a lasting effect on an organisation and the people it represents.

Here are some of the reasons why people chose to volunteer:

• Make a positive difference
• Gain skills
• Make new friends
• Have fun
• Keep busy
• Use existing skills
• Gain work experience
• Give something back
• Sample a career
• Do something different from paid job

Volunteering opportunities come in many different guises, from long-term regular commitments to one-off individual or group projects. Above all, it’s a chance to make a real difference. If you would like to volunteer or even explore what it could mean for you please get in touch with me.

Fundraising in hard times

As bad as this economic downturn has been for us all, chairites who survive will have learned lessons that will prove invaluable later, whether times are good or times are bad. Here are some tips I have collected over the past few years.

I’d be interested in hearing your experiences.

Which ones have you tried?

Can you add to the list?

1. Don't become or sound desperate.Instead, emphasise to your donors that every year, good or bad, your needs continue. Don't talk about grand plans for expansion, but do talk about solid plans for today. Don't lose your enthusiasm and optimism about your cause. Donors will notice and pull back if they think that you, the fundraiser, have doubts.
2. Prove that you are responsible. Let your donors know that you are doing your part by being financially responsible. Cut costs where you can, make sure you have good controls in place, and that you are examining marginal programs. Keep your money safe and avoid risky investments. Don’t do an Iceland!
3. Don't give up on your corporate and cause-marketing activities. Gifts may decrease, but keep your corporate contacts strong. It is very hard to get back on the corporate charitable list if you are dropped. Avoid this by staying visible, and keep cultivating your contacts within the company. Likewise, don't give up on cause-related marketing. Companies are finding that these activities pay off for them with consumer loyalty. Remember too that just because a company's stock price has been depressed doesn't mean that it is not a strong company. Look at the balance sheet to identify companies that are in a good position, and that will likely come back strong from the economic meltdown.
4. Diversify your funding sources by identifying all types of financial support. Avoid depending on one or two major donors or trusts. Most charitable giving is made up of small donations. If you are not doing direct mail to a large base of supporters, start working toward doing so. Use the Internet to reach more people. The cost is low so that donations can be smaller. Those add up quickly. Explore payment options with low transaction costs and online donation sites.
5. Put your fundraising programs under the microscope. Determine which fundraising programs work best and are the most efficient in terms of resources. Then cut the least efficient ones and shift those resources to the ones that are doing the most good. Maybe that big special event eats up precious time and resources for very little return. Or the promotion you started last year just doesn't seem worth the time and effort. But, don't let the money and volunteer time you use in those efforts just dissipate. Put them to use by expanding the annual campaign or making more major donor calls or doing another planned giving seminar.
6. Don't pull the plug on major campaigns, but do slow down. If you were starting a capital campaign when the economic crisis hit, don't stop. But do slow down. Recognise that getting those lead gifts in the size you want will take longer and be dependent on how the economy is doing. If you ask for a multi-year gift, and the donor resists, fall back to asking for part of that gift now, and plan to go back later for the rest. Donors are understandably shy about making long-term commitments in this economic environment.
7. Keep up your marketing and PR. Building buzz about your good work will help you with your donors. The more they know and see your name about, the more likely they are to contribute to your cause. Got PR professionals on your board or committees? Seek their advice before you launch anything big. Let them organize a PR/Marketing Committee that might bring in other professionals to help. See if their firms can do pro bono work or work at a discount. This kind of help is really priceless.

Volunteering in the new Millennium

I've been reading how volunteering is changing. The figures seem to say that the days when charities could pick out the jobs that needed to be done and hand them to unpaid but willing recruits are over. According to Cabinet Office national survey on volunteering and giving from 2007 volunteers do give less time than they used to, volunteers spent an average of 4.05 hours per week in their role in 1997, but only 2.75 hours a decade later.

It seems that in the past, people volunteered in fundraising because they were committed to a cause. Now they want to have an idea of what the money they raise is spent on. They're businesslike and they expect tangible outcomes. They want a bigger role. They're not content with being given tasks. They want to innovate and come up with ideas for new fundraising strategies.

The increase of employer-supported volunteering has also encouraged this trend. The survey found that only 16 per cent of respondents in 1997 said their employers ran volunteering schemes, but 36 per cent said this was the case in 2007. It found that employees have specific demands: 43 per cent want "personal achievement" and 41 per cent to enjoy volunteering.

It is intereting to look at why people dont volunteer;

• Not enough spare time- 42%.
• Put off by bureaucracy- 42%.
• Worried about risk and liability – 39%.
• Not got the right skills/ experiences- 35%.
• Would not be able to stop once I got involved- 31%.
• Worried about threat to safety- 31%.

A lot of charities have changed the way they work in response to these developments. In 1997, 71 per cent of volunteers said their work could be better organised, but only 31 per cent said the same in 2007.

I'm delighted to say that charities themselves are becoming increasingly professional in their work. All of this means the task of attracting volunteers has now become as much a marketing challenge as anything else.

Having reported on the figures I find that my charity, Wessex Heartbeat, seems to be bucking the trend. Our volunteers, although small in number at the moment, are willing to do what ever they can to help. It is true that they need to see how their work makes a difference and they need to be appreciated. However, this applies to us all, doesn't it?