The public has spoken (well 1,000 people on research consultancy nfpSynergy’s Charity Awareness Monitor have) and these are the 10 things they think charities should and should not be doing ...
1. Charities should never have a London office
It doesn’t matter if there is a ‘Pret’ on every street corner for lunch - 68% of people surveyed described London offices as “wasteful”.
- I guess they have a point if it’s an exclusively Scottish charity but if you are part of a UK wide organisation then I’m not so sure there is a problem.
2. Your charity should get staff to work a day a month for free
Break into your savings - one in ten of those surveyed said they think staff should work a day a month for free.
- One in ten people clearly don’t have bills to pay like the rest of us.
3. Your charity should never rebrand
Put down the pens and pencils and stop drawing a fancy new logo - 67% of people surveyed didn’t see the point in rebranding.
- Bit of a sore one for Breast Cancer Now but personally I think it is a good thing when similar charities rebrand and come together to strengthen the work they do.
4. Your charity should lobby
45% of those surveyed think it’s “worthwhile” for charities to lobby government or other organisations.
- I’m surprised it’s not higher.
5. Your charity should never travel 1st class to meetings
Get back in cattle class - 51% of people surveyed said they don’t like to think of staff travelling first class on expenses.
- Can’t really argue with that!
6. Your charity should advertise
Not every charity can afford a billboard but 56% of those surveyed are happy for the charity they donate to, to spend money on advertising.
- If you are trying to raise awareness of your cause then advertising can help you do that.
7. Your charity should never pay staff more than £50,000 per year
No more fat cats - 45% of those surveyed said they would feel more confident if the charity they donated to didn’t pay any staff more than £50,000 a year.
- This debate has been around for a while - I will happily keep out of it.
8. Your charity should allow volunteers to have a big say in how things are run
49% of those surveyed would feel confident if charities were run mostly by volunteers.
- Volunteers are crucial to almost every charity but so are paid staff.
9. Your charity should never pay for the staff Christmas party
Cancel Christmas - 21% of those surveyed said they would feel more confident if the charity they donated to didn’t pay for staff to have a Christmas party.
- Bah humbug!
10. Your charity should have a decent website
61% of those surveyed are happy for the charity they donate to, to spend money on developing a website.
- Like advertising, websites are a great way for a charity to get their message out there.
