Many people would likely consider themselves as having charitable leanings in one sense or another. Perhaps there are causes that they emotionally support, or perhaps they wish to see more actions being taken by charities. Despite this, not all these people are going to commit to the action of fiscally supporting a charitable cause, which is a distinction very important to the charities themselves.
If you’re a charity, looking to understand how you can convince audiences to make that leap, this information is understandably important to you. Knowing what inclines someone towards acting can inform your strategy, as well as how you go about appealing to these inclinations.
Their Financial Situation
Ultimately, for a lot of people, the answer might be that they don’t feel as though they’ve got the money to spare. That’s not to suggest that they have no disposable income at all, but the priority might simply go towards their own needs and wants. That’s natural, and an expectation that you should account for. However, you might do this by lowering what you’re asking of them, or the regularity. Perhaps by emphasising how much even a small donation can make, people might be more inclined to put that small amount forward, which can then snowball into something significant. Alternatively, you could give them something in return, turning your attention to charity shops and how that model might benefit your cause.
Your Customer Service
This might sound strange to you, as you’re not a business, and the idea of customer service can feel less important when everyone involved is trying to support the same cause. However, it might make a huge difference, in much the same way it would in business. Ensuring that you’re equipped to handle all the interactions and donations that might come your way can mean that each person who makes this leap is receiving the kind of quality engagement that can make their action feel worthwhile – potentially encouraging them to do so again in the future.
You might struggle to take care of all of this with the team that you have available, but this charity response handling is something that you can outsource – giving you the comfortable knowledge that your audiences are in the hands of seasoned professionals.
Alternatives to Financial Support
Of course, it might not just be the financial support that you’re looking for. Some charities are going to care more about volunteering. The nature of this might be susceptible to change – from volunteering in a storefront to working with other volunteers on conservation efforts – but your approach can vary here due to the difference in the resource being offered. It’s time and effort for people to volunteer instead of money, and while that might sound like a bigger ask, the rewarding sense of satisfaction that they get out of volunteering might be a reward in and of itself. Volunteers get to feel as though they’re genuinely making a difference, and that’s something that might even give their mental health a boost, making the transaction between you mutually beneficial.
