The
huge success of the National Lottery has meant there is greater competition for charitable
donations than ever before. The mainstream charities are already feeling the pinch and
face a tougher job raising funds for charity.
One of the most successful
fund-raising schemes has been the affinity credit card. With major credit card companies
falling over themselves to lend more money, they found the Charity movement a lucrative
outlet. World Wildlife Fund, Cancer Research and The British Heart Foundation all have
their own branded credit cards. Every time it’s used a small fraction of the
transaction value is donated to the charity. Whilst the sums involved are only tiny, a
penny here and there, they soon mount up to millions when the cards are used for
groceries, petrol and clothes.
Another channel for charities to
use is the Internet. E-commerce is set to explode as more and more people realise the
convenience and cost savings of buying online. It is small now, but then the Internet in
the UK has really only been around for 4 years. Estimates for e-commerce in the UK in 1999
is reckoned to hit £660 million in 1999 rising to £4.9 billion by 2001. It is therefore
not surprising that Charities are waking up to the potential.
In the financial services market
Great Ormond Street Hospital in conjunction with netPEP launched the first online Charity
PEP. |
This
was followed up with another link to netPEP with the RNID, the Royal National Institute
for Deaf People. In April 1999 PEPs were replaced with ISAs and the same service was
extended to netISA. The scheme allows investors to take out a low cost ISA and donate
their first year’s annual fee to one of the Charities of their choice. Other charity
schemes have since been announced. Age Concern Financial Services has launched an ISA in
conjunction with CGU. This is aimed at older people and is one of the few ISAs that give
away free life insurance.
Now the latest is from
Ecclesiastical Insurance Group. Another ISA but this time a simple trigger of 0.25% of the
amount invested takes money off to one of seven charities including Victim Support, Relate
and Barnardos.
Another exciting development in
this area of charity fund raising is the recent promotion of free Internet connection
through Vossnet with the Charity Buyers Guide. Apparently 25,000 CDs were posted and
already over 1,000 people have signed up. The way in which the charities benefit is on a
very small fraction of the telephone line cost paid to Cable Internet.
Watch this space. It is almost
certain that Charities will find their way back into the hearts of donors through the
Internet.
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