Ahead of #GivingTuesday on 29th November, our Founder Ellen explains why working with charities is so important, and why charities should be investing in digital marketing right now.

At Little Seed Group, we love working with charities on their marketing, PR, and social media. We believe that digital marketing plays a key role in helping charities to reach potential donors.

What do you enjoy about charity marketing?

I love to do good through business and knowing that I’m promoting a worthy cause makes my work feel even more worthwhile. 

Through social media and email marketing, I have helped charities to secure donations in the 100Ks. I’ve helped them to recruit new volunteers and raise awareness for their cause. Seeing these results shows me that my work is really making a difference in people’s lives and motivates me to do even more.

What’s the difference between charity marketing versus business marketing?

In business marketing, you’re trying to tell a consumer that a business has something that you need or want. The customer gets something back for their money. Meanwhile, in charity marketing, you’re encouraging a consumer to give something for nothing. Well, at least nothing physical.

Donors can gain emotional satisfaction from knowing that their money is going to make a difference. So, the key goal of charity marketing is to convince potential donors that your cause is worthwhile. You need to prove show them how their donation will have a positive impact.

Has Little Seed Group supported charities in other ways?

Corporate responsibility is super important to us. It would be hypocritical of us to specialise in working with charity clients but turn the other way when it comes to supporting them in other ways. 

In 2019, we completed a 10K charity run for The Island, York, which raised £265. This guaranteed 6 months’ worth of mentoring sessions for a local vulnerable child. 

The Island does fantastic work in supporting children and young people with their social, mental, and physical well-being. In early 2021, I signed up as a mentor. Since then, I’ve taken my mentee on several days out, painting pottery and chocolate tasting online during lockdown. Taking children into these fun and informal settings can really help them to open up and give them a break from their day-to-day.

Why should all businesses take part in charity work?

All businesses have a responsibility to their local community and society as a whole. Businesses have a lot of influence over their audience, which they can use to set an example of charitable behaviour.

Also, consumers are now considering a business’ values more and more when making a purchase. Research from Accenture showed that 63% of consumers prefer to purchase products and services from companies that align with their own values and beliefs and will avoid companies that don’t. 

Consumers want businesses to take a stand on issues that matter to them, and charitable work is a huge part of this. It’s one thing to support a cause through a marketing or PR stunt, but consumers are becoming savvier. They want to know that you’re not just using charitable causes to promote your business. 

They want to see that you’re actually working to make a difference for charitable causes.

Why should charities be investing in marketing and PR services?

Lockdown has had a significant impact on how charities can reach potential donors and beneficiaries. In-person fundraisers and street stalls weren’t possible throughout lockdown and are still difficult to organise as many charities support the clinically vulnerable.

Investing in digital charity marketing can help non-profits to overcome this hurdle by reaching people online. Pandemic aside, digital is becoming a more and more popular method for individuals to connect with charities. #GivingTuesday is a hugely popular online fundraising event, which raised £20.2 million in donations in 2021. In the 2020 Non-profit Leadership Impact Study, 30% of charities surveyed admitted that they didn’t participate, potentially missing out on significant online donations.

The report also revealed that many non-profits don’t have the know-how to get the most out of online fundraising, despite online being many donors’ preferred method of donation. Many potential donors research non-profits before making a donation. So, without a strong online presence, you may lose out on donations.

Charities can lack the in-house knowledge to get the most out of digital platforms like social media and email, and this is where investing in agency services can be really beneficial.