{"id":4251253,"date":"2020-05-06T11:33:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-06T09:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.deptagency.com\/insight\/a-digital-route-to-recovery-for-the-third-sector\/"},"modified":"2020-05-06T11:33:00","modified_gmt":"2020-05-06T09:33:00","slug":"a-digital-route-to-recovery-for-the-third-sector","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.deptagency.com\/en-uki\/insight\/a-digital-route-to-recovery-for-the-third-sector\/","title":{"rendered":"A digital route to recovery for the third sector"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\t\n\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tBack to all articles\t\t<\/span>\n\t\n<\/button>\n\t\tA digital route to recovery for the third sector\t<\/h1>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/picture>\n\t\n\t<\/div>
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\n\t\tAlexandra Moorhouse\t\t
\n\t\tMarketing Director, UK&I\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t6 May 2020\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\tHeadlines across the globe have called the Coronavirus pandemic the \u2018perfect storm\u2019 for charities and nonprofits; crucial fundraising streams have been severely impacted, while demand for services has increased. In a\u00a0survey by the UK\u2019s Institute of Fundraising<\/a>, 43% of the 1,100 respondents reported an increase in demand for their services, with 48% facing a decline in voluntary income.\t<\/h2>\n\n\n\t\tIt\u2019s estimated that charities will miss out on at least \u00a34.3bn of income in 12 weeks. Even in the midst of these hardships, 84% of charities think their organisation could play a role in responding to Covid-19. And to do more with less, they\u2019ve turned to digital.\t<\/p>\n\n\n\t\tImaginative approach to lockdown fundraising\t<\/h2>\n\n\n\t\tMany charities would normally expect to make significant proportions of their income from public fundraising events in spring and summer, but with social distancing measures in place and many functions cancelled, they\u2019re at risk of hitting a financial wall.

The London Marathon is the biggest mass-participation sports event in the UK and raised a record \u00a366.4 million last year. When organisers decided to postpone the 2020 race, charities rallied together in an attempt to help make up the losses by launching the\u00a02.6 challenge<\/a>\u00a0on Sunday 26 April \u2013 what should have been the date of the 40th edition of the London Marathon. It encouraged people to become a \u2018Home Hero\u2019 by staying in and participating in the 2.6 challenge.

It was designed for all ages and abilities, and social media feeds became filled with people skipping, swimming, lifting weights, counting, juggling and hula-hopping.\u00a0Sports stars and celebrities<\/a>\u00a0across the UK got involved, including\u00a0Stephen Fry<\/a>, Ellie Goulding and Olympian Jessica Ennis-Hill.\u00a0

The total amount raised was over \u00a39.5million and helped hundreds of charities across the country. The support demonstrated the power of social media campaigns and teaming up as a sector. As a takeaway, charities of all sizes are\u00a0amplifying their social media play\u00a0with creative campaigns and engagement-led strategies, involving the introduction of campaign microsites and a mix of organic and paid posts to drive traffic.\u00a0\t<\/p>\n\n\n\t\tOpening up new revenue streams\t<\/h2>\n\n\n\t\tSmaller charities may not benefit from having marketing teams or advanced digital technology, but they are proving their resilience through opening up new fundraising streams. For example, Manchester homeless charity, Coffee4Craig may not be able to operate it\u2019s daily drop-in centre, but it\u2019s working behind the scenes with services and key players in the private sector to ensure the city\u2019s most vulnerable are not forgotten.\u00a0

On its new website,\u00a0designed and built by Dept<\/a>\u00a0this year, Amazon Wishlists were incorporated enabling people to purchase selected items that Coffee4Craig need, such as disposable razors and warm clothing. By making the wishlist more prominent on-site, another barrier to donation was successfully broken.\u00a0

This strategy is being incorporated widely across the sector, as charity shops are an important source of income and have to shut their doors. Collectively, Save the Children, CRUK, British Heart Foundation and Oxfam run a total of more than 2,000 shops in the UK and plenty of these are opening other avenues to raise funds, involving eBay, social media shops and Amazon.\u00a0\t<\/p>\n\n\n\t\tRamping up digital communications hub\t<\/h2>\n\n\n\t\tThe impact of Covid-19 on organisations in the voluntary sector or working on the frontline in healthcare, education or public services has sparked a subtle shift away from their core offering, or required them to launch entirely new initiatives and products in order to have a greater impact in the current situation.\u00a0

People on the government\u2019s shielded patients list (SPL) are at high risk of developing complications from COVID-19, and the organisations that support their conditions are facing a rapidly changing landscape. For example, all cancer screening services were paused, heavily impacting research and diagnosis.\u00a0Cancer Research UK<\/a>\u00a0is concerned about the hidden impact of the coronavirus and how it will jeopardise treatment with a\u00a0\u00a0backlog<\/a>\u00a0when services are able to reopen.\u00a0

Cancer Research UK has teamed up with charity partners to create a knowledge hub and communication channel to listen to patients, carers and supporters, to understand their concerns and relay information. Macmillian Cancer Support has created\u00a0a similar channel<\/a>, and both have a nurse hotline available to call for on-demand support.\u00a0

Cancer Research and Macmillan are best case examples, but there is a broad mix in the depth of information available for high risk groups across the charity and healthcare sector. When researching and reviewing subsector organisations, we found a lack of practical guidance, such as how to cope with self-isolating, or how to access financial support and priority delivery services.

If a human factor was added to the Covid information being published,\u00a0 it would be interesting to see how engagement rates increased. Perhaps an interactive quiz would encourage people to receive tailored support. Could a live chatbot help those too shy to voice their concerns over a call?\u00a0
Understandably, these organisations are working in high-gear to support the NHS and are doing incredible things. Introducing new technology for external communications isn\u2019t the biggest priority in these challenging times, but by raising the benchmark now, it sets a higher standard for the future. When launching a new endeavour in these times, there\u2019s no need to be overwhelmed in lengthy projects and digital roadmaps;\u00a0move fast, pivot quickly and reach customers digitally.

When you need to publish and share vital information quickly, having the right digital technology to support a fast route-to-market is invaluable. Being able spin up microsites, FAQs and searchable content quickly has been a priority for many organisations on the frontline. There\u2019s been no time for lengthy IT involvement, and those whose sites aren\u2019t built in a CMS (or are built in clunky, older systems) will be feeling the strain right now.\u00a0

Luckily, the tech sector has stepped up to help. For example,\u00a0DEPT\u00ae teamed up with\u00a0Episerver\u00a0to launch a \u2018Rapid Deployment\u2019 package<\/a>\u00a0for its Experience Platform, which includes all of the core features of content management and search, launched on a globally scalable, secure cloud infrastructure. The out-of-the-box template makes it easy to customise the website\u2019s user experience, so that new sites that are on-brand can be spun up very quickly.\u00a0\t<\/p>\n\n\n\t\tDigital is instrumental to recovery\t<\/h2>\n\n\n\t\tEvery sector is facing\u00a0unique challenges imposed by the coronavirus pandemic;\u00a0from falling revenues to sharp increases in demand, but no industry can compare to the tribulation frontline organisations are withstanding. They\u2019ve stepped up to underpin the NHS, and help those who need support the most.

The charitable sector was facing a crisis even before the pandemic. The best fundraising tactic right now is expediting digital transformation, enabling these organisations to talk to people in new engaging ways that build loyalty.

\u00a0The Future Charity<\/a>\u00a0thinktank surveyed 105 people currently employed in the UK charity sector from a wide range of organisations and 87% of respondents agreed that \u201csupporter expectations will change significantly over the next ten years<\/em>\u201d. In the report, Cait Allen, Chief Executive Wessex Cancer Trust, said: \u201cBrand loyalty isn\u2019t what it once was. Our traditional, loyal, supporters are in their 80s and 90s now. Millennials are changing the ways they interact with charity and generation Z are purely instant givers. Charities have to completely rethink their strategy to survive in the digital era<\/em>.\u201d

Traditional communication and fundraising methods are evolving, and there\u2019s no better time than now to speed up digital roadmaps and pave the way for recovery.\u00a0\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n\t