| | Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks Page 1 of 1 | Ok so before anyone thinks I’m a Scrooge…...I’m not !!!
I happily give money to my CHOSEN charities. I donate twice a year to two medical charities, I often buy raffles tickets from organisations that have a car, house or holiday for up for grabs ( Oh sure I would like to win ) , throw money at the tin rattlers at the traffic lights or at the railway station (this btw is costing me a small fortune each week but you know) and always give money to the Salvos each Red Shield appeal – I often don’t get a receipt for my donations (for tax purposes) and I’m ok with that– I throw some gold coin around whenever I can... because I work and I’m lucky !!!. I have been indeed fortunate in my life that I’ve never had to draw on these charities for their services, but I do know of people that have (especially during the Black Saturday fires in Victoria in 2009). I’m sure most Australian are like me…give when they can, what they can…
And no one would doubt the great work that these charities do and I reckon one of the hardest jobs going would be those people who work for charities, that have to organise fund raising, come up with new ideas to promote their charities, approach sponsors – cap in hand etc…Yes I reckon is must be getting harder and harder to chase the public’s money, but today I saw a novel approach which actually **** me off !!!
I logged into my work email today (so this charity didn’t not have my personal details but my work address) and the very well-known charity used the slogan – “Do something good with your tax dollar this year “
Now this charity is extremely well known and no doubt do very commendable work. Under the slogan stated, they then went on to quote 6 impressive statistics regarding the work they do and why one should donate…the statistics were no doubt accurate and scary but fair enough…..
But this is what annoyed me
They then went onto say this
“”We are seeking donations over $50 and every donation over $100 goes into a draw to win an Iphone4”
I’m sorry – I imagine trying to raise bucks would be super hard work , but now your after my tax return ???…is that not for me to decide how I spend it ?? - but what I found really offensive was the “We are seeking donations over $50” – WHAT??? Is my $20 bucks not good enough anymore ???????????????????????? I’m sure if I say elect to give that same $20 bucks elsewhere , for instance to say Surf Lifesaving who rely heavily on sponsorship and donations as they receive no government funding (to the best of knowledge) , will they spit my $20 bucks back at me…or accept it graciously.
My question to forum readers is – Do you agree with charities setting MINIMUM amount donations like the one I just mentioned or like me, do you think the charity should be “grateful” for ANY monies received – does that wording discourage you from donating (as it has me to this charity now) to them and how do you feel that they are now appealing for your tax return..?
Your thoughts | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 1:54:01 AM | I can understand the annoyance but seeking doesn't mean minimum. Its just what they're hoping for. I'm sure they'll take your $20.
Also, I think you may have misunderstood re. tax. They may not be after your tax return, they may be saying you will be able to claim a tax deduction on whatever you give to them and will increase your tax return (but by a lesser amount than what you donated). Though again, I don't think they would decline you donating your tax return as well.
What you are basically doing is paying the full amount with post-tax dollars and claiming a tax refund to claw back the tax on the money donated. That part that would have gone to the govmint as tax has been diverted to the charity. ie. "Doing something good with your tax dollar." Of course lost interest and opportunity cost for the period between when you pay the full amount and when you get the tax return are not refunded by the govmint. So donate towards the end of the financial year and claim it straight back.
There are some charities that promote a regular salary sacrifice donation, so it is taken out pre-tax to get around this problem. Tip: A good employer can be approached to make matching contributions! | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 2:46:15 AM | You are quite rite with all you said Ginger, totally agree and I did understand it however personally I didn't like their approach but then that's me. Thanks for your comment though
Cheers | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 3:32:41 AM | I donate to two charities by direct debit (Devil Ark and I sponsor Tasmanian Devils at Taronga Zoo) each fornight and to the RSPCA at the end of the financial year.
I do it because I really want to first and foremost and also for the tax return at the end of the year too.
Out of the three charities it is the RSPCA who approaches me every two months to donate more and as much as I would like to, I simply can't.
The minimum appears to be $20 for all of them and they also promote "for such and such an amount you can do this that and the other" (The amount happens to be $1500 a year!)
I make no attempt to save humans but furry animals get me every time! | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 4:53:26 AM |
I make no attempt to save humans but furry animals get me every time!
Ah HA! I knew it was the fur. Now scientists only need to breed furless rats and then no-one will care about using them for animal testing.
For charities, all they need to do is breed furrier animals to get more donations. | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 5:09:16 AM |
Out of the three charities it is the RSPCA who approaches me every two months to donate more and as much as I would like to, I simply can't.
And therein lies my point..would it be fair to say, Noxious that you feel a little like I do ?..your happy to give..maybe via a DD like you do or throw some gold in a tin, but now they are telling you how much they want/how to pay it, can they have more ? etc...like when does it end ? and are we "guilted into giving "?
Im not against charities persay, not at all, but this new aggressive approach to netting your dollar is (in my opinion) offputting.
The charity I wrote of today, is not one that I would normally support and I do think we support the charities that we have had connections with, either personally or via others but in lite of the email I received today, I feel strongly enough not to donate to them . I agree with all that Ginger said, however I found their aggressive targeting out of line (oh and I get a chance to win a iphone if I donate above $100 - If I can afford to do that..good chance I already have a Iphone !!) ...and accordingly I will continue donating to all that I do now..and even though I know that this charity does fantastic work, I personally think they should relook at their marketing strategies...
All my work colleagues received this email as well today and it was the topic of discussion in the staff tea room...out of approx 18 people at lunch today, 12 also found it also offensive and annoyed that somehow they got our email addresses.....6 didnt - of that 6 - 4 had had direct dealings with this charity, 2 hadnt...I thought that was rather interesting.. | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 7:07:59 AM | I always find the "Chasing " of charities a little off putting .
Dont get me wrong , I have contributed to many worthwhile organisations in the last 30 odd years , but I just kinda feel my donation should be spent on doing the actual WORK of the charity , not paying a casual labourer to make phone calls , etc etc , drumming up more funds .
I was astounded just today to recieve a phonecall from a NZ based call centre soliciting funds for a well known charity ( only revealed after some questioning by me ) , so not only did this charity outsource their fund raising campaign , they 'Offshored " it as well ?
I will support ANY charity that is volunteer run and based , but I think the corporatisation of most major charities these days is doing them a disservice rather than any favour
P.S. my charity of choice for the last few years has been Riders for Health ... or the motorcycle doctors .... the charity works in tandem with Medicines San Frontiers in Africa to provide a motorcycle based health service
www.riders.org
79% is directly injected into the on ground program , 2% on governance , and 19% on admin, fundraising, and infrastructure ..... | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 6:26:00 PM | I make no attempt to save humans but furry animals get me every time!
I can relate to that sentiment. They are vulnerable and defenceless in a human dominated world. The two charities who have my credit card number are The Wildnerness Society and WSPA because they do good work and get results. I also sponsor a really cool pig who managed to escape from an abatoir and lives at Edgar's mission...I love a good rebel. I'll also be signing up with Animals Australia when I start earning decent money again.
Pooks I understand your sentiment to an extent. The Wilderness Society called me a while back to ask me to increase my monthly donation, and it made me feel pressured. Only because I'm not getting much work anymore and my income is about half of what it was before the GFC,...so I can recognise that it's that, rather than them, that has me feeling pressured. From their point of view...you don't ask, you don't get. Same principle used by McDonalds when they ask 'do you want fries with that'...enough people say yes to make it a worthwhile exercise. Actually I'm considering volunteering my time to shake a tin for them, seeing as I have a bit more of that than I used to...but maybe that's a task best performed by buxom Swedish backpackers who can stop traffic. 
I agree with the comments made about donations getting sucked up by admin and bureaucracy. I think it's pretty hard to avoid that though. Someone has to manage the money, the labour, the campaigns, deal with red tape, etc because they cannot exist in isolation to how the rest of the world works. And I have no issue with people working for charities getting paid...they may well have chosen that careerpath because of their passion to help, but they have to eat and pay bills too. Not everyone is able to manage a paid job, a family, and squeeze in some volunteer work. My brother is currently living in Zimbabwe, volunteering (no pay) with the International Anti-poaching Foundation who are trying to save rhinos ( because they are just so cute and furry ) from Asian markets who think rhino horn gives better erections or cures cancer or something. He wanted to feel like he was 'doing more' than just donating as an armchair activist. So he's now living in the middle of a reserve near a bunch of noisy hippos in a tent that he desperately hopes is lion-proof.  But in his last communication he was griping about the bureaucracy and red-tape that is causing lions to be left to starve outside the reserve because it takes so long to get a permit to bring them in that they die in the meantime...whilst they fuss over stuff like getting a road graded. Not that the govt in Zimbabwe is one you'd like to try to push...and they need road infrastructure to be able to get around....but still...the point is that even those on the ground can't always get done what they want to get done.
But I guess if you believe in a cause and donating money leaves fears that it won't go where it will do the intended good, maybe donating goods might feel more relevant? I recently donated 28 dog coats to an animal shelter cos I specifically wanted to help keep some dogs warm during winter. I know they need money for building better kennels and food and wages etc, but I perceived that as being a direct way to give some dumped dogs a small measure of comfort..it's so cold lately, and they sleep on concrete. :( | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/6/2012 11:31:34 PM | My major charity is the Smith Family Learning for life.
If you are not familiar with it, you sponsor a child in Australia, and provide money for the little extras like an excursion, football, extra books, school uniform etc
Extras to help keep the child in school and give them the things that otherwise perhaps mum / dad cannot afford so the child is the same as everyone else.
I am on my 3rd child and I have just been informed that he intends to go to University next year - hooray!!!
And they have asked me to increase my sponsorship to help with the added costs of Uni vs school.
Primary is the lowest cost and I have stayed with each child encouraging them to continue with their schooling throughout.
I am so proud of 'my student' that I will gladly find the extra.
Charities are struggling for every dollar so they come up with new ideas to grab your money before you either spend it or give it to a different charity. | |
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| Charities - Chasing YOUR Bucks
Posted: 6/15/2012 4:35:12 AM | I think it worth mentioning that a lot of Charitiable Institutions "outsource" or employ a "Trader" to conduct their fundraising appeals. The advantage for them is in the Traders ability to manage, organise and run a high profile and intense campaign to generate, hopefully, high returns. The downside is they could sacrifice of up to 60% of the take to the Trader Organisation for "expenses". Next to this is the open opportunity for the Trader Organisation to collect and store donor details for further exploitation "down the track" when they sign up another Tax Registered Charity for their next campaign .... hence the repeated calls for funds from several charities after you donate over the phone ( how did they know me???)
This is all legal too ... look up "sweet charity" on the ATO website ..... explains it all.
When I hand over the cash I make sure it ALL goes to the charity ... Go direct !! | |
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