Getting it Right (Part 2)

I love Comic Relief. Every two years, I give them a load of cash and then sit down to be emotionally destroyed for the evening.

I don't really watch for the comedy which, aside from the occasional gem, is crap. What I love is the way that Comic Relief make everyone, including me, cry about things that really warrant crying about.

As a fundraiser, I also feel a little bit envious. Because Comic Relief don't mess about. The formula is simple. Find a brilliant story, make people cry, show the solution and then make people feel like heroes if they give. Five minutes. No holds barred.

The 'computer says no' school of what can and can't be said or shown is conspicuous by its absence. Want say a child with malaria is 'doomed'? Fine. Want to show a child having febrile convulsions? No problem. Want to show a child dying of Malaria? Get the parents' permission and knock yourself out.

And that's exactly what they did this year. And I'm glad they did. Because for all the tokenism, the enforced jollity and the inevitable appearance of Annie Lennox, Comic Relief rubs all our noses in the misery that is the mirror of our rich, comfortable lives. And I love them for it.

James

Getting it Right

Sometimes it just works. Sometimes, people do exactly what you hope they will do and they do it with such charm and enthusiasm that you wish you could give them a big hug.

That's what happened with this wonderful person when she signed up to WWF's Earth Hour as part of a campaign we're working on with Gift.

If only she'd been signed up by one of our bears...

James

Bear with us

It's been a long time since our last post. And if things go on like this, it may be a while before the next one. So to bring you up to speed, since Tim's slightly idiosyncratic job ad all those weeks ago...

1. We've offered one of the smartest fundraisers we've ever met a job . He said yes and starts in April.
2. We've hired a brilliant project manager called Rebecca. She prefers to be called Wiggy.
3. We've lost the Centrepoint Room Sponsor pitch to The Good Agency.
4. We've both been ill. Fortunately not concurrently.
5. We've been using an Art Director called Sandy. She worked at Apple in California and does stuff for Howies. We are in awe.
6. We've had a nice article written about us by our friends at Harvest.
7. We've completed seven appeals with the help of our wonderful freelance team.
8. We've worked ourselves silly and had a great time.

We've also, as you can see, dressed our children in polar bear suits. More on how this relates to a rather brilliant project will follow at a later date.

Thanks for watching.

Open is recruiting...

It's been a crazy couple of months but things seem to be working really well and it's now time we expand.

There are a number of positions that we need to fill so, in no particular order, we're looking for...

A data analyst proficient in Access, SQL and with a proven record of building propensity models using both on- and off-line data sources. It would be good if you have experience tracking and modeling affiliate and third-party traffic. Not to worry if not.

Experienced fundraisers who feel completely confident developing and managing complicated integrated campaigns. We really need you to have a good sense of how to get the most out of the wonderful web. Ideally you'll have cracked how to recruit new donors, cost effectively at volume, on-line. This will save us an awful lot of time working out how to do it!

A graduate first jobber. Someone who wants to join a new company that is absolutely committed to developing campaigns which will change peoples lives and make the world a better place. You'll need to be a fast learner, want to get involved in every part of the business, have a real 'can do' attitude and be what my mum would call 'emotionally intelligent'.

We are also looking for an account manager to start right away. Today would be great. You'll get to work on a brand new on-line venture, which will bring beneficiaries and donors together, as well as a mass participation campaign for a leading national charity. This is a three-month contract.

Full job descriptions are available. Just send me an email – tim@openfundraising.com – and I'll get right back in touch.

Competitive package, exciting company, lovely people...

Just one rule. No passive aggression. 

To all you web 2 type people...

How?

Please, please, please tell me how on earth you find time to live on planet web. The anxiety that built up within my sensitive soul this Christmas almost sent me over the edge.

When would I find the time to update my Facebook status? And what of any interest would I have to say? Don't even get me started on this bloody blog.

So desperate was I to share my 'oh so exciting life' that I even attempted to climb the Great Orme. Wouldn't that be the best?

"Tim is on top of the world' or more accurately "Tim is carrying three furious kids home". No reception. Damn.

Eventually, at long last I found a few spare minutes. Very, very surreptitiously I sneaked my phone out of my pocket, sitting in the car, with Nicki speeding down the M1, and the millionth Peppa Pig episode on loop in the back, I loaded up Facebook. Now was my time.

But then it happened. My mind went blank. I got world-wide stage fright. I HAD NOTHING TO SAY.

I turned to Nicki, looked at the speedometer and then inspiration hit me. Hallelujah "Tim is going fast".

Happy New Year all you crazy web 2 type people.

Our Further Adventures with Centrepoint

That's Tim and the lovely Debbie Warren of Centrepoint flanking one of our posters. Here are all three of the executions currently gracing London's mainline stations. Click the image to enlarge...


The original versions got banned (which I was secretly very pleased about) but even the toned down ones are pretty hard-hitting.

Or so I thought.

I took this snap at London Bridge on our way home from visiting a Centrepoint project down south of the river. It's run by a wonderful woman called Jenny who, after we'd done the official bit, came to the pub with us for a quick drink.

Now Jenny, through her work, has a unique window on south London's gang culture. And she has a way with words – which made for a series of stories that I still find hard to believe. I'm not going to try to re-tell her tales. But I will tell you one thing. Jenny told us that she'd been to ten funerals this year of young men who died violent deaths. Ten.

So, once again, Centrepoint opened a door for me into a world that I thought I knew about but, as it turns out, didn't. It seems that there's hard-hitting – and then there's truly hard-hitting.

God love you, Jenny. There can't be many people who could do what you do.

James

I love Woolworths

There I've said it and it's true. I have a real fondness, a huge affection, a love for a shop.

I've known Woolies for as long as, well almost anything. This is where my Mum clothed me. This is where I'd 'borrow' the odd sweet, save up and buy my first single, and obsess over those impossibly long felt-tip sets.

Is it just me?

Surely this great institution has been a part of all our lives? And what a sad thought that I might not be able to share those same experiences with my children. I really don't want to watch the reflection of the screen in my son's eyes when we choose his first stationery set.

This is real potent emotion stuffed full of sherbet-smelling nostalgia.

And I know it's not just me. A friend told me the other night that if someone knocked on his door asking for a pound for Woolworths he'd "throw a couple in". Which is an odd thought because he'd probably tell a charity that "times were a bit hard..."

Woolworths and all its Britishness and commercial incompetence might be a million miles from the high street charity but I think there is a lesson to draw on.

My relationship with Woolies started when I was young - it answered my early desires. Perhaps not the clothes but a bag of pick 'n mix and some 80s Pop.

So not surprisingly, I find I have a deeper level of affection for charities that were part of my childhood. I have really fond memories of going out at night with my mum and doing the house to house collection for Barnardo's. It answered my desire to spend time with her, away from my siblings.

Charities should try and engage more with children and their families. Become integral players in childhood memories. I know this might seem like long-term planning but it's really not that long before a child in primary school will be graduating and starting work.

So what went wrong for poor old Woolworths?

Well that's easy. They didn't plan for the long run. They didn't go on-line.