Who really gives a toss?

If you're wondering where we've gone...

2011-08-31T06:20:00.000-07:00

...we're now over here on our lovely new website.

Not that we've worked out how to blog there yet.

But have a look around, find out what we actually do, and someone will be along to blog shortly. (Picture shamelessly stolen from Gaping Void. Sorry.)

Richard

United for Unicef

2011-08-11T08:28:00.000-07:00

Time to Share

2011-08-11T05:51:00.000-07:00

Fingers Crossed...

2011-08-11T01:02:00.001-07:00

Aw Shucks...

2011-08-07T23:58:00.000-07:00

Little Room

2011-08-05T04:34:00.000-07:00

I'm at home trying to write our website.

I have 120 words to tell the 'Open Story'.

I'm very tempted to just embed this instead.

James

What have we been up to?

2011-07-26T09:56:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, you may have noticed, we've been a little absent from the blog recently. We're not being intentionally neglectful, we've just fallen into the busy summer months!

This means we're after more freelance creatives to get us through to the new year. If you are one or know of one, drop us an email. We want some very clever and very confident designers to get up and running immediately. And we're always on the lookout for experienced charity copywriters! More about working at Open, here.

Meanwhile, here's a little update of what we've been up to though...

- A very exciting re-brand and identity project for the British Heart Foundation, working with the wonderful illustrator Laura Barrett.

- New supporter magazines for Action for Children and the British Heart Foundation. You is glue.

- Hiring account managers to replace the recently departed Rebecca and Caty.

- Lots of work with existing clients on our Connected mobile regular-giving product, as well as lots of selling to some exciting new clients (more on that to come, I'm sure...)

- Preparing for a mammoth amount of Christmas appeals and associated work.

We're also very close to having to a new website, but more on that soon...

Richard

Charity Peter

2011-07-20T06:51:00.000-07:00

What the chuff is Vic doing with our Charity Peter?

Matt

God Love the Irish

2011-07-15T06:12:00.000-07:00

One week. One letter. One million Euros and counting...

Concern worldwide is way ahead of target and we couldn't be happier. The economy may be failing, but the generosity of the Irish people seems to be alive and well.

James

Sack Your Creative Agency

2011-07-07T02:35:00.001-07:00

The secret is out. We generate all our ideas on Wheel of Concept and then just stick them into PowerPoint.

Really, anyone can do this stuff. In fact, if you also bookmark this site you could sell a load of modish social media snake-oil too!

See you at the dole office.

James

It must be fun working for Greenpeace...

2011-07-06T02:20:00.000-07:00

Barbie, you're dumped. What a fun headline to write.

And it must be great not to worry about sticking to the rules. In fact, I imagine you'd be encouraged to break them. We could never run a campaign with Ken as the poster boy without all sorts of permissions. Oh, to be reckless!

It'd be interesting to know if this stuff works though. No (real) people with eye-contact (or animals). No body copy. No call to action. The campaign certainly has stand-out. My friends certainly talked about it. We certainly found out what it was all about. We liked it. I'm just not sure anyone actually did anything though.

Although I hope they did. It'd be depressing if no-one ever got to be reckless or silly or controversial again! (Although no call to action for a campaigning organisation is surely an arrestable offence?!)

Richard

If the world were a village of 100 people

2011-07-05T03:44:00.000-07:00

I probably missed these the first time round, but here's some very cute and interesting infographics/posters from Toby NG. They'd look nice in the studio (although I'm not convinced they're all technically correct!).

Richard

Are you local? (Part 1)

2011-06-30T05:02:00.001-07:00

Finally, after nearly three months, I’ve heard back from all the charities I chose to benefit from Open’s Grand Giveaway in April. But why has it taken them so long to say thank you?

Well, they’re all small, local charities, you see, requiring real people (not an agency) to send me written appreciations of my gifts.

So here’s what my lovely neighbours sent me to say thank you…

The Simon Community

I know what you’re thinking. But this isn’t an online appreciation society for Simon Cowell. Neither is it a charity that supports those unfortunate enough to be addicted to electronic games of memory skill.

In fact, The Simon Community is a small charity that works with homeless people in my community. Their soup run stops at the end of my road, and every Saturday I skulk past on the way to spending three figures on Terramazon Cacao Nibs, flax oil and spelt burgers in the Camden Fresh and Wild (their organic shea butter seems to be the only thing capable of salving my weekend Pashley rash.)

Anyway, The Simon Community sent me a nice thank you letter, top-and-tailed by their Chief Exec, telling me a little bit more about what they do. Underwhelmed? Moi?

Not a bit. It was a lovely letter. And they are to me like honey to the bee.

Next time, Camden Young Carers…

Matt

Time for...

2011-06-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

Last week saw the first inaugural Show & Tell sesh here at Open – a chance for us creatives to get together, drink coffee and chat about the good, bad or ugly work we've come across outside of these four walls.

And my favourite exhibit this week? This heart-wrenching cinema ad from Médecins Sans Frontières – which proves you don't always need cute kids and eye contact to really pack a punch.

Hannah

One Amazing Person Down, Just A Few More Amazing People to Go...

2011-06-24T03:41:00.000-07:00

It's a bit of a business-manual truism that you should hire people who are better than you. But it's not always easy. First of all it's a bit scary. And secondly, these people are hard to find.

I realise that this sounds conceited. But what I actually mean is that really good people tend to have really good jobs already – or indeed work for themselves.

Anyway, you're doubtless thinking that this is all leading up to a big 'we've appointed' announcement. And you'd be right.

We've been lucky enough to persuade Paul de Gregorio come and head up all our Mobile stuff. He'll be working with charities (CRUK being the first) to deliver amazing stuff to people's pockets and get even more money back from them in return.

Paul was formerly Client Services Director at Pell & Bales so knows a thing or two about fundraising and telephones. He also tweets like it's going out of fashion and writes a blog that i) gets far more readers than this one and ii) includes lots of gems like the image above – which gives you a good idea of just what a top man he is to work with.

Sadly, Paul's appointment is not the end of our recruitment drive. We're still very much in the market for an Account Director and Account Managers who want to work with us. So if you're brilliant at fundraising and have some experience either charity or agency side then do email us at jobs@openfundraising.com

James

Remember your inner child?

2011-06-24T03:09:00.000-07:00

My inner child and I love BBDO's print campaign for the Museum of Childhood:

http://www.creativereview.co.uk/cr-blog/2008/december/dont-forget-your-inner-child

You know you've done a good job when the readers of Creative Review are all asking where they can buy your ads.

Lara

Water Water Everywhere

2011-06-15T05:56:00.000-07:00

Everyone loves freebies. No-one likes to pay for water. And water bottles are BAD for the environment. Here's just three reasons why you should download the Water, Water, Everywhere app today. It's also free and will show you all of the places you can get free water! Fountains, cafes, KFC Eastbourne.

So stay hydrated without damaging the environment. Do it now.

Richard

Funny graphic

2011-06-09T05:25:00.001-07:00

From Anna Rose Kerr

Richard

Tell me why I like mondays...

2011-06-02T01:03:00.000-07:00

No, I'll tell you.

After months of searching for the perfect addition to Team Copy here at Open, we have finally found 'the one'.

She's called Lara and she starts on monday. Which is why, for one week only, I like mondays.

Lara's previous work as a scrivener includes Macmillan's little green book of fundraising ideas – which is the envy of a few of our clients, I can tell you.

Welcome to Boomtown, Lara.

Matt

Imogen gave £1,000 to...

2011-05-24T06:52:00.000-07:00

Thames Reach £400

On a freezing night in February I came across a boy of 19 in Angel, sitting on the pavement crying with an empty cap in front of him. He had only a thin coat on. In an effort to help, I gave him food, a hot drink and then called a homeless street team who were dispatched to find him and give him a bed for the night. It had taken two months for a stranger like me to notice him. This struck a chord with me – especially when he said how lonely and scared he was. He was ignored and did not know how he would manage to eat or find shelter.

The charity Thames Reach is a London based charity that helps homeless and vulnerable people off London’s streets. They not only have street teams providing help, but also aid rehabilitation, through teaching and re-housing schemes. Since 2008, they have brought 2,000 rough sleeper off the streets and have helped 20,725 vulnerable people. My money will only go so far, but I hope it helps towards their vision of ending street homelessness.

Mr Brightside Project £250

This charity was set up in memory of a colleague of mine, Stephen Johns, who died of bowel cancer when he was just 26 years old. This was obviously a huge shock to family and friends as he was such a vibrant, active, happy and lovely man.

The Mr Brightside project aims to increase awareness of bowel cancer in those under the age of 50, encourage cancer research and provide support facilities to sufferers and families through difficult times. Stephen is very much missed, but not forgotten. His family continue to strive to make the charity’s goals a success.

As you can see, I have receive a personal note from Stephen’s family, which has made the gift even more special to me. I plan to partake in their sponsored events in the future and will continue my support.

SOS Children’s Villages £350

Following a similar theme, I felt I needed to help overseas. I am sure many of you will have seen the documentaries about street children and orphaned children affected by AIDS, displacement and so on. SOS children’s villages help these children by taking them in – giving small groups of children the chance of companionship and a foster mother, who stays with them. They are given shelter, education and a good foundation for adult life.

I now sponsor a little girl in Malawi, Africa. Her name is Lucy Chimwenwe and I am told both her parents died in October 2010. She is only two years old and has survived this, and malnutrition. I am happy to say that now she is being cared for and has developed a healthy appetite for peanut butter. I am planning to write to her and send her some stickers to play with. I look forward to learning about her progress as she grows up and gains confidence.

The Crack Dealer Model of Fundraising

2011-05-20T07:07:00.000-07:00

When you're a kid, people tell you that drug dealers hang around playgrounds giving out free samples on the basis that their product is so good that you'll be hooked for life.

Now, child sponsorship is about as good as charity products get. So...

Hannah gave £1,000 to…

2011-05-18T09:47:00.001-07:00

Along with Richard, I gave a big chunk of my money to the Ministry of Stories – an amazing, inspiring place that makes me wish I was six years old again.

But since I’m only getting older and uglier, I also gave £260 to Dementia UK, who do a sterling job of caring for those with 'the cruellest diseases 0f all'. I’d hate to watch someone I love struggle with dementia and slowly lose their grip on reality. But it might just happen – and I hope there's plenty of advice and support available if so.

The rest of my money I gave to The Red Cross, who seemed to respond swiftly and effectively to the recent earthquake in Japan. Thankfully, I don't have friends or family affected, but these shocking photos blew my mind – and ultimately decided my charity choice...

I didn't do this but I wish I had

2011-05-11T03:27:00.000-07:00

Hats off to whoever did this at RAPP. Making things look simple isn't easy. So when people look at stuff like this and say 'I could do that' then the only sensible response is 'maybe, but you didn't'.

I wish I'd been the planner too – so that I could tell people what their text would achieve aside from venting their anger.

James

Louise gave £1,000 to...

2011-05-06T10:01:00.000-07:00

Great Ormond Street Hospital

GOSH is an amazing place. In the little time I spent in the hospital a couple of years ago the staff were fantastic and the care was spot on. This I wasn't surprised by, but I didn't expect it to find it such an emotional place. You pass children in the corridors and you know that they are very sick. And it breaks your heart.

I wanted to give my full amount to help them get the best care available.

Louise

Nicki gave £1,000 to...

2011-05-04T08:35:00.000-07:00

I’m very new to the whole business of asking people for money. (In fact I don’t, I just sit near people who do.) But I’m a seasoned professional when it comes to being asked, and for me the things that work always involve some beautifully written copy and lots of tears.

Last summer I got an email from my friend Brigid, whose husband comes from very rural Punjab, Pakistan. His family is still living there, and two of his brothers run a school – the Daaman school for girls – funded entirely on charity donations, which I’ve supported. Anyway, the email explained simply that the village and most of the surrounding farmland had been devastated by the floods.

It was an extraordinary email, frank, direct and personal. It was letting me know, as a friend, that if I wanted to help it would be gratefully received.

But then, a few months after I’d handed over my small donation, I received an even more extraordinary email. Brigid wrote to tell me how my donation, and mine alone, had literally changed the lives of two whole families – renting one of them a room in a new house, and buying the other enough materials to set up a small scrap metal recycling business.

So, when I was given the chance to donate in the great Open Giveaway, I sent it to Brigid. The school, homes and lives are slowly being rebuilt. And I really look forward to hearing again how I’ve played a small but intimate part in that.

Thank you letters. What a great idea.

Nicki

To support the Daaman School or Taunsa Area Relief Fund email azharbrigid@hotmail.com

Mark gave his £1,000 to...

2011-05-04T05:04:00.000-07:00

Year 2 of the big Open money giveaway. I thought I'd be really clever this year and write to a selection of charities, ask what they would do with £1,000 and give the money to the charity that gave the best answer (yes I know... a smart arse approach).

However, a couple of things happened which suddenly made my charitable decisions feel so much more important.

First I learned that someone very close to me was going have still born twins at 28 weeks. Barnaby and Ellis were born on my birthday and we attended their funeral last week. One of the saddest moments of my life.

Then I was told about a group of girls and boys who were waiting for therapy from Action for Children specialists after being raped or molested by members of their own family. The centre that wanted to help them had put a request on My Action for Children.

I finally thought about my son's childminder. She has a son who has Crohn's disease. He's only twelve and I know he's having a rubbish time because of it.

So, my donations went to the following lovely organisations:

Sands (Stillbirth & neonatal death charity)

My Action for Children

Crohn's and Colitis UK

Mark

Richard gave his other £780 to...

2011-05-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

As well as giving £220 to Ministry of Stories, along with Hannah, I also gave...

£280 to Magic Breakfast

Magic Breakfast provides breakfasts (no surprises there), to children at school, who otherwise haven't been fed/have been fed something not very conducive to a long hard day of learning. They work in 15 Hackney schools (as well as 'round the country), so it's nice to keep my giving local. Why £280? Well, 28p buys one kid breakfast, so here's 1,000 breakfasts. The card in the picture was my thank you. Cute.

My final £500 went to the Albert Kennedy Trust
Set up in 1989, they work with young lesbian, gay, bi and trans people who have become homeless or are living in hostile environments. With offices in London and Manchester, and a bed for the night costing just £20, hopefully this money will go to good use.

Richard

Emma gave her £1,000 to...

2011-05-03T10:22:00.000-07:00

Trinity Day Care Centre

My mum runs this amazing centre in Felixstowe, Suffolk. It provides transport, activities and on-site catering for elderly individuals in the local community who otherwise would have little or no outside contact.

These are people with active social needs but their activity is limited by reduced mobility or fear of our fast-changing environment and whose life-long friends or relationships have passed on and they feel alone, forgotten and frightened. The centre is run entirely by volunteers with wonderful compassion, sensitivity and patience.

I reckon that we all need a bit of human warmth and companionship sometimes. I hope that an organisation like this is around when my legs give out but I still need to hold someone’s hand and chat about my day.

As it turns out their fridge-freezer blew a gasket at the weekend and the cheque arrived just as they were pondering how to fund a replacement….weirdly prescient giving.

Emma

Rebecca gave £1,000 to...

2011-04-27T04:47:00.000-07:00

Dorothy House Hospice, Frome

My lovely friend Alastair Banks was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in July last year. At 39 years old it was a tremendous blow to him, his wife and their two young children. Already Dorothy House has given much needed advice, support, counselling and equipment. Their help will be vital in the years ahead.

And, as a side note, Al – who’s not one to sit and feel sorry for himself – is raising funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association by driving a milk float from him home near Bath to the south coast. Follow his Float to the Coast tour and donate to his £20k target if you’re able: http://floattothecoast.co.uk

KIN

Last year I supported a six-year-old girl called Emma through KIN’s guardianship programme. KIN works in Kibera, Africa’s largest slum, which is home to 60% of Nairobi’s population on just 6% of its land. I’ve been really impressed by the feedback and communication I’ve received – including a hand-drawn picture from Emma – so I wanted to continue my support.

My Action for Children, New Beginnings Project

Nicki and Mark (Open folk) brought my attention to this project. It offers therapy and support to children who have suffered sexual abuse – often at the hands of people within their family. The project is from Action for Children’s new website that we created, my.actionforchildren.org.uk. And, by collaborating together, we’re doing exactly what the site sets out to do: linking people together through shared values and available funds!

James Gave £1,000 to Sightsavers

2011-04-15T05:28:00.000-07:00

About this time last year I had laser surgery to fix my short-sightedness. A week later, I couldn’t see out of my right eye.

I then had some rather unpleasant emergency surgery at Moorfields to remove the infection that Vision Express had helpfully left behind my cornea – operated on by the reassuringly calm Mr Julian Stevens.

Today, thankfully, I still have two fully functioning eyes.

They say there are no atheists in a foxhole and I think the same goes for waiting rooms in eye hospitals. My £1,000 gift to Sightsavers was the long overdue settlement of a deal I made with God.

James

Tom gave his £1,000 to...

2011-04-14T10:24:00.000-07:00

Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance

I decided to give to a charity close to my family's heart, and one that I have been campaigning for since an unfortunate accident.

A few years ago someone close to me was seriously injured in a car accident and needed to be rushed to a specialist hospital in London. The location of the accident and icy conditions of the roads meant that he would have died long before a conventional road ambulance could reach him. The Air Ambulance almost certainly saved his life.

Accidents can, and do happen anywhere and can often occur in hard-to-reach places, where Paramedics can't arrive on the scene speedily enough.

The ability of the Air Ambulance to travel at great speeds and reach difficult places make it an invaluable service – despite the fact that many people aren't even aware of its existence outside the west country and that it receives no government funding.

Tom

Sinéad gave £1,000 to…

2011-04-14T04:01:00.000-07:00

Sponsor a Child With Plan UK (£180)

Thanks to Tim and James’ generosity, I’ll be road-testing how it feels to sponsor a two-year-old girl in Africa very soon.

We’ve been working with Plan recently to help them recruit new child sponsors through a variety of media. We’ve talked a lot about the benefits and the kind of person who does it. And I found myself feeling increasingly self-conscious, sitting in those meetings. It’s true, I’ve always thought I’d do it one day but just hadn’t got around to it. And yes, it would be quite a nice thing to share with my increasingly chatty and aware 2-year-old daughter, Aoife. Suddenly, as a new parent it feels like the right time. And to think that all these years, I thought I’d become immune to these obvious fundraising buttons. Good to find out I’m still human after all.

C.A.N Northampton £820

This project is a little closer to home and heart. Someone very dear to me has done a remarkable thing recently – they have tackled the gruesome force of addiction head on, and with the support of this project, are 16 months 22 days sober, and counting…

C.A.N help people with drug and alcohol problems and offer a range of services to help people in the local area, when they often have nowhere else to turn. They’re facing cuts thanks to our new government and I have 100% confidence that a) they desperately need this money, b) they’ll spend it wisely and c) it’ll help people just like my friend (and his friends actually). I couldn’t ask for more.

Sinéad

Hannah and Richard gave £500 to...

2011-04-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

The Ministry of Stories

In the interests of helping out local charities, coupled with a desire to encourage creativity amongst the children of East London, Open's original creative team (not including James) made a joint gift to the amazing Ministry of Stories on Hoxton Street.

I shan't tell you of all the brilliant things the Ministry does (you're more than capable of clicking the link at the top), but needless to say they make a real difference to the lives of young people. Young people who want to create, experiment, inspire and change. An ambition shared by everyone here at Open.

Fast forward to few days later, and we received a very prompt and lovely email from co-director Ben Payne. As well as being very grateful, and inviting us down for a look around (an offer we must take up very soon!), we were also offered Ministerial Appointments to the Stationery Department. Of course we were – it's the Ministry of Stories!

They already have a Master of the Monsters' Staples, a Minister for Pink Post-it Notes and a Nibmaster General, so we need to invent a joint-title for ourselves. Perhaps Lord and Lady Layout Pad, or King and Queen of the Cupboard (you can tell I'm not the writer...).

Anyway, if anyone is reading, leave some suggestions for titles in the comments. That sounds like a fun thing to do, doesn't it?! And be sure to check out the Ministry of Stories website!

(The picture at the top is stolen from We Made This, who designed the Ministries very first anthology.)

Richard

Paul Gave £1,000 to...

2011-04-12T06:45:00.000-07:00

Mama FM £500

Having worked in development, I understand the importance of building sustainable projects and of women in communities. This Ugandan project mobilises and informs women in rural communities – helping to make a real difference to families and the wider community with advice on health and education.

Starlight £250

Childhood ought to be about adventure, learning, love and intrigue. For some unfortunate children their life is more about the pain of living with a terminal illness. Offering these children the opportunity to fulfill a dream is very motivating.

Stroke Association £250

My father died as a consequence of having a stroke and then several smaller stokes during a six month period. At the time, I was not aware of the signs that a person suffering from a stroke exhibits. If I had known then what I do now, he would have received treatment sooner.

Early detection may not have saved my Dad, but lives will be saved if there was greater stroke awareness.

Paul

Giving it Away

2011-04-08T07:56:00.000-07:00

As longtime readers (hello dad) will know, we like to celebrate the end of the financial year by giving away some money.

As per last year, everyone got £1,000 to give to the charity (or charities) of their choice. As per last year (apart from the fact that there are now seventeen of us) we sat down over lunch and presented our decisions. And, as per last year, there were lots of tears.

Headlines this year are:

Very few people gave again to the causes they supported last year. Because, on the whole, they'd been a bit lame at saying thanks and feeding back.
People generally gave to stuff that had affected them or that is near to them.
Four people gave a total of £1,200 to an amazing project for abused kids on my.actionforchildren.org.uk – only the second time anyone's given their money to a client and far & away the biggest cheque we wrote.

We'll be posting individually over the coming weeks about our choices.

James

How many directors does it take to move a sofa?

2011-03-30T06:37:00.000-07:00

Two.

Plus 2 Designers, a Head of Copy, an Account Director and a Data Analyst.

It'll be worth it for our new super meeting room basement though!

Richard

Clever banner ads

2011-03-28T09:58:00.000-07:00

Having spent a few weeks looking for furniture for our new basement-come-meeting-room, these very clever banner ads have started to appear. Now, I might be reading too much into it, and it could just be a massive coincidence, but these ads for Habitat are showing me the exact things I was looking at on their site. Clever, eh?

Richard

More surprise and delight

2011-03-15T06:30:00.000-07:00

I've just returned to my desk to find this lovely gift from Helena and Janna from Cancer Research UK.

I often find myself talking about the importance of surprising and delighting donors (see here). This is a great reminder of that.

So, Helena and Janna, thank you too, the pleasure was ours!

A nice start to the week

2011-03-14T05:52:00.000-07:00

I got to do a nice thing today and it's all thanks to Linda from Action for Children. Linda was the winner of our Christmas Heroes Quiz and she decided to give her £500 prize money to a project on My Action for Children.

Linda wanted to support a place called The Grove in Aylesbury. They need a special removable seat for their minibus. It will enable young disabled people to access clubs, sports activities and other community events. You can read more about it here (and donate as well if you like!)

So, thanks to Linda, I got to go online and make the donation. It felt good. (Oh, and yes, I am aware it wasn't my money and it wasn't my choice but I enjoyed it nevertheless).

Quote Friday: Giants Wanted

2011-02-25T10:27:00.000-08:00

Another from David Ogilvy...

"If each of us hires people who are smaller than we are, we shall become a company of dwarfs. But if each of us hires people who are bigger than we are, we shall become a company of giants."

Which is topical, as we are hiring again. Senior account manager and writers/designers wanted.

Apply within.

Richard

And the winner is...

2011-02-24T05:31:00.000-08:00

Slightly late, but the results of our Christmas Heroes quiz have been ratified by an independent adjudicator (not really). The top 5 are as follows:

In fifth place, with a respectable 8 out of 15 is Les from St John Ambulance

In fourth, we have Louise Philips from RNID

Technically joint second, but separated by a tiebreaker are Michael from Unicef (with 12 out of 15) and Nathalie from SOFII (with 12.5)

And our winner with a very impressive 13/15 is...

Action for Children's Linda Snellgrove who will now have £500 to give to the charity of her choice!! Well done Linda.

For anyone wanting the answers to the quiz, here you go:

James's hero is: Miles Davis
Hannah's hero is: David Attenborough
Richard's hero is: Harvey Milk
Matt's hero is: J L Carr
Tom's hero is: Ayrton Senna
Nicki's hero is: Donald Woods
Paul's hero is: Stephen Hawking

Tim's hero is: Dr B R Ambedkar
Mark's hero is: Ole Kirk Christiansen (the inventor of LEGO)
Rebecca's hero is: Alfred Wainwright

Sinead's hero is: John Hume
Folake's hero is: Martin Luther King Jr
Caty's hero is: Cleopatra (although Elizabeth Taylor was accepted too, and provided the tiebreaker between Michael and Nathalie)

Louise's hero is: Harry Beck
and finally, Emma's hero is: Judge Judy!

We'll let you know where Linda decides to give her money.

Richard

Worst banner ad ever?

2011-02-23T04:42:00.000-08:00

Now, we're no experts in online advertising, but if your banner ad isn't going to continuously scroll, make sure your final frame is really fucking good.

Meet Birmingham... there's nothing there...

Richard

This might have been funny...

2011-02-22T08:36:00.000-08:00

if the voiceover wasn't so bland.

Richard

Frying the Server...

2011-02-14T03:54:00.001-08:00

Twitter endorsements really don't get any better than this. 4,000 hits in an hour and the My Action for Children server is presumably smoking like half my agency outside the pub at closing time.

Thank you Stephen.

Quote Friday

2011-02-11T01:59:00.000-08:00

This week, Bill Bernbach...

“Merely to let your imagination run riot, to dream unrelated dreams, to indulge in graphic acrobatics and verbal gymnastics is NOT being creative. The creative person has harnessed his imagination. He has disciplined it so that every thought, every idea, every word he puts down, every line he draws, every light and shadow in every photograph he takes, makes more vivid, more believable, more persuasive the original theme or product advantage he has decided he must convey.”

You can read more here.

We did this

2011-02-08T19:57:00.000-08:00

Today sees the launch of My Action for Children – which offers donors the chance to choose exactly where and how their money is spent. And, just as important, when people have given, it shows them exactly what they've achieved.

As you can imagine, it wasn't easy getting 400+ projects online. The accounting, logistics and organisational side has been challenging to say the least. But it's done, it works and we think it's a game-changer.

Thank you everyone at 9Web for building it, Baigent for plumbing in the payment system and, of course, Action for Children for making it happen.

James

Work not like

2011-02-08T05:39:00.000-08:00

In a world of social networks, everyone is talking about what they 'like'.

Which is great.

I like my friend's status update. I like that photo. I like that event. My taste – my choice.

In the world of charity and design and marketing and advertising, the question of taste becomes a tricky one. For 90% of the work we produce, nobody here at Open, and nobody at the charities we work for is the target audience. So what we like, or what our clients like isn't necessarily what will work – ie what our audience likes.

And surely what works is what matters.

So maybe next time you look at a piece of work, or next time you pass something on the street, instead of clicking the imaginary 'like' or 'unlike' button, reach for the 'work' or 'doesn't work' button instead. It'll be a much better measure of something that you're maybe not even supposed to like.

Richard

Technically only one working-day late, here is our second quote Friday

2011-02-07T09:05:00.000-08:00

In the world of charity, lots of things seem to have been happening for a long time. Certain things are safe. Certain things are easy. Certain things present little risk. And sometimes these are the right things to do. But sometimes we need to push the boundaries, innovate, move things forwards, be different, stand out.

We're very lucky here at Open to have some brilliant clients who also believe this to be true. Paul Arden said it much better than I ever could though...

"If you always make the right decision, the safe decision, the one most people make, you will be the same as everyone else."

Richard

Quote Friday..?

2011-02-04T11:13:00.001-08:00

As feared, the busiest week ever has meant that we forgot about Quote Friday. On only the second week as well. Oh dear.

Maybe we'll get it back up on Monday and hope no-one noticed. Here's a picture of a sketchbook in the meantime.

We're doing much better with our Twitter, if anyone is interested... @openfundraising

Richard

You Saw it Here First...

2011-02-02T02:32:00.000-08:00

Connected – our new product which lets you make regular gifts and receive brilliant feedback via your phone launched last week. And since it seems to be going rather well, we thought we should blog about it.

We put the whole thing together with our friends at CYMBA and have been granted a special licence to operate the system by the lovely people at Phonepay Plus. We're currently testing for UNICEF on the streets with Gift and there are several more good causes (plus channel tests) coming on stream in the next few weeks.

It's been a bit of a regulatory/patent law/technical marathon and we're still very much in a 'Beta' phase. But that won't stop us being extremely excited when we get a second.

To see it for yourself will cost you £3 a month to UNICEF. Just text LIFE to 70007.
This is a subscription service. You will be charged £3 plus one message at your standard network rate in the first month and £3 a month thereafter. UNICEF will receive between £2.40 and £2.96 depending on your network provider. To unsubscribe, text STOP to 70007 or call 0844 669 5255

James

Introducing Quote Fridays...

2011-01-28T04:59:00.001-08:00

By the time Friday rolls around, we're often all out of blog-worthy things to say. So every Friday from now on, we'll rely on people who are much funnier/cleverer/more insightful than we are to say things for us. Starting with hotshot ad man, Tony Cox, who penned the little gem above...

Hannah

The 25 Commandments

2011-01-19T07:02:00.000-08:00

In the proud tradition of simply posting links to good stuff that other people have done, I bring you the 25 Commandments of Journalism – all of which apply to writing appeals.

If you have anything to do with creating or approving charity communications then I guarantee that this will be five minutes very well spent.

James

Facebook shop

2011-01-18T03:34:00.000-08:00

Following the announcement that Asos will have their entire shop up on Facebook by the end of the month, I started wondering whether charities could use this technology to increase donations.

Most, if not all, charities have some presence on Facebook already. Some better than others, but nevertheless, they're there. The quickest, least-scientific flick through these pages shows that less than quarter have any sort of donate functionality (a crime in itself). Those that do always take you somewhere else to give.

There's nothing more annoying (and more likely to make you close your browser) than clicking a link and being taken to a third party website. So if the technology exists to run a shop through Facebook, this simple step should be every charity's first move.

Moving entire 'ethical giving' products over would be a sensible second step. Not least, as the fulfillment part of the process could happen almost exclusively online. Happy Birthday friend #237, I bought you five chickens, here's a link, and a photo on your wall and everyone can see what a nice person I am. Fulfillment cost £0. Public show of niceness 100%.

Hmm, we should probably call some clients right about now...

Richard

Guess what I found...

2011-01-14T09:15:00.000-08:00

Today I discovered, and subsequently inherited Open's 2-year-old, never really used twitter account.

Find us at @openfundraising for all of those cool things that don't quite deserve a blog post but need sharing all the same! We should really have more followers than followees...

Richard

Nothing says Happy New Year like a week-late blog post

2011-01-12T06:46:00.000-08:00

Hello, and happy new year! Things have been a bit crazy here since Christmas – lots of work coming to an end/going to print, with some exciting new projects kicking off on the tightest of schedules as well!

Above is a very bad photo taken on my phone of a photoshoot we did last week for the wonderful Action for Children.

I'm sure there'll be some more exciting posts on here the moment someone has a spare five minutes and something interesting to say.

In the meantime, you could still win £500 in our heroes competition.

Richard

Nothing says Christmas like a brand book

2010-12-24T02:50:00.001-08:00

Especially when it belongs to *Santa*

It's funny 'cos it's true.

Don't forget to enter the Heroes competition right here. And have a great Christmas

Richard

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-22T08:58:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately this isn't the obligatory, 'We're closed for Christmas' blog post. You'll have to wait two more days for that.

However, this is much more exciting! As yesterday's slightly weird blog post alluded to, our clients (hopefully some of whom are reading this right now!) have been/are/will be receiving their Open Christmas presents very soon!

Not to give the game away to anyone who hasn't had theirs yet, but our card/present/frame combo is all about heroes and the people who inspire us.

The reason there might be quite a lot of activity on here however, is because there's £500 up for grabs (for the charity of your choice – doesn't have to be your own!) to whoever can guess the names of Open's heroes. There's 15 to guess inside your Christmas cards. You can submit your answers here and we'll let you know the winners and all the answers in the new year!

Happy guessing!

Richard

Holding out for a hero

2010-12-21T05:14:00.001-08:00

If you're reading this as a client, you might have been sent here by your recently-received Christmas present (if you're very keen)!

What you're looking for will be up here soon, do not worry.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, keep an eye on the post...

Sorry this is so cryptic.

Richard

Word Art

2010-12-13T09:12:00.000-08:00

As a designer, there's always been a nagging need and desire in the back of my head to make everything I do as beautiful and as polished and as perfect as humanly possible.

Then charities came along...

Now, relatively often, things need to look home-made, rough-round-the-edges, grubby. Real.

And 'real' is the key here. The nature of the beast that is 'charity' is that people - donors, campaigners, supporters – don't want to see their money going to waste. So, if some flashy, foil-blocked, 400gsm, full-bleed, die-cut, ever-so-beautiful piece of communication drops through your door asking for £15, chances are you aren't gonna part with your hard-earned cash.

Now, this isn't rocket science. It's nothing more than common sense. The things we're sending into people's lives need to be believable more than anything else. But at a time when lots of people are more concerned with 'building their brand' (read: make the logo bigger), than creating something that actually works, it's not always the easiest argument to have.

The one thing you can't argue against though is results. Throughout 2010, we've produced 'inside track' communications for WWF, World Jewish Relief and Medical Foundation to name but three that have all performed unbelievably well. The most interesting thing about all of this, though, is the fact that these photocopied, straight-from-the-desk-of-the-CEO packs work best for high value donors.

When I first started at Open, I found it absurd that those people who give you the most money end up getting the least beautiful communications. Logic dictates it should be the other way round – surely you get what you pay for? Logic doesn't necessarily build successful campaigns though, reason does. And when you think about it, a piece of communication that is believable and real and personal can only serve to bring your most valued donors even closer to the charity. Mass-produced will work for some, but the cream of your donor crop need to feel special, wanted and close.

Don't worry about me though – as we begin to meet a lot of donors online and through their phones, there's lots of beautiful design still to be done too!

Richard

PS if anyone wants to sponsor me for volunteering at Crisis this Christmas, feel free!

The file you can't print

2010-12-07T06:03:00.001-08:00

Here's an interesting idea. Create a file that cannot be printed. Therefore saving millions of trees-worth of paper. And what would call you this file? The .wwf of course!

Not sure how well it would go down if we started sending our clients pdfs they couldn't print out, scribble over and send back (you know who you are...)!

Richard

Missing the point

2010-12-06T08:43:00.000-08:00

For those of you on Facebook (I'm assuming that's everyone), you may have noticed several of your friends mysteriously transforming into cartoons over the last week. It appears this trend originally started in Greece as an attempt to remove all human faces from Facebook for a short while. Nothing wrong with that – sounds quite funny.

However, somewhere along the line the message got changed to “Change your FB picture to a cartoon from your childhood. The goal is not to see a human face on FB until Monday (Dec 6th). Join the fight against child abuse & copy and paste to your status!”

Now, this somehow became associated with the NSPCC, and a quick search of Facebook groups also shows a version for Unicef (I'm sure there are more too). Of course, none of these charities are behind this 'campaign', and despite NSPCC tweeting otherwise I'm not convinced it's much help to any of them.

Not including the inevitable Daily Mail paedophile story (which I won't even give the credit of a link to) there's been plenty of other negative press around this latest fad too, and not without good reason.

It's great to have supporters doing 'work' for your charity, and spreading the word and sharing with their friends and all. But when the charity has no control over the message, it all gets a little messy. Of course, if the original message had a less flimsy call to action than "Join the fight against child abuse", the shit-storm that is now inevitably following would be easier to deal with. "Change your profile picture and make a Christmas gift to the NSPCC". Now that's a status update worth sharing.

Not that anywhere near as many people would have done it – but it'd certainly be a better badge of honour, a show of how good a person you are. Sorry, but everyone thinks child abuse is bad. It's like changing my profile picture to a rainbow to show that Hitler was a baddie.

However, is there something charities can take from this apparent 'show of support'? It's certainly a sign that people care on some level. That small, easy actions increase engagement. I'm sure the however-many-hundred-thousand people gathered in the Facebook group could be convinced to join the NSPCC group with some gentle nudging. Those over 12, at least.

But would it work if it had come direct from the charity, or does it HAVE to be peer-to-peer to succeed? If we asked everyone to change their profile picture to a tiger for WWF, would Facebook be covered in stripy cats? Probably not. And therein lies the problem – the unpredictability of using Facebook and other social media sites to build real, long-term, solid support.

I'm sure it can be done, but we might need to come up with our own idea... and wait for the cartoons to disappear, of course.

Richard

Sell, sell, sell, sell, sell

2010-11-29T05:36:00.000-08:00

When working with charities, it's sometimes too easy to get caught up in the fact that we're helping so many people all over the world. Whenever I tell people what I do, it's often followed by, "saving the world".

"I'm a designer. I work with charities. Y'know, saving the world."

Which is true, I guess, to a certain degree. But what we (I) often forget we're doing is actually selling. Ok, we're not selling climate-changing cars or fast food to children – our selling is a lot more wholesome – but we are certainly selling ideals, and beliefs and the opportunity for people to feel good about themselves.

Now, although what we're selling is different, the way we do it needn't be. Not that a child sponsorship ad will look similar to a washing machine ad necessarily, but there's certainly key areas of overlap.

The image at the top of this post is an ad by Ogilvy and Mather, from I don't know when – certainly before I was born – but so much of it still rings true for creating an ad that WORKS. An ad that SELLS. Click on it and have a read. None of it is shocking or scary or new, but it's good to remind ourselves of what works sometimes!

I'm now going to go and write some 10-word headlines showing the product benefit and containing the brand name set against some pictures that tell stories, and if we don't win our pitch on Wednesday I'll blame Mr Ogilvy. Or my lack of a Big Idea...

Richard

Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright

2010-11-25T08:48:00.001-08:00

Hate to admit it, but sometimes a picture really does tell a thousand words. And while our tiger appeals for WWF have been going great guns recently, this image is another timely reminder of what we stand to lose if we don't take action fast.

It scooped an award in this year's Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition at the National History Museum. But also featuring in the Endangered Wildlife category was the funny-looking little critter below.

He lives deep in the jungles of Borneo. He only comes out at night. And I'm secretly hoping that 2011 is WWF's Year of the Tarsier.

The ultimate personalisation

2010-11-23T01:50:00.000-08:00

If there's one thing I've learnt since being at Open, it's that personalisation works. But for those times when it seems difficult to think of new and interesting ways to make connections to people, I will remember this amazing Arcade Fire video. Take two minutes out and try it, it's ACTUALLY amazing. Your own music video. The ultimate in personalisation.

Now, how do we translate this to an envelope..?

Richard

Teach Once. Learn Twice.

2010-11-17T09:15:00.000-08:00

This is my daughter's class. And the class next door. Today I told them about tigers and orang-utans and learned a couple of things in the process.

i) Pester power is there to be harnessed for charities who can send volunteers and good products into schools.

ii) Primary school teachers are naturals when it comes to getting a response. I struggled to explain tiger conservation for a couple of minutes. Then my host said, "Who wants to stop the nasty men killing tigers." Sixty hands went up.

James

Time for a new look?

2010-11-12T04:28:00.001-08:00

Rik Mayall just shouted 'well done students' at us in the street and punched the air.

While flattering in one sense (someone thinks I am both young and revolutionary) it is a bit worrying that Tim, Mark, Rebecca and I were on the way back from meeting a new client and, in our eyes, dressed relatively smartly.

James

Short and Sweet

2010-11-10T11:13:00.000-08:00

Tim and James brought me back a souvenir from the IFC in Amsterdam. Luckily, it wasn’t clogs. Instead, it was a skinny book with a bad cover. But now I’m stuck into it, I can see why every copywriter should have it on their bookshelf.

Tiny Essentials of Writing for Fundraising is blunt, opinionated and doesn’t suffer fools gladly. That’s what makes it good. I especially like the chapter called 'Too Many Words, Too Little Meaning'. After all, less is often more when it comes to copy – and sometimes, a few well-chosen words are all it takes to tell a story.

Just ask Ernest Hemingway. He once said that one of his greatest pieces of work consisted of six sad little words:

'For sale: baby shoes, never worn.'

I reckon Ernest would have written a cracking appeal letter.

Hannah

A hint for future interviewers...

2010-11-09T01:38:00.000-08:00

Top Tips

2010-11-05T09:11:00.000-07:00

A sweet way of encouraging donations, as seen at my lovely local coffee shop. Just goes to show that giving people options and making them think about where they put their money is a great means of engagement – and one that's working wonders in our current street prospecting campaign for WWF.

Hannah

Another neat idea...

2010-11-04T10:22:00.001-07:00

This time from Wieden + Kennedy London. Screensavers and LEDs show employees how much energy they are using at work. Nothing massively new there, I hear you cry. However, for all the energy W+K save, a school in Nairobi will be provided with solar power! I'd certainly turn my lamp off if the energy savings went somewhere as worthwhile as that.

You can read all about it here.

Richard

Look after the pennies...

2010-11-03T07:02:00.000-07:00

In a post not dissimilar to Hannah's, here's a new charity initiative called Pennies. Essentially, and at its most basic, if you buy your £9.95 pizza from Domino's online with your credit card, you will be given the option to 'round it up' to £10 and give that extra 5p to charity. According to Design Week, "A second online retailer is set to follow before Christmas, before the project rolls out to chip-and-pin purchases in store." Neat.

Richard

Online Giving Gets Real

2010-11-02T08:11:00.000-07:00

When it comes to donating to charity, there’s something vaguely unsatisfying about doing it online. Sure, it’s quick, easy and painless. But it’s also not much fun – and there’s none of the feel-good glow you get from rattling your cold, hard cash loudly into a charity bucket.

So here to change the face – or at least, the interface - of online giving is Nadanu. This New York-based web platform mimics the experience of real-life giving, offering donors the chance to drop virtual coins into an eCharityBox (or onto an eOfferingPlate for churches) and watch them fill up as time goes by.

Simple idea. Satisfaction guaranteed.

Hannah

The tidiest this room will ever be

2010-11-01T08:08:00.001-07:00

After a week of hammering, drilling and much disturbance (so I hear - i was on holiday), our new studio space is nearing completion! Now, who do I talk to about getting a door..?

Richard

Someone needs shooting...

2010-10-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

Either it's me, because this Facebook ad is well targeted, or it's the person who did the targeting.

Either way, I feel a bit depressed.

James

And another thing...

2010-10-26T07:29:00.000-07:00

Every now and then, someone scribbles on some copy that you can't start a sentence with a conjunction. Apparently, it contravenes the age-old rules of grammar.

Well so does the word of God. So there.

This wonderful nugget comes courtesy of Mr George Smith. If you have anything at all to do with writing to people to ask for money then you should buy his little book. And his big book.

James

Breaking down the wall...

2010-10-21T05:13:00.000-07:00

We're not actually closed, but with James and Tim out of the country, the builders are in knocking through to next door and our new creative studio.

It's all a bit dusty at the moment, but it'll be worth it when we have our new drum kit and account-team-sensitive trapdoor...

Richard

Hello Amsterdam...

2010-10-19T10:00:00.000-07:00

We're off the IFC in Amsterdam to see the cutting edge of fundraising. Or, to be more precise, we're off to somewhere that is to Amsterdam what Luton is to London to see what the cutting edge of fundraising was last year when people had to apply to talk about it.

As well as worshiping at the feet of the Elischer, we'll be doing a couple of quick talks about our WWF Tiger thing at the SOFII workshops and, I hope, getting in some nice long runs along the beach.

Anyway, in the unlikely event that you are here looking for more information about Open, can I recommend that you don't bother visiting our frankly embarrassing website and instead call me on +44 7768 398482. Or, better still, call Tim on +44 7967 373174 – he's much more charming than I am.

Then we can buy you a drink and say hello.

James

Join our movement, else we'll blow you up...

2010-10-19T01:54:00.000-07:00

Crazy advert from 10:10. Nothing like a convincing argument to get people to do something, eh...

Might have to try that one. Letter bomb in a reminder letter? Anthrax in a £1 pack? Maybe not.

UPDATE>>> 10:10 apologise for REALLY BAD video, although it might be a little too late as Sony distance themselves from campaign. Woops.

Richard

Hands up for Burma

2010-10-14T02:03:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting campaign idea from Amnesty International, especially since our Christmas appeal for Christian Aid – on a very similar subject – is winging its way to the printers as we speak.

With 2,200 political prisoners in Burma, and thousands more exiled to the Thai-Burma border, AI are collecting 5,000 photos for their petition. All the photos will be collected and taken to the summit meeting of political leaders from South East Asia in Viet Nam at the end of October – the Association of South East Asian nations summit (ASEAN).

What's interesting about it though, is the writing of one prisoner's name on your hand. We've been talking a lot lately at Open about giving donors the choice of where their money goes. This petition allows you to physically pick out and align yourself to one real person, creating, not so much a sense of ownership, but certainly a strong bond and sense of responsibility.

At a time when signing an online petition can be super-quick, yet super-impersonal, this is a real nice piece of supporter engagement in action. You can watch the video to accompany the campaign at the end of this post, after some photos of Open standing with the people of Burma.

Tim stands in solidarity with Khun Dee De

Tom stands in solidarity with Zarganar

Hannah stands in solidarity with Khun Bedu

Richard stands in solidarity with Su Su Nway

Folake stands in solidarity with Mie Mie

Caty stands in solidarity with Htay Kywe

Sinead stands in solidarity with Zaw Htet Ko Ko

James stands in solidarity with Khun Kawrio

Freedom In Your Hands from Amnesty International on Vimeo.

Richard

Samaritans are on the phone...

2010-10-07T11:26:00.000-07:00

...this very minute. What good fortune I am still at work for some live blogging.

They are very grateful for my donation of £250 back in April (thanks Tim and James).

He's now talking a lot about something they're doing with schools... thankfully his voice is quite boring so I can type whilst half-listening...

I can feel an ask coming on...

He's still grateful for my previous donation, and... £12 a month please!

Oo, he takes rejection well, but he isn't defeated yet - £4 a month, maybe, Mr Young?

Sorry Samaritans, but thanks for the call anyway - made me feel very wanted, and much richer than I actually am! Oh, the life of a mid-value donor...

Richard

Nice Round Numbers...

2010-10-04T07:25:00.000-07:00

After a few Pakistan-related wobbles here at Open, we were very pleased to hear that one of our emergency appeals has absolutely obliterated its target and hit a cool million in donations – as well as providing a major shot in the arm for a climate campaign. Hurrah.

James

If only it was always this easy...

2010-09-30T06:31:00.000-07:00

At a time when we're super busy with Christmas appeals and reminders, everything is suddenly so much easier when you get an amazing story and amazing photos to go with it. Step forward Concern Worldwide.

Not wanting to give anything away, this is Babu, who sleeps on the streets of Dhaka in Bangladesh, and is living under the constant threat of theft, rape and kidnap. The rest writes itself (or at least makes it much easier for Hannah to write).

Here's some more of the amazing photos at our disposal...

Richard

All photos by Marc Turner, Dhaka, January 2010

Jaded? Moi?

2010-09-24T05:11:00.000-07:00

Last night we dragged our broken, hung-over bodies to a posh hotel for the Third Sector Awards. After three hundred unbroken hours of categories that I really didn't understand, we were presented with a 'High Commendation' for our WWF tiger campaign.

Luckily, WWF also bagged best website (with no help from us whatsoever) and made the whole event worthwhile.

Must sleep now.

James

You're going to need a bigger boat...

2010-09-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

Last year, we celebrated our first birthday on board The Lapwing. It was great, so we did it again for our second...

And Richard hugged a surprisingly accommodating Sinitta as he staggered out of the long bar...

Now we are two...

2010-09-22T03:16:00.000-07:00

For someone who makes a living writing stuff and never knows when to shut up, I'm at a bit of a loss to know what to say today.

I could do the whole 'Back when we started in Tim's spare bedroom we never thought...' kind of thing. But it just sounds lame. So instead, I'm going to adopt my two of my favourite strategies – delegation and procrastination. I'll ask everyone in the company for their favourite moment of the last year and post them tomorrow along with a picture of us all.

In the meantime, though, everyone here would like to thank the wonderful organisations who've trusted us to generate the love and the money they need to change the world. And Tim and I would like to thank the wonderful people – both inside Open and out – who have helped us do it. You know who you are.

James
X

The 30 second challenge

2010-08-27T12:16:00.000-07:00

Time is a barrier to giving. Which is why anything that helps speed up giving helps increase response. Premium micro-donations are proof of point.

Donating on-line can be fairly torturous. It takes time. It's utterly infuriating. Well not unless you're our friends at PayPal. These guys know what they're doing. It took less than 30 seconds for me to donate to the Flood Appeal today – and that included Gift Aid.

Give it a go.

And thanks PayPal and Mission Fish for getting involved.

One major donor you'd want to hold onto...

2010-08-25T05:33:00.001-07:00

Sticking with our recent Big Brother theme...

Story here

Self Moderation in Action...

2010-08-20T09:08:00.000-07:00

Tim weighs in. Ouch.God bless the minority of good souls like this.And God, if you fancy smiting a few people...

Bloody Hell...

2010-08-20T05:24:00.000-07:00

Hmmmm. Further to my post of 29 minutes ago, it seems that 360,000 fans translates to a torrent of madness.

So far, the UNICEF appeal has 71 likes and 218 comments.

A few are like this...
But most are like this...
For once I really don't know what to write. Go and see it for yourself.

James

Big Thanks to Big Brother...

2010-08-20T04:54:00.001-07:00

Huge thankyou to the BB Facebook team. Let's see what 360,000 fans translates to...

How Big Exactly?

2010-08-20T03:20:00.000-07:00

Rich posted a similar thing a while back that showed how big the gulf oil slick was. So here's the Pakistan Flood if it had started in our office. You can make your own here.

I wonder how you make a Google map of how huge it has to get before the rest of the world gives a s**t.

James

Sort it out!

2010-08-17T10:46:00.000-07:00

Today's Front Page News:

Oxfam - Northern Pakistan has been affected by the worst floods in living memory
UNICEF - This emergency is bigger than the Tsunami, Haiti, and the last Pakistan earthquake put together
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon - In the past I have visited the scenes of many natural disasters around the world, but nothing like this

Daily Mail - End of the Road for Clampers
Daily Express - Your Pension Pot Crashes
The Independent - Thanks for the Memories
The Mirror - The Kelly Files...No more lies
The Telegraph - Questions over Blair donation to British Legion
The Guardian - Taliban call for joint inquiry on civilian deaths

If you haven't. Please do...

Nothing says urgent like a stamp!

2010-08-16T04:09:00.000-07:00

Not so long ago, James mentioned how bizarre the idea of using 'bespoke' stamps was to create a feeling of urgency. As if every charity in town has these ready-made stamps lying around just waiting for the next emergency! The funny thing is, I can't think of a better way to do the job...

Above is a year's worth of stamps. Click for a closer look!

Richard

Some random thoughts on interviews and designers

2010-08-10T03:07:00.000-07:00

Last week proved to be an exceptionally busy one here, not least due to an emergency appeal for Christian Aid and street activity for British Red Cross in response to the Pakistan floods. As well these though, we were interviewing designers and design interns. A strange situation for me to be in, as not so long ago ago it was me being interviewed.

Anyway, having met 6 potential co-workers and sifting through 188 (yes, I did just count them) emails full of CVs and portfolios here are some random observations:

1. There are a LOT of designers looking for work – some very good, a lot not.

2. If you want to work for a company, please spell their name correctly.

3. In fact, spell check your whole email. And do write an email. 'Hi, here's some work' doesn't really convey your enthusiasm.

4. As much as I would have liked to, it's impossible to reply to everyone individually. There are just not enough hours in the day.

5. NOBODY has any direct mail in their portfolios. (This wasn't a surprise.)

6. Do make sure your work is in some way relevant to what we do though. I saw a lot of VERY nice illustrations, but we're all about raising money here!

Hm, that all sounds a little negative... it wasn't meant to!

I know nobody ever leaves comments on here, but if anyone has anything interesting to share/add/argue about interviews or whatever, do feel free to post them (not you mum)!

Richard

iStock Cares...

2010-08-06T10:16:00.000-07:00

...so much so in fact, that for my $300 of new credit I got to give $3 to Medecins Sans Frontiers. Huzzah. Pub time - have excellent weekends if anyone is reading...

Richard

Charity Gets Daring

2010-08-05T00:07:00.001-07:00

Grown-up and sophisticated it ain't. But make it past the ugliness of the website, and there's a nifty idea in MyDunkTank.

It works like this. Some wacky type wants to raise money for charity. They post a shortlist of dares on the DunkTank site. And their friends donate to the dare they'd most like to see done - doubtless with sniggers aplenty.

Of course, people have always loved doing silly things for charity. It's just that in the 21st century, DunkTank is the perfect place to publicise them - in all their head-shaving, fancy-dressing, baked-bean-bathing glory.

Hannah

It's nice to be asked

2010-08-04T12:58:00.000-07:00

Greenpeace have invited me to a party in Sipson at the end of August. That’s the place where the third runway for Heathrow Airport was to have been built if it weren’t for our successful campaigning (and the coalition Government).

Inviting supporters to do stuff and be involved is great. Asking them to actually come to a party or meet a beneficiary is normally a privilege reserved for people with 'major donor' status. I’ve always thought that this is nuts.

There’s always the irrational fear that if you invite thousands of 'regular givers' to visit your centre or project, all of them will say yes and swamp you. Some will, but most won’t. So I don’t understand why we don't ask donors to participate more.

I can't make the party in Sipson, and I bet most recipients won't either. But it made me, and I imagine many other supporters, happy to be invited.

And the people that do go to the party? Donors for life, I guess.

Mark

Fridge Poverty

2010-07-26T17:59:00.000-07:00

Now, there's nothing wrong with mission statements and manifestos. It's just that they don't exactly ooze warmth. And as a new donor to any charity, that's what I'd be looking for - the welcome pack equivalent of a big grateful hug and an invitation to make myself at home.

So for Christian Aid's new donors, we've developed the most touchy-feely of welcomes - a manifesto in magnet form that they can get their hands on, mess around with and make their own. It's the warmest glow they'll get by the refrigerator - guaranteed.

Hannah

Think it, but don't say it out loud!

2010-07-23T00:26:00.000-07:00

Facebook has just reported its 500 millionth user, it knows more about me than my mother does (or apparently the government) and its privacy terms haven’t been very popular.

The other ‘big news’ about Facebook is targeted advertising. It’s undoubtedly very clever and will work with the right selections and creative.

I saw the above ad for Shelter the other day. It stood out because of the way it boldly states that they know I support Oxfam. The selection is spot on - I support one charity and therefore may well support others.

But it doesn’t tell me how my support of Oxfam is relevant. Given the amazing targeting Facebook offers, wouldn’t it have been more relevant to reference that I live in London and therefore see first hand the issues that Shelter deal with day in and day out.

I'm sure it will work out just fine - but I do wonder if it would be better if it wasn't quite so obviously 'big brother'.

Hurrah!

2010-07-06T01:58:00.001-07:00

We won Best DM Campaign at the IOF for WWF. We are all very excited by this acronym pile-up. More self-aggrandizement and better photos will doubtless follow.

James