EMBRACING ALL THINGS DIGITAL: GET A STRATEGY, CHECK OUT GAMING & CREATE BETTER VIDEOS

We like to spend time trawling through blogs and articles from the third sector, so we can bring you some unique ideas and perspectives that you might have missed. This month comes with a warning about neglecting the importance of digital communication - but, fortunately, plenty of ideas about how you can avoid doing just that...

Natasha Stone: Is gaming the hot new trend for charities?
Published by JustGiving
On the eve of one of the biggest charity gaming events of the year, Natasha from JustGiving delved into how online gaming could bring untapped potential for charities. Gaming has boomed into a £100 billion industry and some of the stats may surprise you – there are 1.5 billion gamers worldwide, the average age is 35 and an increasing number of women and families are gaming. Could you grab a piece of the potential by teaming up with a gaming influencer or creating a charity gaming event?
 
Austin Clark: Charities can ‘no longer afford to be digitally defiant’
Published by Charity Digital News
This stark warning comes after Tech Trust’s new Digital Charity Survey found that 58% of charities still don’t have a digital strategy. In our experience, many charities dabble with social media with moderate success, but see a digital strategy as ‘something we ought to get around to eventually’. As over 65s increasingly embrace social media, and younger generations grow up having never lived without smart phones, will charities soon be unable to survive unless they put technology at the heart of their comms?
 
Piper Hendricks: How To Avoid Harmful Stereotypes In Your Nonprofit Videos
Published by GlobalGiving
If digital communication is an increasingly important ‘weapon’ in your charity’s arsenal, then video storytelling should arguably be your ammunition of choice. Creating video content is a brilliant way to reach more people and raise awareness about your work, but with great power comes great responsibility. Piper explains why too much charity video content inadvertently perpetuates harmful stereotypes and one-dimension portrayals of helpless beneficiaries, and shares five questions you can ask to avoid falling into this trap.
 
Which fundraising techniques really annoy the public?
Published by nfpSynergy
We recently published a blog about the long-term impact of having so many fundraising methods that interrupt – rather than add value to – people’s everyday lives. They may be profitable, but the long-term impact on public opinion is unsustainable. This in-depth study by nfpSynergy adds some broader context to the same issue – and while it’s not a reason to change your fundraising methods overnight, it provides some fascinating food for thought about how those methods may be perceived by different audience demographics.
 
Karl Wilding: Charities change the world. Why isn't that message getting through?
Published by The Guardian
There’s evidently a widening chasm between what charities think and what the public (and, often, their own supporter bases) think – whether that’s about things like Brexit, or how the sector is run. This article argues that we need to do more ourselves to close that gap, starting by cutting the jargon and relying less on obscure financial information. It’s clearly easier said than done, but could we be more honest and open about the issues we’re facing, and the importance of things like investing in staff and digital tools?