No Stupid Questions 107. Is It Worth It for Charities to Harass Their Donors?
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Jul 17, 2022 Is it acceptable for charities to relentlessly seek donations? The hosts dive into why people give and the effectiveness of quirky incentives like personalized address labels. They explore ethical dilemmas charities face, from transparency to sustainable impact, highlighting the evolution of fundraising strategies. The conversation is peppered with listener anecdotes that humorously illustrate the ups and downs of soliciting support. The discussion leaves us pondering how to balance empathy with effective fundraising.
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Smile Train's Model
- Smile Train initially flew American surgeons to developing nations to fix cleft lips/palates.
- This proved inefficient, so they shifted to training local surgeons, which was more impactful.
Donation Motivations
- People donate to charity for various reasons, including altruism, social pressure, and warm-glow giving.
- Smile Train suspected many donated due to guilt from images of disfigured children in their mailings.
Once-and-Done Experiment
- Smile Train experimented with a "once-and-done" donation option, allowing donors to opt out of future mailings.
- Surprisingly, this increased first-time donations and overall giving, while also reducing mailing costs.