Charity shop does not have to mean ‘junk shop’.  For many national charities, their shop is their brand on the high street. There’s a reputation at stake. As Mary Portas has said, “They are there day in, day out.  Consumers pass them every day – shops are the most visible piece of brand awareness that there is for a charity.”

Here are 10 questions for CEOs of charities with retail outlets on our high streets.

1. What is ‘success’ for your charity shops? Income, Service or Reputation?
2. You’re a shop on the high street, but what are people buying? Can you be more than Poundland with a social purpose?
3. If you made consumers and customer service your priority, what would change?
4. How about breaking the mould and setting up with a commercial partner on the High Street, even it means paying full business rates?
5. What about specialising in giving people what they want instead of whatever you happen to collect?
6. You’re a national chain store with a charitable purpose – what could you do if you could do anything?
7. Are you online? If not, why not?
8. Who are you aiming at? One age or social group? Or all?
9. Is your shop a multi-purpose access point to your work?  Can people join and donate, as well as buy goods?
10. What would you need to do to make your shop a ‘destination’ rather than an ‘obligation’?

The last decade or so has been one of dramatic change in much of the voluntary sector, to the extent that the debates of ten years ago now seem almost quaint by comparison to today’s challenges. Should the sector engage with public sector commissioners, explore opportunities in public service delivery, and become more entrepreneurial and businesslike in its approach to income generation? Or should it refuse and maintain the purity of isolation? Rapid evolution in the economic, policy, and political environments have largely rendered this argument obsolete. It’s clear that the sector must continue to engage with partners in both the private and public sectors, and seek out new opportunities – often commercial – and fresh forms of investment in order to thrive in this era of spending restraint and competition in almost all areas of social support.

So where next for the sector? It’s clear that opportunities will continue to arise to leverage the skills, expertise and community connections of charities in order to improve standards of public service delivery. The Ministry of Justice’s forthcoming reforms to rehabilitation services, which aim to encourage a diverse range of providers including those from the voluntary sector, are just the latest example of the growing interest in exploiting the sector’s skills in order to increase the value and effectiveness of welfare provision.

While by no means suitable for all voluntary organisations, public service contracts can provide the opportunity for charities to reach a wider range of beneficiaries and generate new sources of income. To make the most of these opportunities, however, requires skills and capacity in areas that are not necessarily traditional strengths of the sector, for example around bid writing, contract management and risk evaluation. Acevo is currently working with a number of organisations and consortia to help develop these capabilities and enable charities to stay ahead of the curve.

In addition, the growth of social investment provides further opportunities for the sector. Initiatives such as the Cabinet Office’s social outcomes fund have increased the profile of forms of investment that seek both a social and financial return. By developing their impact measurement capacity and their ability to articulate the social benefits of their work, charities can improve their ability to access alternative forms of investment and adapt to the challenges and opportunities ahead.

Some of these developments may sound alien or intimidating. But remember ten years ago when the question was, ‘shall we change and go for contracts or stay the same?’. Today that is no longer an option and the question has become, ‘are we changing at the right pace and in the right way?’, and those not thinking about the answer should start looking for icebergs in the icy waters ahead.

Dr Peter Kyle – Deputy CEO of Acevo - peter.kyle@acevo.org.uk

A social purpose is not something that an organisation can bolt on. It has to come from the very heart of its reason for being. People have questioned the very purpose of banks. Many of these financial organisations have made it clear that they exist solely for their owners and shareholders, rather than for the people from whom they make their profits – customers. Yet surely, society once saw the creation and growth of banks as a good thing. Prosperous societies needed banks to keep money flowing, so that businesses could develop and individuals could save. There was a clear social purpose based on providing services to businesses and citizens. How has that been lost? The 1990s and 2000s saw banks investing in presenting a human face to consumers. Yet the way most banks behaved did not match the purpose they were presenting. The latter was cosmetic, so much ‘green backwash’.

Clearly, having a social purpose isn’t just the domain of the ‘good’, entrepreneurial brands. Some of the household names we take for granted today were actually the names of people with big vision to bring to market products that could create progress and improve lives. Ford, Cadbury, Sainsbury, Lever.

Appalled by the number of children suffering from intestinal disorders at the end of the First World War, and encouraged by the research of Elie Metchnikoff, Isaac Carasso started manufacturing yoghurt, using ferments from the Pasteur Institute and selling his products on prescription in Barcelona pharmacies. Danone was born.

Objecting to the way cosmetics companies portrayed women and tested their ingredients and products on animals, Anita Roddick set up The Body Shop with a mission for social and environmental change. She showed that a company selling mainstream products could generate positive change and fly the flag for this corporate role in social purpose.

Despite these pioneers, there is a huge gap to cross for many organisations, whose leaders just don’t seem to get what they are being told. Statistics in Marketing Week show that 97% of people would think more positively about a company that contributed to community, yet 37% feel that actual business community involvement is poor. And still, CSR is nowhere near the top of the agenda in business meetings. We’re still in the largest Western economic recession ever. But getting out of it successfully will depend on how organisations and communities interact in ways other than the economic.

Identifying the purpose of brand has the power to re-energise it both internally and with consumers. Purpose isn’t myopic. It’s not only about your point of difference to competitors. It’s about the difference you can make in people’s lives. It’s where your strengths are as an organisation and brand, where your passions intersect with the needs of your audience.

Whatever way you paint it, the financial picture looks pretty grim. With external conditions like that, it’s time to make the absolute most of what you have already got. Many not for profit organisations are chock full of elements and qualities of real value that in many cases they are not fully exploiting. Commercialising your social value is one way to fight back in straitened times.

Here’s a simple exercise to kick things off. Consider your organisation’s assets against the following list:

• Product or service
• Expertise
• Heritage
• Reach and access
• Specialism
• Innovation
• Experience
• Insight
• Reputation
• Passion
• Opinion

If you can put a tick against any of these then you have something to “sell” in the broadest sense of that term, i.e. you can use that asset to help persuade an individual or organisation to think, feel or do something advantageous to your organisation or to support a specific objective.

The last two items on that list are often the ones overlooked. I delivered a workshop on marketing to around 40 charities at the Directory of Social Change’s May Fayre recently. I did a spot poll to find out how many of those organisations were using passion and opinion as assets for marketing their organisations and a very small number of hands went up. I’ve worked for and with voluntary organisations for 20 years and the two things none of them have ever been short on are passion or opinion.

It is definitely worth using those assets to help raise profile and engage with key audiences. The general public like these connection points and you may be surprised by the number of potential funders who would welcome it as well.

But how do we get to these changes and what benefits would they bring? This was the starting point for a debate at Nesta this week – also facilitated by Policy Exchange and the Oxford Martin School - entitled Hands off the Wheel: Is it time to rethink urban mobility?

More than half the world is now urban and discussions on urban mobility tend to start most easily with the car. Approach to car ownership is changing in complex ways across the planet – in the USA, driving is no longer the rite of passage or status symbol it once was; licenses held by 17 year olds are down by 20%. However, in industrialising nations like China and India, car ownership is rising rapidly.

But let’s specifically focus on what’s happening in the UK. Dr Malcolm McCulloch, Director of the Institute for Carbon and Energy Reduction in Transport at the Oxford Martin School believes that smaller, semi autonomous vehicles could be on the road fairly regularly within the next five years if given enough support – this would have obvious implications for insurance and legislation so would be complicated to implement but would help deliver significant benefits.

Redesigning urban mobility would not only reduce the impact on our wallets and the environment but freeing up space currently taken up by congestion, half-empty cars and acres of car parking space would allow us to divert space to walking, cycling and green space; impacting on health and quality of life.

And there are workable concepts out there. Nathan Koren, an associate at Capita Symonds, was involved in the introduction of a driverless pod system used at Heathrow that celebrated its 2nd birthday this week. In that time, it has removed the need for 150,000 bus journeys; quite a figure when you account for the fact the system is 70% more energy efficient. Koren told the audience on Tuesday night it is worrying there isn’t government support to implement such systems more widely, saying it simply doesn’t fit into any existing funding pots. Current policy on low carbon city transport seems largely embedded in the desire to replicate current models, rather than taking the opportunity to creatively rethink mobility and encourage different travelling behaviour.

And a change of behaviour is urgent. Our dependence on car transport has a major negative financial impact – road collisions are estimated to cost the UK economy £8.7bn and car pollution costs us £10.6bn.

London is one of the wealthiest cities in the world, with a larger GDP than New Zealand, and that presents its own challenges and opportunities. London has more than half the UK’s Nitrogen Dioxide air pollution, and 63% of London’s air pollution comes from transport. It has been reported that 9% of deaths in London may be down to air pollution.

Speaking at the event, Eliot Treharne, senior policy and programme manager at the Greater London Authority said this was the time for a step change in how we approach transport in cities, just as his predecessors had moved power stations out of city centres when it was clear what damage was being done.

Changes already implemented in London – from the congestion charge to investment in public transport – have had demonstrable impact. And more diverse changes are being planned: Boris Johnson has already proposed an ‘Ultra Low Emission Zone’ for London, meaning only zero or low emission vehicles would be allowed into the city centre by 2020.

A significant amount of investment is currently being made into electric and Ultra Low Emission Vehicles. This will deliver significant environmental benefits but Treharne pointed out that this is only a stepping stone to the ultimate goal: even if we all switched to electric cars tomorrow, we would still need space for the growing number of people wanting to access our cities. We need to invest in ideas and programmes that move us beyond the car.

Whilst we await any movement on smaller and autonomous systems, there is progress in non-mechanised transport. Johnson has also announced plans for a near £1bn investment in cycling in London. It was revealed on Tuesday that this is almost certain to be scaled back due to government contributions and whilst this reduction is a huge shame, if his plans are put in place on any significant scale they will still be a huge step forward.

London is in a great position to implement innovative changes due to its size, economy and political structure. It must use this unique position to show the rest of the UK and beyond how we can practically rethink urban mobility.

Is it offering a place at something desirable like the London Marathon or an organised trek up Mount Kilimanjaro? Is it based on long term existing loyalties or a personal tie to that organisation? Or is it a more simplistic decision based on the fact that you like the charity brand design or the tone of a specific fundraising campaign they are doing?

Thinking about these questions I examined who I have fundraised for in the past. The organisation I have given more money to than anyone else is MIND. This September I am thinking of doing another challenge and I would say MIND is likely to be my first choice of fundraising donations.

There is rational logic to my choice, based on the fact  that I have close family and friends who have struggled with mental health problems. MIND has heritage and impressive campaigning prowess on challenging stigma around mental health illnesses and fighting for the rights of those who live with mental health conditions.

But in reality there are also softer, less rational, reasons too. It might sound like a strange thing to say, but MIND has good customer service. When I raised money for them in 2011 they got their communications spot on; responding quickly to requests, being supportive, and even sending a handwritten card to arrive the week before the event. You might argue that when we demand that charities keep their overheads low, they shouldn’t waste precious resources engaging with fundraisers in this way. But actually from my experience I would say this is an investment worth making, as it spurred me on to smash my fundraising target. It may not be natural to think of charities having to worry about customer service but those that get it right gain an advantage over others in the sector.

In the ideal world, it would be nice to think that a charity is doing such a brilliant job achieving its mission that everyone that it is in contact with naturally wants to support it through fundraising. But in reality the reasons and motivations for supporting an organisation are multifaceted and complex.

What if you’re a new, small or unknown charity that can’t rely on high profile or a large database of contacts; what should you do to attract new fundraisers? The good news for these organisations is that with a bit of fresh thinking and a strong communications approach there is an opportunity to attract a raft of new fundraisers. In order to do this you must:

1. Find a compelling mechanic. Look at the trends for challenges or consider those who want to do something more low key in their home. Some of my favorites recently have been Cancer Research’s Dryathlon, Curry for Change or Help for Hero’s partnership with Tough Mudder.

2. Communicate cause and the experience of fundraising. This will make people excited about fundraising for you by highlighting the opportunity to do something worthwhile and enjoy themselves.

3. Stay in touch. Don’t forget the value of supporting, encouraging and communicating with fundraisers. Little touches like a good luck card before the event may take more planning and organisation for the charity but showing appreciation will pay dividends in the long run.

From Monday May 13^th to Friday 17^th May 2013 AbilityNet is asking people to send a text LOOK132 to 70070 without using their hands and by texting with your nose, toes or elbows you will donate £2 towards AbilityNet’s free services. The campaign has found a way to engage audiences with disability in an easy and fun way, using the very technology that is so essential for people with disabilities, which is also the fundraising mechanic. Very clever.

The holy grail of a good campaign is to make the complex accessible and to find a creative and easy way to engage your audience. I urge everyone to take part and spread the word about Look No Hands – not only to fundraise for AbilityNet who provide free, game changing technology for disabled people – but to send a message to the Government that voters care about protecting services for some of the most vulnerable in society.

Let’s use Look No Hands to try and re-capture the spirit of last summer and the positive engagement in disability that the paralympics engendered.

For more information visit www.abilitynet.org.uk/looknohands

For some people, giving continues after death.

Last year a close family friend was diagnosed with acute renal failure and placed on emergency dialysis. Since then she has been having three weekly dialysis sessions with her only hope for survival being a kidney transplant. I received a call, late one evening, from my mother – she had decided that she wanted to become a living donor and give one of her healthy kidneys to help our family friend.

Organ donation is a subject that has been discussed often in our family. My mother had made her wishes clear from an early age that in the event of her death, her organs be donated in the hope that other families may benefit. So it felt like a natural extension of her beliefs about organ donation to become a living donor.

I was hugely proud that my mother would make such a selfless choice, putting her own health at risk, to help another person. But there is an opportunity for all of us to help others by donating organs when we no longer need them. How many of us would voluntarily give up an organ? Many of us are already willing to give blood, so how is becoming an organ donor a logical next step??

A quick poll of Forster employees shows that 72% are among the 18.5 million people (March 2012) already on the UK organ donation register. A recent article by James Meikle of the Guardian highlights the issue of family members overriding the wishes of registered donors in up to 45% of cases. It’s possible that in many of these instances a lack of knowledge and understanding of the donor’s wishes between family members may have resulted in the decision to refuse permission.

Forster’s work in the end-of-life charity sector has shown that people are often unwilling to discuss end-of-life decisions because of the emotional barriers surrounding the topic. Arguably through planning for the future with the support of friends and family can help to assuage the anguish of loved ones and ensure personal wishes are respected in the event of a relative’s death.

Have you considered organ donation? Have you told your family?

If not, I would encourage all those who have or are intending to join the NHS Blood and Transplant register to discuss your intentions with friends and family to ensure that in the event of your death you can be assured your wishes will be carried out.

For more information and advice on how to become an organ donor visit www.organdonation.nhs.uk

Running across 2 days, Business4Better is aiming to be a forum for any organisation that regards itself as “conversation ready” for partnerships, to help them find, meet, engage and build positive partnerships with other voluntary, public and business organisations, while learning more about the approaches taken by others and the impact they have made.

With a programme of workshops, seminars, immersive experiences and case-studies, Business4Better UK will bring together experts, practitioners, thought-leaders and agents of change to an event designed to offer inspiration, motivation and practical help to anyone, at any stage of their journey, seeking to create successful and meaningful partnerships.

Forster is curating a major chunk of the event, focusing on case study examples of partnerships between businesses and not for profit organisations. If you have a good story to tell and want a national platform to share the success you had, the challenges overcome and the resultant lessons learnt, then we would love to hear from you.

If you’d like to take an active role in the event, please contact Peter on 020 7403 2230 or peter@forster.co.uk

Over the years, many a creative approach to convey drink drive messaging has been developed, with varying success. When Forster was asked to create a PR programme to contribute to a change in attitudes and behaviour of specific audiences who have remained resistant to the message and continue to drink and drive, we faced a particular challenge.  We had no data on drink drive accidents or convictions to work with. The drink driving statistics won’t be out until this coming winter. Forster had to produce a campaign without them and implement it quickly and successfully.

So, we formed a partnership with the Institute of Advanced Motorists, who calculated the total personal cost of a drink driving conviction based on fines, legal costs, rise in insurance premiums and possible job losses faced by those who are convicted. This calculation result was £20,000 – £50,000 and the ‘£50,000 pint’ was born. This approach supported the messaging in the ‘consequences’ TV advert running at the same time.

Forster used the calculation to articulate the concept of the £50,000 pint. We designed a visual stunt, with a standard pint of beer encased in glass on a pedestal, surrounded by velvet ropes and guarded by security. The pint was ‘unveiled’ in London by Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond in a media photocall. As another way to engage the audience, we also designed mocked up ‘scratch-cards’, which revealed the consequences of a drink driving conviction.

The national launch took place on a Friday, aiming to reach weekend drinkers and deliver media coverage over the weekend. Media activity was driven by the real life story of a convicted drink driver, Jeremy.  This peer to peer  storytelling to deliver Government safety messages  was critical to reach the target audience in a way that would be heard.

The national launch was followed by regional rollout activity in four cities throughout the UK. We developed relationships with regional police forces, who took part in the photocall by guarding the pint and acted as media spokespeople. These partnerships, brokered by Forster, were essential to successful regional media activity.

Audience engagement was driven by police and Forster reps encouraging passers-by to pose by the £50,000 pint, with the police officers for photos on their camera phones, while scratch-cards were distributed.

The £50,000 pint generated 82 pieces of media coverage, including 13 national stories and blanket regional coverage in and around the four cities. National coverage included 12 minutes on Daybreak and a double page spread in the Telegraph and stories in The Times, The Sun and The Mirror. The campaign was also the leading story on the moneysupermarket.com newsletter to 2,732,226 members.

Did it work? Time will tell. The only proper measure is the behaviour and attitude of drink drivers.

The campaign certainly won commendations from every local police force involved – and they should know. Three additional regional forces have requested activity in their area after seeing the media coverage in other regions. A total of 6,000 scratch-cards were distributed to members of the public in chosen cities across the UK. Message delivery was ranked by the Westminster evaluation model to indicate the extent key messages had reached target audiences – and 93% of coverage ranked the highest possible score.

Last but not least, Jeremy has since set up his own campaign, including a Facebook page, schools visits and help for fellow convicted drivers.