Donations annoyance and feel like its a waste

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  [Deactivated] on 29/12/2016 - 22:59

  +4

  Unfortunately charity CEOs making $250k+ while enjoying not for profit status have outsourced fundraising to direct/telemarketing companies and chuggers without the slightest moral conscience. Your information will have been sold onto the donaters database. My dead mother managed to get on the list 5 years after her death (+ several years incapacitation) as they sell 10 year old information for every cent they can scrounge. You couldn't get more 'for profit' than these companies operating on behalf of not for profit charities.

  In my view a for profit multiplied by a not for profit still equals a for profit.

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  xoom on 29/12/2016 - 23:09

  +1

  This is what i had against certain charities. Less and less money goes into the actual people that need the help.

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  BlazinPast on 29/12/2016 - 23:24

  +2

  Make sure you look up the charity by an independent site before donating. They'll break down how much each dollar goes into the charity, admin and other expenses.

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  subywagon on 30/12/2016 - 00:09

  +1

  I think you'd be better off donating money to individuals or grass roots organisations etc where an amount like that could really make a difference in someones life.

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  [Deactivated] on 30/12/2016 - 00:18

  Union aid abroad (Apheda) is one of only 5 charities in Australia who pay their workers a proper wage and adhere to a genuine non profit structure. The rest operate on bonuses and commissions.

  If you really want to give, join APHEDA or find a local cause running on a shoestring like a hospice or independent homeless outreach and volunteer, or donate good or services directly. Check out volunteer tourism as well and do some good on holiday

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  PJC on 30/12/2016 - 00:19

  Not known at this address?

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  shaybisc on 30/12/2016 - 07:58

  I did not know you could get rid of a third party charity phone pest using the Do Not Call Register but this article says you can.

  "So what do you do when a charity calls you every day to ask you to donate and you would prefer not to? Should you put your number on the National Do Not Call Register (DNCR)? If you just say “No, thanks”, does that stop the calls? Do you send a written “Cease and Desist” letter/email?

  It’s a little bit of all those solutions. The DNCR doesn’t apply to charities, but it does to third parties who call on their behalf. So, if you say “No, please don’t call again”, they must respect your wishes or else face a fine. You could also send them a letter asking to be removed from their database."

  http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/rendezview/how-to-stop-gett…

  Then you will only have actual charity phone pests to deal with.

  • 

    BlazinPast on 30/12/2016 - 13:21

    Doesn't block charities nor market researchers. Only sales telecommunications

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  scotty on 30/12/2016 - 10:39

  +6

  I am often surprised by how much money charities spent on fund raising. Obviously their argument is that by spending money on fund raising they are able to reap more donations for charity works. However as a donor you do feel that the money you donated wasn't exactly spent on the causes you intended.

  OzBargain has donated nearly $150k over the last 4 and half years to only the charities that our community has voted for, and since then I have received letters every single week (sometimes multiple times a week near Christmas or EoFY) from those charities asking for more money. Sometimes printed on shining coloured booklets trying to sell me a story, and sometimes with various "freebies" (stickers, greeting cards and even pens). Most of them go straight to the bin (except the pen, I like free pen :) What a waste of donation money.

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 30/12/2016 - 11:29

    +3

    I also don't like people travelling and global adventuring under the flag of charity when their expenses are paid with donations first. These Himalayan climbs and motorbike expeditions for charity are nonsense.

    • 

      voteoften on 30/12/2016 - 15:12

      Yes, it's sort of like multi level marketing, getting your friends, family and co-workers to give up their money to benefit you. Tupperware, amway, etc. all a travesty committed against those we should be protecting.

  • 

    voteoften on 30/12/2016 - 15:09

    Scotty, as these are significant donations, I wonder if you could make them predicated on them NOT contacting you again.

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  bluedufflecoat on 30/12/2016 - 11:48

  I donated once to RCH. I get a lot of requests for more donations too.. best to just request that they take you off their mailing list.

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  [Deactivated] on 30/12/2016 - 14:49

  +1

  last report I read said that roughly 50% of all donations go to the fundraising companies, which is bullshit

  • 

    xoom on 30/12/2016 - 15:57

    and they wonder why people don't want to give at all.

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  try2bhelpful on 30/12/2016 - 20:14

  I agree with your stance on the communications. I make a once a year donation to the RSPCA and ignore the missives during the year; however I wish they wouldn't send them - I refuse to read them and they go straight in the bin. I had a similar issue with the breast council so I don't donate to them anymore either. From the perspective of phone messages we screen all our calls so we get a lot of hang-ups rather than begging calls. The whole "donation industry" wastes so much money it turns people off donating.

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  chumlee on 30/12/2016 - 20:31

  I recently had a doorknocker that wanted me to make a donation. I said not a problem I will give you $5 and she replied she cannot accept cash donations, only credit card or direct debit both on recurring basis. Told her not to worry I decline the opportunity

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  jonno82 on 30/12/2016 - 23:55

  +1

  I share your frustration, the exact thought came across my mind a few months ago.

  I occasionally donate to various organizations for different causes I support, at the time I received a call from one of them during my lunch break at work, the lady started by telling me stories about research etc etc, I asked her if this is a request for donation as I am on my lunch break, she told me she appreciated my time and she would make it short, then started her spiel again!!! She kept saying something and then ask "what do you think about that" or "Isn't that great" when I have clearly told her that I have limited time, so I just told her I am interested if she could send me an email with the details of the cause and I will make a donation in my own time. However she tried to get me to commit over the phone right away and I think it was a regular direct debit arrangement too, I had to decline multiple times and repeatedly telling her that I only want to make donations based on my own preference before she accepted defeat.

  It really highlighted the saying "no good deed goes unpunished", you try to do something good but in return you are getting harrassed as a result. I've tried to find charity groups that accept donations without asking for your personal details (happy to forego the opportunity to make a tax claim, just want to do it anonymously), but I struggled to find one. So now I have crossed that organization off my list and will only donate to places where they do not actively hassle me.

  I guess another option would be go to a hospital and just donating to the collection can at the reception.

  Sorry for the attempt to hijack the thread but it had bothered me for a while :)