The Fundraising4Democracy hub can be found on the EFA site, and brings together essential articles, toolkits, and case studies, as well as listing key events. It invites fundraising professionals to explore the materials to learn, act, and advocate.

Many of the resource materials are accessible to all. They include links to EFA’s own Spotlight on civic space series, reports such as Philea’s 2025 Democracy Briefer for Funders: What’s Happening to European Democracy and What Funders Can Do About It; and Mapping Shrinking Civic Space In Europe (Giada Negri, Filip Pazderski).

A members’ only section of resources is also being created.

Events highlighted include forthcoming webinars on the topic from EFA, and wider sector events such as June’s International Conference Fundraising in Challenging Times.

Resources and events will be added to the hub on an ongoing basis, with an invitation to share relevant materials and dates with EFA for possible inclusion.

Commenting on the new resource, EFA executive director Eduard Marček said:

“Democracy and a free civil society are under pressure across much of the world and Europe. In response, public mobilization and fundraising remain powerful tools in the hands of active citizens. EFA aims to be a hub for sharing resources and inspiration — empowering fundraisers, leaders and civic actors to take meaningful action and defend our democracies.”

In the report – The Impact of Covid-19 on Nonprofits in Europe – we present findings from a survey of 797 representatives of nonprofit organisations from 26 nations across Europe, showing that nonprofits have been hit hard by the pandemic, but that they are innovating and embracing digital to re-shape their future.

Over two thirds of respondents said they had to cancel fundraising activities and just under half struggled to reach beneficiaries or deliver services in lockdown. The most common current challenge cited by nonprofits in the survey was the ability to raise sufficient funds, identified by 62% of respondents.

More than six in ten respondents predict their revenue during 2020 will be lower than expected at the start of the year. Just over a third report that income from individual donations and services has fallen during the pandemic. Of the six national markets with the largest number of responses (enabling comparison), respondents in Italy (53%), Spain (38%) and the UK (37%) were most likely to have seen a decrease in the amount donated. Respondents in Germany (45%) and France (37%) were more likely to have seen an increase, while donations were stable for 40% of respondents in the Netherlands.

Eduard Marček, president of the European Fundraising Association (EFA) and chair of the Slovak Fundraising Centre, says:

“This has been an incredibly tough year for the sector, and this survey indicates that the majority of nonprofits have had to downscale their income projections at a time when their services are urgently needed. The ability to raise enough funds to continue their vital work remains an immense concern.

“And yet, it’s clear that nonprofits have not stood still. They are working hard to innovate, identifying new ways to fundraise, to build supporter engagement and to deliver frontline services.

“The pandemic remains a major threat and the work of the nonprofit sector will be all the more important as we work together to aid Europe’s recovery.”

Rob Acker, CEO of Salesforce.org, adds:

“This year was not something any of us planned for, but it is one where the nonprofit community redefined resilience. Demand increased while funding decreased, yet we’ve seen incredible examples of new services, creative fundraising, and agile operations stem from our nonprofit community.”

Transforming service delivery and fundraising

Since the pandemic struck, nonprofits have ramped up their use of digital to raise funds, engage with supporters and deliver services. More than half of respondents said they have found new ways to deliver services (53%). Two thirds said they are delivering more services online and over one third say they are increasing their use of the telephone for services.

Almost seven in ten respondents increased their use of digital channels for fundraising, four in ten launched emergency appeals and over one third started using fundraising channels that were new to them. Nonprofits are transforming their future fundraising strategies, with six in ten respondents saying they will increase their focus on digital channels and more than half (56%) diversifying their approach to use a broader range of channels. Only 11% say their future fundraising strategy will not change.

Insights from Italy, UK and the Netherlands

The pandemic cast a hefty shadow in Italy, with respondents in the country most likely to anticipate a fall in their total revenue for the year. More than half of those surveyed launched emergency appeals to raise funding, and while nonprofits in Italy are embracing digital channels for fundraising, there is also a notable increase of focus on supporter care.

Simona Biancu, ASSIF

Simona Biancu, vice president of the Italian Fundraising Association (ASSIF) and fundraising / philanthropic adviser at ENGAGEDin, comments:

“There has been a real shift in the way that nonprofits appeal for funds and engage with their supporters in Italy this year, particularly when it comes to medium and smaller nonprofit organisations. I’m starting to see a much stronger desire to invest in fundraising and to think from a long-term perspective.

“During the pandemic, there was no choice; nonprofits here had to try new things, whether that was launching crisis appeals or asking supporters to give online – something that wasn’t thought of as particularly common for Italians. They had to stop thinking about what they couldn’t do and the risks, reaching out in different ways. This means that we’ve seen some incredibly ambitious campaigns, often with very impressive results.

“So, ironically, while the pandemic has been devastating in so many ways, it has also brought about an opportunity to reshape the future of our organisations, how we work, our role in the community and to embed a culture of giving in Italy. 

“Nonprofits have come out of this bolder and braver. There is greater maturity around our fundraising, with accelerated learning and professionalisation. And that is filtering through to the public, raising awareness around the vital role that the sector plays in Italy. Giving to charity seems more widely recognised as a natural thing to do and that’s a huge step forward for us all.”

Meanwhile, in the UK, the impact on service delivery seemed to be particularly widespread with more than half of respondents in the nation reporting difficulty in delivering services during lockdown. At the same time, respondents indicated that demand for their services had increased during the pandemic. There was a huge amount of change, with almost three quarters of UK respondents saying they had identified new ways to deliver services, and the large majority making greater use of digital channels. Similarly, although there have been widespread cancellations of fundraising activities or events, UK respondents upped their use of digital for fundraising and around four in ten said they had started using channels that were new to them.

Respondents also indicate that staff capacity was a more prominent issue for UK nonprofits. While the number of staff available to work dropped for around one third of respondents across the full survey sample, in the UK – where government introduced a furlough scheme – more than half (56%) of respondents recorded a reduction in staff.

Daniel Fluskey, head of policy and external affairs at the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, says:

“The results in this survey echo and reinforce the fundraising picture that we hear and see from across our membership in the UK. The expected fall in income over the year resonates with the research we’ve collaborated on with Pro Bono Economics and Charity Finance Group – lots of charities are having to make tough decisions about their staffing levels and service delivery to get through winter and into 2021. The fact that UK respondents are reporting a higher impact on service delivery and a higher likelihood of having to reduce staff levels shows just how challenging the situation is for UK charities right now.

“While many organisations are trying new things and working in different ways, it’s interesting to see that in the UK the use of virtual events has been more prevalent than the average across Europe. While this could be a reflection of the severity of lockdown and social distancing measures in the UK, it may also be that some of the skills and technology necessary to deliver virtual events are more developed in some of the UK’s charity sector. What is clear is that the need and opportunity to try new things, fundraise in innovative and different ways, is not over – charities are going to have to continue to be nimble and responsive as they respond to the challenges that the coming months, and indeed years, are going to bring.”

In the Netherlands, use of social media or messaging for fundraising was particularly prevalent during the height of the pandemic, with nonprofits also making widespread use of email and online fundraising channels. The number of donations and amount given appear to have been a little more stable in the Netherlands than elsewhere, and yet the ability to raise sufficient funds remains the primary concern for those contributing to the survey.

Commenting on the findings, Margreet Plug, director of Goede Doelen Nederland, says:

“It is of course not surprising that our sector is affected by the corona crisis, but we see that there is great willingness to help each other today. Regular donors continue to support charities and the sector is showing power. Charities work together to continue their work or develop new activities that help society through the corona crisis. We also see more charities working online.”

While there is some variance around the impact of the pandemic at a national level, it’s clear that this year has been a rapid accelerant for change and digital transformation for nonprofits. Future fundraising strategies, service delivery and the way that nonprofits work internally and collaborate with others have transformed markedly, demonstrating once more the sector’s ability, determination and passion to continue their vital work.

About the Nonprofit Pulse Survey

EFA and Salesforce.org carried out this online multilingual survey from July to October 2020. 797 nonprofit representatives from 26 nations across Europe responded. Respondents most commonly identified themselves as fundraisers, communications, marketing or policy officials, but over a quarter were in senior leadership roles as CEOs or trustees / board members.The largest number of respondents were based in the UK, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and France, enabling national comparisons across those markets.

Now in its fourth edition, the biannual report is sponsored by Funraise and produced by Nonprofit Tech for Good. It provides technology benchmarks for six regions: Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, Latin American and the Caribbean, and the United States and Canada, and reveals how organisations worldwide are using web and email communications, online fundraising, social media, productivity software, and emerging technologies.

In 2019, 5,721 organisations from 160 countries took part, and the top five European countries participating in the study were Greece, Ireland, Spain, England, and France.

The report found that 95% of non-profit organisations in Europe now have a website, but that only 56% accept online donations through it. This is 8% below the global average. However, 26% have an online store, which is the highest rate worldwide. The majority accept credit card payments, at 84%, with just over half accepting Paypal and Direct Debit.  Digital wallet and cryptocurrency are accepted by a small minority.

Regular monthly giving is the most popular fundraising method across Europe, with 77% using it – above the global average of 68%. This is followed by tribute giving (when people give in honour or memory of a loved one) at 40%. Crowdfunding, and peer-to-peer fundraising are also popular, used by around a third.

Digital channels are popular, with a significant year on year increase in the percentage using email marketing. 80% now sent email updates to supporters and donors, up from 57% in 2018, while 49% also send email fundraising appeals. Europe is also the biggest user of text-to-give (23%), while 55% find the technology effective for fundraising. This is higher than in other regions, by 9%.

Social media use is also high with 95% of non-profits regularly employing it to engage supporters and donors. 92% use Facebook, with almost one third (32%) using its charitable giving tools. Twitter (68%) and Instagram (51%) are the next most popular channels, followed by LinkedIn (39%), YouTube (39%) and WhatsApp (11%).

In addition:

However, while 66% agree that social media is effective for online fundraising, only 27% have a system in place to track and report return on investment for these campaigns.

Half of non-profits across Europe increased their technology spend in 2019, with just 8% decreasing it. Understanding of emerging technologies such as AI, augmented reality, and blockchain technology varies, with 79% saying they understand AI very or somewhat well, compared to 66% for augmented reality, and 36% for blockchain.

The full report can be downloaded from the Funraise site.

Today (15th May 2019), I Nuovi Fundraiser (The New Fundraiser) is being unveiled to fundraisers at the twelfth annual Festival del Fundraising in Italy. The book summarises the findings of a new study of the Italian fundraising profession, presenting insight based on a survey of 2,000 fundraisers and dozens of interviews carried out by Melandri at the Philanthropy Centro Studi (University of Bologna), in collaboration with the Italian fundraisers association ASSIF and the Festival del Fundraising Association.

Melandri says:

“This book sheds light on today’s fundraising profession: who they are, how they work and what they aspire towards within a professional capacity. Exploring the fundraising-donor relationship, the study highlights the need to rebalance the power dynamic of that relationship, recognising that both parties are equally important. All too often the fundraiser is overlooked. But we cannot truly understand the actions of those giving without paying more attention to those who ask.”

This imbalance of the donor-fundraiser relationship will be further explored at today’s Italian fundraising conference, where 850 fundraisers are due to attend. The programme features over 60 workshop sessions, presented by 70 Italian and international fundraising experts.

Both Melandri and Breeze are members of EFA’s certification committee, contributing to the future development of fundraising qualifications across Europe.

The book is available for purchase here.

Looking at the ‘zombie phenomena’ affecting charities, the book examines why charities fail to deal with ‘problem staff’ who lead them to underperform.

In a description of the book, John Baguley says:

“How do you survive and thrive in a world where your boss is a bit a zombie and what’s more his boss is too? Just how do you deal with staff who have been in post for years but are completely useless?

“We know that most people in charities are dedicated professionals who it is a pleasure to work with, but then again too many times key individuals just aren’t up to the job. If this is your experience, or your fear, then Fundraising and Zombies is for you and will help to guide you through the process of tackling the problem and getting your mojo back.” 

The book explores how to deal with challenging people within the workforce at any level from co-worker to CEO, and how doing so can enhance a career, give personal satisfaction at work and improve one’s standing within their organisation.

It gives an insider’s view of the pitfalls and heroics of life in some of the UK’s best-loved charities. Real life anecdotes are examined and the problems they caused revealed, along with solutions and advice for how such issues can be dealt with.

Baguley has published a number of other books for fundraisers, including The Globalization of NGOs, Successful Major Donor Fundraising: How Boomers Changed the Rules, and Successful Fundraising.

Fundraising and Zombies is £19 on Amazon but is available for £15 including postage to readers who contact the author quoting ‘EFA’s Fundraising Europe’.

The free guidance Acceptance, refusal, and return: A practical guide to dealing with donations builds on its earlier publication on the topic, and is intended to give charities further support as they prepare a consistent and considered strategy for potential risks in the future.

Stephanie Siddall, policy manager, Institute of Fundraising, said:

“Fundraisers understand the importance of making sure there is enough money and resource for their charity to be able to carry out its work. But, sometimes there are other considerations that can be more important – the value of donation may not always be worth the cost in terms of a potential loss of public trust and confidence, reputational damage or a conflict with the charity’s ethics, values and vision. These aren’t easy decisions, which is why this guidance is an important tool in supporting charities, fundraisers and trustees to know how to deal with these situations.”

The guide is aimed at anyone in charities involved in raising funds and making decisions on gift acceptance, and specifically covers the role and responsibility of trustees. It also sets out guidance on how to put together a policy on gift acceptance and refusal with examples of where charities might have to make difficult decisions.

Sarah Atkinson, director of policy, planning and communications, Charity Commission for England and Wales, added:

“We welcome this guidance from the Institute of Fundraising. It is, rightly, difficult for a charity to decide to refuse or return a donation – it will need all the money it can get and trustees are under a duty to use all the charity’s resources to further its aims for the public benefit. But there are some rare situations when trustees can properly decide that refusing or returning a donation is going to be in the charity’s best interests. We hope that this guidance will help charities understand those situations, and the rules and processes around them.”

The Institute of Fundraising and the Fundraising Regulator released the joint guidance on GDPR, which is also approved by the Information Commissioner’s Office.

The free guidance is designed specifically for fundraisers and those in smaller organisations and focuses on practical application of the law to real life scenarios. It is based on questions charities have asked in the UK. It gives an overview of GDPR for charities and fundraisers, looks at different fundraising methods, and identifies ways in which personal data is likely to be used in each case. It also signposts to more detailed guidance from key sources to help fully equip fundraisers ahead of the GDPR’s implementation on 25 May this year.

Daniel Fluskey, head of policy and external affairs, Institute of Fundraising, said:

“It’s essential that fundraisers get GDPR right. We know that fundraisers have had questions over how the law will apply in practice and hope that these new guidance pieces help to demystify GDPR and enable fundraisers to plan their work to give supporters the best experience of fundraising.”

The prospect research guide, Connecting People to Causes: A Practical Guide to Fundraising Research has been published in partnership with charity sector advisors Bates Wells Braithwaite and fundraising consultancy More Partnership.

This guide aims to help fundraisers understand the lawful bases for processing data, and ensure they are treating people fairly and lawfully in their major donor fundraising and prospect research work.

It covers key topics and questions raised on major donor fundraising and the processing of data, including how charities can use publicly available information to help them better understand their donors, how and when to provide privacy notices to donors, and how to undertake legitimate interest balancing exercises.

Fluskey commented:

“We know that all fundraisers want to do the right thing and ensure their work is done according to the law and to the highest standard. The issues around major donor fundraising and prospect research have been ‘hot topics’ over the last year, and we are delighted to have worked with BWB and More Partnership on this new guide which will help support fundraisers go about their work with confidence and success.”

EFA’s report^[1] represents the views of fifteen national fundraising associations about charitable giving trends, influencing factors and concerns for fundraising, EU data protection legislation and support from government.

Findings include the large majority of associations recording a rise in their country’s voluntary income over the last five years. Increasing use of social media, technological developments, growing national economies and innovation are all cited as positive influencing factors for fundraising, together with growing professionalism across the sector.

The community is also broadening with many of the less traditional fundraising sectors now attracting a sizeable share of voluntary income. While children’s charities remain the top cause, arts, education, sports and environment charities are becoming more prominent.

Despite growth in the European population, less than half of the associations surveyed (six) report a rise in donor numbers, with five saying donor numbers were static and three that they have fallen during the past five years. However, associations also referenced new groups of donors and younger supporters who have become more accessible to the sector with the development of online donation platforms, growth of peer-to-peer giving and with new entrants to the fundraising marketplace attracting a different supporter base.

The report indicates that the rising cost of fundraising has overtaken public trust (the lead concern in EFA’s previous report from 2015) as the most highly ranked concern for charities. Public trust in charities and adapting to forthcoming EU data protection rules (GDPR) were the next most common causes for concern, with most national fundraising associations believing that charities in their nation are under-prepared for GDPR requirements.

Gosse Bosma, EFA president and director of Goede Doelen Nederland, says:

“The sector rarely shies away from innovation and, having embraced new payment channels, peer-to-peer giving platforms and social media, this report shows that fundraising continues to be a dynamic and exciting industry.

“A big challenge however is strengthening relationships with supporters, particularly younger generations, and making the most of the new opportunities that technological developments and digital fundraising bring.

“At the same time, charities have to be careful not to ask too much. The number of fundraising organisations is rising, which can compound the effect and deter the public from giving. We need to do all we can to ensure that every contact with a current or potential donor is a positive experience.”

The report addresses fundraising in Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. It is estimated that charitable donations to these nations amount to at least EUR 83.8 billion^[2].

For more information, see the full report – Fundraising in Europe 2017.

Notes
1. Fundraising in Europe 2017 – EFA’s report provides a snapshot of fundraising in fifteen European nations, summarising the key findings of desk-based research and a survey of EFA’s members (representatives of national fundraising associations).

A representative from each of 15 national fundraising associations completed EFA’s membership survey in May to June 2017, referencing national data sources and completing additional interview questions on request. The report addresses fundraising in the following nations: Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

2.  Source: ERNOP, Giving in Europe 2017 (NB. ERNOP’s report excludes voluntary income data from Slovenia).

The 11^th edition of the Swiss Donation Guide was published at the end of last year. The first edition of the biannual directory of Swiss NGOs was launched 20 years ago, and is still published by the same team, Bruno Abegg and Pfändler Annoncen + Verlags AG in Zurich.

The 570-page volume supports legacy fundraising in Switzerland and is distributed free to lawyers and bank advisors to help people who are looking for a charity to make a bequest to. Around 350 NGOs pay for space in the print volume, on an accompanying CD, and online at www.spendenspiegel.ch.

According to Bruno Abegg in an editorial on the site:

“Testators and donors ask for more and more information about the charities they wish to donate to, Despite the rapid development of electronic media, this guide in book form is still highly appreciated and has become an indispensable tool during meetings with lawyers, notaries and banks.”

The 5^th Edition of Fundraising: Handbook for Basics, Strategies and Methods (Fundraising: Handbuch für Grundlagen, Strategien und Methoden), was also published last year. It was first published in 1999 and with over 1,000 pages in the new edition is the most voluminous book on fundraising in the German language. The Handbook is written by senior experts in the field, and edited by the Fundraising Akademie in Frankfurt/Main, the education partner of Deutscher Fundraisingverband.

The library is based within Collegio Einaudi’s own library, which has handed over a section to ASSIF to be dedicated to fundraising. In the Piemonte region alone there are almost 35,000 non-profit organisations, and it is hoped that the library will become an important source of information for fundraising practitioners and will also demonstrate the potential of the discipline to others.

During the opening ceremony, attendees donated books to the collection, and the library is seeking further contributions to help it grow. Anyone who would like to participate is invited to send a book to Collegio Einaudi via Maria Vittoria, 29 – 10123 Turin – Italy.