Sam Wilson, FRSB

1. The Good,
the Bad &
the Ugly
IoF Face-2-Face Conference
4 December 2012
Sam Wilson, Marketing & Policy Manager
Fundraising Standards Board

2. Content…
 The Problem
Complaints trends
Their implications
Attrition
 The Solution
How’s my fundraising?
The bad & the ugly

3. FRSB complaints trends – 2011 data
Key observations:
 9.6 billion donor contacts, just over 30,000 complaints
received
 Top 50 charities by voluntary income account for 71% of all
complaints. However, they also account for 86% of volume.
 Direct mail generated the highest number of complaints
 Followed by telephone & door to door
 Only 15 complaints were escalated to Stage 2 of the FRSB
complaints procedure
 Three went to a full adjudication
Source: FRSB membership annual returns for period Jan – Dec 2011 (those who have been signed up to self-
regulation for longer than 6 months).

4. Door to door collections (DD)
Of particular note in the other category were 23 complaints about targeting the
elderly & vulnerable
No of complaints
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Fundraiser Dislike of Timing of call Calling on no Frequency of Other
conduct method charity cold approach
callers
premises
Source: FRSB Members, Annual Complaints Return 2011

5. Street collections (DD)
No of complaints
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Fundraiser conduct Dislike of method Frequency of Other
approach
Source: FRSB Members, Annual Complaints Return 2011

6. Did you know?
 More than half of people now
complain all or most of the time
if they are unhappy with a
product – an increase of 18% in
5 years…and that was in 2006
 Just think about PPI misselling &
MPs expenses
Source: National Complaints Culture Survey, ICS/TMI 2006

7. The implications?
 Of all your unhappy supporters, only
1 in 25 will tell you
 ‘Silent complainers’
 A happy supporter may tell 2 or 3
people.
 An unhappy one will 10. 20% of
them will tell 20 more…
 Resolve their problems fast and 85%
will come back again
Source: Profiles International

8. How many supporters are you losing?
 Average annual attrition rate =
10 -20%
 Small improvements can make
big difference
 Has additional benefits:
 More efficient marketing spend
 Cross sell / up sell
 Increased feedback
 Word of mouth
Source: McGrath 1997; Base: All supporters who make more than one contribution

9. Don’t forget…
It costs at least 5 times as much to
gain a new supporter than keep an
existing one

10. So what’s the solution?

11. How’s my fundraising?
 Feedback is a great opportunity
 Encourage it, good or bad
 But make sure you can deal with it!
 Have a process to deal with the negative
 Put yourself in their shoes. How would you like to be
treated?
 Record it all, including the detail
 Put it into context
 Monitor & review
 Learn & improve
 Give feedback to your supporter

12. Words of wisdom from Bluefrog Creative
 Tackle the silent complainers
 Keep donors happy
 Saying thank you is a start
 Giving donors a channel to feedback will help you find out
what they really think
 Sharing their experiences – good & bad – and your answers in
a place other donors will see it may help answer complaints
from people who don’t have the time or inclination to air
them
 Learn from your own experiences, and adapt them for your
charity
Source: Bluefrog Creative, Monday 12 November, How do you answer complaints from donors who don’t complain

13. The bad & the ugly
“An expression of
dissatisfaction
whether justified
or not” (BS8600)

14. How’s best to do it?
 Agree what recording
 Agree how recording
 Agree who’s going to co-ordinate
 Agree communication channels
 Establish handling processes
 Regular reporting & monitoring
 Submit ACR if FRSB member

15. Why is it important to have a complaints process?
 Empower supporters by instilling confidence in your
services
 Ensures consistency across the organisation
 Shows you’re focussing on your supporters’ needs
 Shows you have an open, honest and fair approach
 Benefit your charity’s development by setting a
benchmark for supporter care.
 Enhance your charity’s reputation by confirming its
commitment to excellence.

16. What should your process look like?
 Must be available in writing or on your website (if
you have one)
 Must outline how supporters can make a complaint
to you.
 Must outline clearly defined timeframes
 Needs to make reference to the FRSB (if you’re a
member)
 Designate a complaints co-ordinator (someone
primarily responsible for handling complaints)

17. Top Ten Tips!
• Convey thanks
• Obtain all the facts
• Make it easy
• Put yourself in their shoes
• Learn from every complaint
• Authorize & empower your staff
• Ignore at your peril
• No two complaints are the same
• Train your staff
• Say sorry – always apologise

18. In summary…
 The –ve you hear about is probably just the tip of the
iceberg
 Resolve their concerns & they’ll keep giving
 Make sure all staff are aware of the implications of
poor supporter care
 Listen to them…ask them what they think
 Learn from your own experiences
 Follow through on promises
 Be better every time…