From “Those Who Receive” to “Those Who Give”: Facilitating Donor-Beneficiary Communication in Fundraising Campaigns

• In Event: Success factors in Fundraising

Abstract

[Empirical/Theoretical Concern] Donation is an act of giving resources that involves three stakeholders: donors, fundraisers, beneficiaries. Among their relationships, donor-fundraiser relationships have received much attention, both in scholarly work and practice. In contrast, beneficiaries have long been absent in the discussion. This study explores the possibility of donor-beneficiary communication and its impact. Through a case of a nonprofit fundraising campaign in Japan, we argue that with a proactive intervention by nonprofits, rich communication can emerge between donors and beneficiaries, leading to overcoming the static roles of “those who give” and “those who receive.” We demonstrate how donor-beneficiary interactions can go beyond mere economic transactions to encompass multifaceted social exchanges.

[Literature Review] Extant literature on philanthropy and fundraising have placed much emphasis on donors (Clohesy, 2003) as well as donor-nonprofit relationships (Waters, 2009; Sargeant and Lee, 2004). Beneficiaries, on the other hand, have received limited attention. Only in recent years have studies begun to highlight beneficiary perspectives (Bhati and Eikenberry, 2015; Breeze and Dean, 2012). We join this emerging realm of inquiry on donor-beneficiary relationships with a qualitative study from Japan.

[Case and Methodology] The study examines the possibility and impact of donor-beneficiary interactions with a case of fundraising campaign. This Japanese nonprofit provides opportunities to self-care, learn, and contribute to society to single-mothers in Japan, of which 48.3% suffer poverty. Public support remains in economic assistance and their image is often centered around economic hardships. Consequently, the dominant narrative simplifies their experiences to poverty. This nonprofit attempts to challenge such a situation.

In 2022, this nonprofit launched a fundraising campaign where beneficiaries wrote essays on their experience of becoming and living as single-mothers. Donors read the essays upon making donations, often leaving reactions. Observing an emergence of donor-beneficiary communication in this campaign, we conducted semi-structured interviews to participating single-mothers and analyzed the transcribed interviews using a grounded-theory approach (Corbin and Strauss, 2015). What were the impacts, if any, of interactions between donors and beneficiaries?

[Findings] We find that donors, stimulated by reading essays about the experiences of beneficiaries, began to share their own previously concealed hardships in life. Single-mothers, upon reading those narratives, recognized that donors also experienced struggles and felt "common humanity." Through this dialogue, single-mothers went beyond the roles of donors and recipients and proudly expressed their ability to provide "peer support." They no longer felt confined to being passive beneficiaries, but rather embraced and took pride in the idea of being providers of "peer support."The dialogue transcended the conventional roles of donors and beneficiaries, overcoming the static roles of “those who give” and “those who receive”. The conventional roles that both research and practice has imposed on donors and beneficiaries may be transformed through strategic interventions.

[Relevance] This study brings in a sociological perspective to studies on philanthropy and fundraising to expand our understanding of donor-nonprofit-beneficiary relationships. The study also draws practical implications that nonprofits, positioned in between donors and beneficiaries, can play an active role to facilitate communication and transform their roles.

References

Bhati, A. and Eikenberry, A.M. (2015). Faces of the Needy: The Portrayal of Destitute Children in the Fundraising Campaigns of NGOs in India. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing, 21, 31-42.

Breeze, B. and Dean, J. (2012). Pictures of me: user views on their representation in homelessness fundraising appeals. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing. 17: 132– 143.

Clohesy, W.W. (2003). Fund-Raising and the Articulation of Common Goods. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 32(1): 128-140.

Corbin, J. and Strauss, A. (2015). Basics of Qualitative Research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Sargeant, A. and Lee, S. (2004). Trust and relationship commitment in the United Kingdom voluntary sector: Determinants of donor behavior. Psychology and Marketing, 21(8): 613-635.

Waters, R. D. (2009). The Importance of Understanding Donor Preference and Relationship Cultivation Strategies. Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing, Vol.21 (4): 327-346.

Authors

• Eri Sato

• Aya Okada, Tohoku University