There may be a slowing down in the volume of freebies which charities enclose with their appeals. The Institute of Fundraising’s Direct Mail Code of Fundraising does not ban the inclusion of of freebies in fundraising packs, but it does make clear that any items which are included solely to motivate ‘financial guilt’ ought not to be used. The Institute discovered that the inclusion of certain items – such as pens and branded bookmarks – did produce a higher response rate. And so we may still be getting them!
If a charity is a member of the Fundraising Standards Board (it’s each charity’s choice whether to join and pay the membership fee), and a potential donor complains to the Board about the inclusion of an item, the charity in question will have to try to convince the Board that there was a logical reason behind the inclusion. And the Board will then make its decision.
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