Branding in NGOs – its Influence on the Intention to Donate

Abstract

ABSTRACT. The creation of a has been identified as a differentiating factor for Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) when it comes to competing for private and public funding, as well as when trying to recruit volunteers. Due to the importance of these human and financial resources for the survival of many NGOs, our purpose is to analyse the influence of NGOs' image on raising money and time. A sample of 654 individuals, which answered a questionnaire, was used to test a structural equation model. Results show that image contributes to the extent that people intend to give money to NGOs, as well as the typicality of the and the past donation behaviour. Past donation behaviour is the only variable that influences the intention to give time by volunteering with a NGO. Thus it is very important to facilitate the process of making donations in order to satisfy the donor and convince him/her to repeat the behaviour.JEL Classification: M310Keywords:, donation, NGO, branding, image, awareness.IntroductionThird Sector has a relevant role in the provision of vital social services in areas such as health, social support and education (Chen, 2009; Frumkin and Kim, 2001), having experienced a considerable growth in the last decades, with the situation even more notorious nowadays in these times of economic and social crisis. Traditionally, this sector is mainly financed by public funds (Salamon, Sokolowsky, Haddock and Tice, 2012), but due to the reduction in State support (Besel, Williams and Klak, 2011) and business donations (Faircloth, 2005), together with the growth of the number of non-profit organisations, there has been increased competition inside the sector for both public and private funding (Bendapudi, Singh and Bendapudi, 1996; Frumkin and Kim, 2001). The level of donations has been declining in some countries, and particularly in Portugal, in which the transfers from the private sector (including private philanthropy, membership dues, corporate gifts, and other similar payments to non-profit organisations) account just for 10% of non-profit organisations' revenue (Salamon et al., 2012).All these circumstances have issued Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) with an enormous challenge - the need to move from an amateur approach to a more professional system of management (Helmig, Jegers and Lapsley, 2004). This challenge is particularly significant as far as fundraising is concerned (Benjamin, 2010). At the same time, given the volume of resources involved, better information to help in the donor decision process is necessary (Chen, 2009).Simultaneously, some managers of NGOs began to recognise the potential contribution that marketing could bring to their organisations (Kotler, 1979). This new scenario brought deep changes to the attitudes and responsibilities of leaders of non-profit organisations, who have started to introduce marketing management practices into their institutions, directing them into new competitive areas, where the management can make a fundamental difference (Naddaff, 2004).The focus of this study is precisely the branding, with the term brand being understood as the set of perceptions formed about an organisation, company or product, based on all communications, actions and interactions. The is linked to the organisation's reputation, identity and image, in the eyes of stakeholders and the community. Thus, a strong can be a valuable asset for NGOs (Daw, Cone, Merenda and Erhard, 2010). Note that in the present research the term brand is used to apply to the organisation itself (instead of its products/services), which conducts us to the scope of corporate branding and corporate image. In the non-profit context, an organisation's corporate image provides potential donors with important guarantees concerning the organisation's efficiency, level of familiarity, and credibility.Given the rise in the number of non-profit organisations, and the increase in competition for donations, the has become a crucial factor of differentiation, since the more favourable the image is, the greater the potential for number of donations (Michel and Rieunier, 2012). …