The Charity Flea Market.

I stole (with permission) a good friends metaphor for a grant application I wrote the other day. His solution to trying to address the power differential between charities and donors is much more elegant and comprehensive than mine. One day I hope it gets the traction it deserves.

Here's the start of my application. I'd welcome your comments.

"The fundraising landscape is akin to a Turkish Flea Market where you have more booths (charities) than you could possibly have shoppers (donors) and every booth is trying their best to show you their fake Rolex outside so they can lure you into their tent where you eventually buy the expensive rug. Upon purchasing that rug you make your way back to the airport wondering "what did I just buy"? Did I just get swindled?

Consider the last truly “new” gift you’ve made without an appeal, been happy with and would make again without an appeal. Without someone like me interrupting your day to tell you about the work we're doing. Consider how you felt after you made that gift. What about 6 months later? One year later? Was the 'rug' all that it was promised to be?

We (charities) are fighting for a smaller number of visitors to the market, we’re increasingly desperate for a sale from that visitor as our only means of survival and there’s more competition than ever for that visitor with the growing number of booths in this market.

Giving to charity is not a natural extension of most people’s lives (they’re not wandering the flea market looking for something to buy). It’s a foreign activity that forces fundraisers like me to desperately interrupt the conversation and catch a glancing eye, and we’re unable to co-operate with other charities for the net benefit of all because we’re forced to be short term minded. "

Welcome to the Bazaar.