CanadaHelps.org really helps!

The website I chose was CanadaHelps.org. This website is very unique from other giving websites as it actually acts as a portal for you to select or search any charity you want and donate through the site.

According to the website ,"Our mission is to promote – and ultimately increase – charitable giving in Canada. Because we’re a non-profit our fees are typically half that of the for-profit alternatives. We do this servicing Canadian donors, charities and corporations."

CanadaHelps provides an easy way to donate and fundraise online. By simplifying the process CanadaHelps aims to increase charitable giving in Canada. They offer services for both charities and donors. The website is connected to every registered charity in te country. The organization has raised ovr $600 million dollars in donations and relies only on 1.8% of the donations given to operate. To date the website is relied on by over 16,000 charities for their affordable online technology.

The site also provides online technology for small and medium sized charities. CanadaHelps  provides online tools and technology for  a small rate in order for charities to raise funds and work more efficiently. Canada Helps also provides education via training programs and online webinars  Topics include marketing and outreach, good governance, technology and of course fundraising.

According to JohnHaydon.com, there are many components to consider in order to create a successful donation website. The site lists 19 ways to raise more money for donations .I will include the most successful that apply to CanadaHelps.

• Limit paragraphs to 2-3 sentences

The paragraphs used throughout the site are very short and easy to read. The language used is very easy to understand. The audience can very easily navigate through the site due to the concise language used.

• Use pictures

Pictures are used throughout the site. The most successful use of pictures is on the main page. Several pictures are used to promote various charities that the user can donate to. The photos are selected to easily give the user an understanding of the charity. Small icons are used throughout the site and are clean and compliment the branding of the site.

• Use white space to direct the eye

The pages do not seem too cluttered and everything presented is very straight forward. White space is used very successfully. 

• Reduce steps to donate

Ultimately CanadaHelps reduces the steps to donate process. The site does an excellent job in helping those who want to donate find the charity that suits them best in the easiest way possible. On the website they directly say, "For Canadian donors, we are a one-stop shop for discovering, donating and fundraising online for any registered Canadian charity".

• Create a seamless donor experience across all marketing channels

CanadaHelps really nailed the seamless donor experience across all marketing channels as they have a mobile site and social media pages that all successfully convey the same messages and focus on their mission , vision and values.They also have videos on the site that talk about their organization.

This site is fantastic as a lot of the time, those that want to donate have a very hard time finding the right charity for themselves. I recommend anyone to use this site especially if they had questions about the specific charity they wanted to donate to or if they were looking for a new charity to get involved with.I believe this website will succeed in generating more donations!

Charity: Water and how it's website motivates online donations

Since the invention of the internet it is easier than ever for people to donate to charities whenever they want from wherever they are. There are a number of different factors that go into creating a good charity website. According to insivia.com what goes into creating a well done and motivating charity website is this:

• Tell people what you do
•  people want to know what exactly a charity does, who they help and how their money will be used
• Keep your design clean
• a confusing and cluttered website can make it hard for people to understand what you do and how and where they are supposed to donate

•  Be straightforward
• don't use jargon and terms that people don't understand 

An example of a charity website that does all of these things very well is Charity: Water. It's website is very simple and easy to follow. As soon as you open up the page you are immediately taken to the donate page where you can put in an amount by monthly donation or a one time donation. The page also directly says on it that 100% of your money will fund clean water projects for people in need.

Photo credit: charitywater.org

The top bar also has a why water? section which gives you stats on the number of people that live without clean water in the world (663 Million) as well as talks about how they tackle the water crises and the great things having clean water can do.

There is also a section at the top called our work that talks about how they work, where they work, the progress they have made and stories from people they have encountered and helped. This page helps give people a larger overview of what the organization does and who it helps.

The is also an about us page which talks about the founder, staff and board. It also provides a link to staff stories and career and internship opportunities. This page gives people a chance to know about the people that work for the charity as well as look into become a staff member or intern if they so choose to get more involved with the charity.

This website is very simple, clean and nice looking, easy to follow and understand. All the facts you need and want to know before donating are right there. They make it very easy for people donate what they can to the charity which is part of the reasons it was inclueded cssdesignawards.com list of 25 emotive charity and non-profit websites.

If you would like to donate to Charity: Water please to do here.

- Thea Ness

Great example of enabling and engaging donors online

There are so many charities that exist who do absolutely phenomenal work in making a difference in various ways locally, globally and internationally, which makes it highly difficult to select just one to who stands out in the ways it attracts and motivates donors to give online. There are undoubtedly several reasons why there would be variances across the spectrum in terms of which do a good job online and which could use improvement. Such reasons may include: budget, lack of capacity - design-wise to build out the website aesthetically, or simply low awareness that this particular area really matters today in a charity's ability to drum up funds online.

An article online discussed a 2011 study on online giving, which highlighted that every sector in the non-profit industry had seen double-digit growth in online donations since 2009. It also mentioned that by improving the methods and ways people can give online, can help charities raise more funds in the future. It is a great way to enable people to give.

Some of the tips the above article provided to help facilitate an effective, easy online giving portal for people include:

• Asking for minimal information 
• Explaining every field 
• Making donation buttons stand out 
• Having financial information readily available and accessible 
• Providing donors with a clear vision of what their donation is actually doing (showing them the impact of their dollars) 

Additionally, the nonprofit networking blog: Network for good, describes some of the other ways to make online donation websites more effective and interactive for users. Two really good examples the blog pointed out for attracting and assisting donors to give online are

1. Collect email addresses so that even if they aren't compelled to give on their first visit, the charity can start to build a relationship and plant the seed;
2. Create interactive messages that engage and capture donors through specific calls to action and unique offers. Along with interactive and engaging content, the website must aim to foster two-way communication and dialogue

After considering what is being said online about creating successful online donation websites, I've chosen to highlight Doctors Without Borders Canada. I think this is an amazing organization that a great job online at building relationships with donors and compelling site visitors to give. 

First and foremost, when you visit the site, you'll notice the bold branding and pops of red, which helps to draw visitors eyes to the red "donate" button on the right hand side. It is very easy to find and one of the first things visitors will see. When you hover over this button there are four drop down options available for donations: monthly, one-time, in honour and in memory. Visitors are provided with choices - the first interactive and enabling piece of the website. When clicked on, each has its own unique page with a thank you and compelling messages and bulleted options with an impact offering, explaining at the various dollar amounts, what the giver is actually able to do through their donation. This piece really shows the potential donor what their money is going towards in a tangible and impactful way. When you get to the final stage and have selected what amount you'd like to give, the required information to donate is quite minimal and there is only one page to navigate as opposed to some websites, where this piece can often be extremely lengthy and full of distracting and jargon, legal information, etc. 

In terms of reporting and showing their legitimacy and transparency as a charity, in the "about us" section there are available reports for visitors to download. This is one reason why Doctors Without Borders was included in Financial Post's Charity of the Year Report Card.  And finally, there is a great "support us" button that visitors can click that takes them to a full page of useful information on donating with stories, donation options and other ways to give. This is a great hub for any potential donor to have access to. 

Overall, when considering they layout, I think the charity does a great job at providing an easy and interactive tool for people to give. It is simplistic and does a great job at providing a call-to-action and illustrating the tangible impact of the donation.

By Meghan Schimpf

Tips to Encourage Donations

According to PitcherGroup.com, charities have a variety of “proven money earning techniques” they can employ to encourage donations. Some of the most successful strategies include a mix of traditional and web-oriented techniques. Among these techniques are:

• Include personal stories
• Communicate benefit to donor
• Use personal appeals (i,e, have a person ask on behalf of the organization instead of organization as a whole)
• Establish a sense of urgency
• Include testimonials/supportive comments
• Provide donation/gifting options, details of goals and fundraising totals
• Have multiple donation buttons and calls to action
• Provide project updates

In addition, Network for Good notes that there are ten things that a charity’s home page should have in order to quickly capture the interest and attention of potential donors. Some of these components are a “two-second statement” about who the charity is and what it does; a clear, intuitive, easy to navigate website;  a case that demonstrates what makes the charity different, unique, and/or appealing to support; a way for potential donors to sign up for more information; links to social media feeds; and information about upcoming events and other opportunities for engagement.

Source: http://saturdayplace.org/rashied-and-dianna-davis/

With all of these great tips in mind, I recommend that you take a look at the Saturday Place website to see just how well the charity has gone about incorporating several of these elements. The Saturday Place homepage is presented in a simple, easy to navigate format with links to upcoming events and general information about the charity and the charity’s mission. The home page also contains motivating quotes and heart-warming pictures of children with links to information about partners, current projects, and the “man behind the place”. The only thing I would say detracts from the Saturday Place website (as per the “best practices” suggested above) is the understated “donate” button. However, the organization provides multiple options to “get involved” and allows potential donors to “meet our students”. The "meet our students" pages provides  testimonials and infographics that display how the charity’s efforts have help to improve academic performance (one of the main goals of the organization). 

- Olivia Blundell 

Kids Up Front - impacting lives ones ticket at a time

It's tough to pick a favourite charity, but one in particular I think is really unique and doing great work in Calgary and across Canada, is Kids Up Front. This organization gives kids, teens and families suffering from poverty, abuse and mental illness, etc., the opportunity to access life changing experiences, one ticket at at time. From sporting events including hockey and football to concerts, plays and the like, Kids Up Front offers experiences of a lifetime.

I love the concept of this charity, because I feel for many of us, experiences like this are something we quickly forget impact us in big ways. I remember my first concert and my first hockey game as one of the most exciting and enjoyable times in my life. The memories made from experiences like this are so impactful, and when we have regular access to them,  or attend concerts or a games even once a year or so, we sometimes forget that there are people out there who without organizations like Kids Up Front, would never get to experience the simple joy and happiness that comes from just having fun. A ticket could mean the world and that is why I think this organization is on the right track. Food and shelter are necessities, but it is neat to know that there are organizations that grasp the idea that everyone deserves to have a bit of fun, regardless of what they face or the cards they've been dealt.

For more information on Kids Up Front, click here.


By Meghan Schimpf

Distress Centre Calgary

Distress Centre Calgary:

Providing Crisis & Mental Health Support

Having dealt with mental health issues the majority of my life and as a working student, I can sympathize with those who may not be able to access affordable treatment options. With the price of an average counselling session at $100+, many of us end up feeling helpless and may turn to other coping strategies involving alcohol, drugs and self-harm. Even if there is no pre-existing mental illness, one can still feel helpless and alone due to the loss of a friend, family member, pet, house, or a certain lifestyle. Generally, any major life change can cause a person to feel fear, anxiety and/or distress.

About Distress Centre Calgary

Acknowledging that people may overcome various life challenges more easily given adequate access to crisis/addiction support services, Distress Centre Calgary (DCC) was formed. Originally established as the the Drug Information Centre in 1970, the name of the organization was changed in 1977 to provide a “dual emphasis” on drug related calls and calls relating to crisis and addiction. Throughout the 80s and 90s, the Centre has grown significantly and is now Calgary’s “main hub of crisis support”. Distress Centre Calgary provides all area residents access to a 24-hour crisis help line (403-266-HELP), online chat and email support, free professional counselling services and referrals to community/government programs.

Programs & Initiatives

Distress Centre Calgary has been largely successful in terms of pursuing its mission and vision, which are, respectively, to provide compassionate crisis support that “enhances the health, well-being, and resiliency of individuals in distress” and to ensure that “everyone is heard”.  This success is demonstrated through the establishment of the of the 211 help line as a joint initiative with the City of Calgary and the United Way. With data obtained from the 211 line, the Centre has mapped various issues within city communities, enabling the organization to develop programs and target help to “hardest hit populations” and communities most in need. In addition to a variety of community and family-related programs, the Centre has also developed services specifically for younger audiences through its ConnecTeen program. ConnecTeen allows Calgary and area youth to access crisis support and counselling services via a texting line (587.333.2724), 24-hour help line (403-264-TEEN) and an online chat/email platform.  

More Fast Facts About Distress Centre Calgary

• Some of the main funders of Distress Centre Calgary are:
• The United Way
• Alberta Health Services
• Government of Alberta
• Family and Community Support Services (FCSS)
• Calgary Homeless Foundation
• Government of Alberta
• During the 2011 floods, there was a 40% increase in calls to Distress Centre Calgary
• When the ConnecTeen texting program began in 2013, it was the first of its kind in North America
• In 2015, 20% of texts to the ConnecTeen service were suicide related
• In 2015, the Centre’s “Basic Needs Fund” distributed $139,286 to families and individuals in financial need, a 59% increase over 2014

Other Links

• Article Re: Assistance Provided by DCC After 2011 Flood
• Charity Intelligence Canada Report on DCC
• Donate to DCC
• Have a BMO, RBC or Air Miles Card? Check out the ChangeIt Program!

- Olivia Blundell

Making Changes

Making Changes is one of my favorite charities and is based out of Calgary. Making changes is focused around empowering women to make meaningful contributions to the community. Their core values reinforce empowerment through: educational success, meaningful work, promoting change. optimism, women helping women, ethical practices and respect.

                                                           

• Educational success
• Meaningful work
• Promoting change
• Optimism
• Women helping women
• Ethical practices
• Respect

Making Changes has three programs:

The Walk-In Closet 

The Walk-In Closet offers women with financial constraints free access to a broad collection of new and gently used clothing to create a wardrobe for themselves.

Employment and Life Skills Program

The Employment and Life Skills Program provides immigrant women various opportunities to gain self confidence and receive important information  in regards to returning to work, going back to school, finding new jobs and foreign qualifications. 

            My Best Friend’s Closet 

My Best Friend’s Closet offers teenage girls (ages 12-18) from low-income homes with an extensive selection of fashionable and functional clothing to meet their school and recreational needs for an entire year

I had the opportunity to tour Making Changes and provide posters and brochures for them to be used to increase awareness about it's My Best Friend's Closet program. I also donated clothing to them. I believe there should be more organizations like Making Changes in Canada and around the world. I loved touring their facility and seeing first hand the smiles on the faces of the women and girls they were helping empower. I encourage my girl friends to donate their unused clothes to this organization as un-used clothing can have the ability to change a life.

http://www.makingchangesassociation.ca 

Julie Cann