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Month: April 2009

The Value of a Chicken – Alternative Gifts with Gayle Goossen of Barefoot Creative – 5 Question Interview

Published April 14, 2009

Gayle Goossen is a partner and Creative Director of Barefoot Creative Inc., a global, full-service fund-raising and communication agency. The agency helps many national non-profit organizations develop effective holiday giving programs that both reflect unique product lines and increase overall revenue. We chatted with Gayle to talk about the concept of "alternative gifts" and her upcoming presentation at the CMA National Convention.

OD: What is an "alternative gift" or "symbolic gift"?

“Alternative” or “symbolic” gift is a charitable gift towards a specific item – chickens and goats being quite popular – that a donor purchases as a gift. The recipient receives a card or small gift as a “symbol” of that gift.

World Vision Canada

OD: Who is pioneering symbolic gifting in the Canadian non-profit space?

The initial foray into symbolic gifts was through giving a memorial gift in the name of a loved one. From that, the idea of giving a gift/donation in the name of someone became an easy transition – especially for the “hard to buy” names on your list.

World Wildlife Fund is one of the most well known symbolic gift programs. The plush toy that a recipient receives has become a collector’s item for many gift givers. It’s especially popular to give to children, as WWF has a great educational program to support it.

World Vision has really staked their territory in the symbolic gift space over the past 10 years. Many Canadians have received a gift of a chicken or a goat! Nature Conservancy Canada has offered symbolic gifts of land for over 15 years, but it has not been on the public’s radar screen, as it is only offered to loyal donors.

Our research shows that the strongest early adopters are international development organizations, but social service and health oriented foundations are beginning to show up. The Centre for Addictions and Mental Health Foundation in Toronto launched a program with great success in 2009.

OD: How do you see companies like Tom's Shoes  – if you buy a pair of shoes, they give the same pair of shoes to a child in need) fitting into the alternative gift landscape?

Tom’s Shoes, Red and other like programs are corporate giving programs. They are hinged to a specific corporation, sometimes even to a product. The caveat is that the charitable organization needs to have a corporate partner. Or, in the case of Tom’s Shoes, the corporation is the charity as well.

I hope we continue to see this kind of creative corporate investment – it’s a great brand advantage.

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Corporate Blogging and Sled Talk with Chris Reid of Yamaha – 5 Question Interview

Published April 9, 2009

Yamaha Sled Talk was one of the first corporate blogs in Canada. Started 2 years ago by Chris Reid, National Manager, Product Planning and Research, Yamaha Motor Canada and their agency, Social Media Group, Yamaha Sled Talk has grown into an active community of snowmobile enthusiasts receiving approximately 1400 visits and 10-20 comments each week.  We chatted with Chris about Yamaha Sled Talk's success and his upcoming presentation at the CMA National Convention.

OD: What has been the biggest surprise with Yamaha Sled Talk over the last 2 years?

I think it's important to understand the concerns we faced when proposing a corporate blog, mostly with regards to risk management associated with the nature of our business.

For some, I think the simple fact that we have not been overwhelmed by customer relations issues and are still on line with Sled Talk has come as a rather large surprise.

For me personally, it has been the genuine enthusiasm and support shown for what we are doing by our customer subscribers.

Yamaha sled talk

OD: How do you measure success of the blog?  How do you communicate that success up and down the line?

I rely on analytics to generate the metrics which are highlighted in our mid-term planning and presentations. Just as importantly, I monitor our comments closely, responding to many, sending links to our marketing people to the appropriate content with my own interpretations.

Our Google ranking has shown continuous strength with our SEO results providing a good measurable as well.

I also monitor targeted user group forums and reference any links where Sled Talk is being cited within the conversation. I seldom speak to the success of Sled Talk outside of our management team with the selfish notion of not attracting our competitors into a similar arena. (So far… so good! 😉 )

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