You’re MarketingKind with Sorana McCarron (Duca)

Once a month our members come together to welcome new members and share ideas. In our August 4th You’re MarketingKind we invited Sorana McCarron, product marketing expert and recent MBA graduate, to introduce her research on how marketing has changed in the UK charity sector as a result of Brexit and the pandemic.

You can watch a short clip below where Sorana begins our group discussion on the changing needs of charities and what we can do at MarketingKind to better support them.

In Sorana’s MBA thesis research she explored “Contemporary marketing techniques in the British Charitable Sector” to find the most effective marketing techniques used by charities post Brexit and throughout the pandemic. 

The aim of the study was to assess changes in marketing campaign implementation, the donors targeted and the general adaptations needed to survive. 

The research utilised a qualitative methodology using in-depth interviews from April to June 2020, which were complemented by a robust literature review.

Key findings:

• Digital Marketing represents 88% of the marketing strategy for the sample, because it provides charities with the opportunity to increase the visibility and awareness of their ongoing initiatives and projects, regardless of the physical or budget limitations.

• Social Media Marketing has seen an increase of 145% usage in comparison to 2018 and 165% in comparison to 2019.

• Innovation and creativity are key features, just secondary to business acumen and the potential to translate business goals into actionable steps.

• Influence with stakeholders, investors and third parties as an ongoing activity, within the communications function, not just when a campaign requires it. The focus is on the long game rather than the short one. 

• Viral fundraising is a key fundraising method which has emerged as a direct result of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

• There is a skills shortage and lack of funds to invest in IT infrastructures. 

• There is an increase in professionals who are seeking more purpose-driven careers and as a result have an interest in working in the charity sector.