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Description
This project aims to promote the organisational development of the project promoter, to better fulfill their mission of promoting the development of vulnerable communities. The project aims to increase the number of volunteers, trainees and donor companies of the project promoter and to improve the team’s skills in communication and marketing through consulting, training, coaching, benchmarking studies, the development of a fundraising plan and a communication campaign.
Summary of project results
The Associação Leigos para o Desenvolvimento (LD) developed na organization diagnosis which alongside best practices, identified several challenges translated into an Action Plan that began in 2019. The focus of change was on leadership, including change management, people and team leadership, and structure, encompassing processes, human resources, and internal communication. However, a significant challenge, which became even more relevant in 2020 due to the pandemic, was sustainability. The project needed to address fundraising and external communication challenges, as the main sources of the current fundraising model were misaligned with the organization''s financial needs, and external communication was ineffective in recruiting new volunteers and private donors.
Another challenge was mobilizing volunteers for LD missions, as there had been increasing difficulty in attracting trainees/volunteers in recent years. The annual training cycle had seen a declining number of participants, averaging 40 (2016-2018), 26 (2019), and 30 (2020), compromising the continuity of community development programs in Portugal and Africa. The language and tone of communication, as well as dissemination and motivation approaches, were not always effective or modernized. The pandemic in 2020 exacerbated this issue, making it urgent to find new communication approaches, particularly through multimedia and social media.
Regarding financial sustainability, LD''s revenue structure combined diverse sources to reduce risk. In 2019, sources were distributed as follows: individual donors (38%), public entities (25%), other private institutions (22%), merchandising (6%), companies (6%), and direct project revenues (3%). One sustainability growth objective was to increase individual private donors, and actions were implemented towards this. In 2020, despite the pandemic hindering in-person actions and significantly impacting the ongoing strategy, efforts were redirected to virtual spaces and telemarketing. However, there was a reduction in corporate donations, which dropped from 19% to 6% of total revenue between 2015 and 2019. Therefore, it was necessary to develop a strategic plan to approach companies, explore new partnerships, and seek financial support.
Between July and February, the majority of activities related to defining the work with the consultant and the creative development of materials were carried out. This involved meetings with three consultants (one creative, one strategist, and one marketer) to define timelines, detailed schedule proposals, and the involvement of various team members. A benchmark was conducted through document analysis and stakeholder interviews, defining LD''s market positioning for volunteer and company recruitment. A co-creation session with five LD HR members presented benchmark results and creative and strategic paths for various audiences.
In September and October, creative development and material preparation focused on volunteer recruitment, aligning with the volunteer session and training started. The campaign for trainee mobilization ran from October to mid-January, with social media posts, website updates, and partner shares. Press releases were sent to various newsrooms. The strategy for approaching companies began in January, with specific materials prepared, including two LD presentation documents for email and detailed meetings.
Digital materials like brief videos for volunteers, donors, and companies were also created.
The various promotions included 42 Facebook posts with 572 shares, reaching a total of 546,128 people and generating 24,147 interactions. On Instagram, 46 posts reached 39,008 accounts, and 2 reels garnered 3,434 views. Two press releases were sent to several media outlets.
83 companies were contacted, with 36 follow-ups, resulting in feedback from five companies and three meetings. Three partnerships are under negotiation, and one company donated IT and telecommunications equipment. Fifteen new companies contributed €937 and four pro bono donations (IT and telecommunications equipment, flooring for a project room, coal, and auction items for a fundraising event).
During the project, five executive team members participated in 11 training sessions, totaling 47.5 hours. The team was also supported by consultants at critical points for contextual capacity building.
An external evaluation was conducted as planned.
In terms of results, and regarding its first objective (increase the number of potential volunteers and the number of trainees), 17 trainees were enrolled, and 7 new volunteers were recruited. Despite various efforts to mobilize trainees, including extending the enrolment period and initiating an intensive training model, the proposed targets were not met.
However, the training sessions and support provided by the consultants equipped LD with various materials that can be leveraged in the short to medium term, particularly in relation to companies.
For the second objective (expanding the number of donor companies ), fifteen new companies were secured, while the remaining provided pro bono donations, such as IT equipment, telecommunications equipment, flooring, coal, and items for auction at a fundraising event.
Although external factors have directly impacted the expected revenue volume, the prior work in approaching companies and the materials developed for this purpose will allow LD to begin their engagement with this audience in a more structured manner. This foundation enables the project to optimize the future efforts.