# Five tweets for fundraisers on 20 May 2021

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2021/05/20/five-tweets-for-fundraisers-on-20-may-2021/
- Published: 2021-05-20T19:24:04+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**Flagging up a small charity, what leads to ineffective giving, what should we 
call the people we used to call ‘beneficiaries’, fundraising from the pleasure and
the pain of Eurovision, and what if the characters in Friends were fundraisers?**

Here’s another in our occasional collection of inspirational, amusing or just plain
unusual tweets about fundraising.

## 1. Flying the flag for small charities

Courtesy of the Queen’s Speech announcing government policy for the next year, we
now know that we have a national flag charity, The Flag Institute. It is “a forum
to research and inform about the study of flags” and it is a tiny charity, with 
annual income (March 2020) of £10,072 and expenditure of £11,136. You might say 
it is flagging.

## Advertisement

> CHARITIES AND QUEENS SPEACH BREAKING NEWS: We have a national flag charity. [pic.twitter.com/iwr1hoDrJ9](https://t.co/iwr1hoDrJ9)
> — Thomas Collinge (@ThomasCollinge) [May 11, 2021](https://twitter.com/ThomasCollinge/status/1392072960228347906?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

## ⏎ 2. Ineffective giving

If we want to make giving more effective we need to think what contributes to ineffective
giving. Here’s the research paper to help us.

> The most effective charities are hundreds of times more effective than the rest,
> yet people rarely prioritize effectiveness when choosing where to donate. This
> fascinating paper looks at the causes of ineffective giving, and ways to encourage
> the opposite. [https://t.co/9OzF61ywR8](https://t.co/9OzF61ywR8) [pic.twitter.com/faK5HK7mcS](https://t.co/faK5HK7mcS)
> — Steve Stewart-Williams (@SteveStuWill) [May 5, 2021](https://twitter.com/SteveStuWill/status/1389805632195239937?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

## 3. Who do you help?

Martha Awojobi isn’t the first to ask this question, but she has inspired 78 answers
and responses. There’s never a single ideal response but the replies show the variety
of approaches that are used by many.

> What alternative words/terms are people using for 'beneficiaries' these days?
> — Martha Awojobi (@MarthaAwojobi) [May 12, 2021](https://twitter.com/MarthaAwojobi/status/1392435566302666759?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

## ⏎ 4. Eurovision hits and misses

Self-denial has a long tradition in fundraising activities, not least in challenge
events.

Here’s Crisis’ take on the fact that not everyone enjoys watching Eurovision – so
why not turn that pain into a fundraising challenge?

> Always wanted to do this to 110,000 people. Thanks for the inspiration [@JTCHANGINGBIZ](https://twitter.com/JTCHANGINGBIZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> [https://t.co/ycZfpb2q4n](https://t.co/ycZfpb2q4n)
> — Carol Naylor (@popplestone) [May 19, 2021](https://twitter.com/popplestone/status/1395050387590295552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)

## 5. Fundraising Friends

If the characters of _Friends_ were charity fundraisers…

Enjoy Matt Smith’s musings, just as we get a chance to see the trailer of the upcoming
Friends reunion episodes.

I look forward to a Twitter thread of _Friends_ episode-style headings about fundraisers.
You know, _The one with…_

> The cast of Friends (1994-2004) if they were charity fundraisers 
> A thread…🧵🛋
> ☕️🏙 [pic.twitter.com/oCcroEvuDg](https://t.co/oCcroEvuDg)
> — Matt Smith (@InnovationMatt) [May 20, 2021](https://twitter.com/InnovationMatt/status/1395405537857179648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)