Charities target funeral directors with in memoriam giving initiative
Howard Lake | 12 June 2003 | News
A group of charities, including RNIB, Age Concern, and the British Lung Foundation, are working together for the first time to promote In Memoriam giving directly to funeral directors through a special campaign this month.
All of the charities involved are members of the Our Lasting Tribute„¢ initiative, launched in February 2003 by charity-specialist direct marketing agency Whitewater to promote a radical new approach to In Memoriam fundraising known as ‘Tribute Funds’.
Since the launch, 19 charities have joined Our Lasting Tribute„¢, and this campaign marks the first stage of an ongoing programme of marketing to Funeral Directors on their behalf.
Following advertisements in The Funeral Director Monthly, a mailing is being sent to funeral directors across the country, under the Our Lasting Tribute„¢ brand. The pack contains copies of a brochure, endorsed by Cruse Bereavement Care and by the National Association of Funeral Directors, promoting the opportunity to give an In Memoriam gift to a range of Our Lasting Tribute members, and a branded dispenser.
Alan Slater, Chief Executive of the National Association of Funeral Directors, has given support to the campaign. “It can be difficult to remain neutral when approached by many different charities wishing to display literature in funeral homes, or even to simply give them all display space”, he explains. “The provision of a single quality brochure produced on behalf of the wide range of charities involved in Our Lasting Tribute is an ideal solution that will be of benefit not only to the charities but also to our members and to the families they serve.”
Whitewater set up Our Lasting Tribute„¢ to focus on one of the most poorly developed areas of fundraising in the UK, that of donations made In Memoriam. Operating as a membership programme open to all registered charities, it offers its members a new strategic approach to acquire high value donors through the establishment of personalised Tribute Funds, supported by both offline and online communications.
Advertisement
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.