Good Is Better?! How Ethical Beliefs May Affect F2F Fundraising Outcomes

By Tayyeb Hadi

During my time as a university student in Belgium, I had a strong interest in the evolution of social challenges and their economic effects. For my Masters in Economic Sciences, for example, I chose subjects in which challenges related to the environment, migration, and public health were a key focus. This interest only increased when I became involved in an educational non-profit organization (NPO), leading me to pursue an additional Master’s in International and Comparative Politics. Through my studies and work, I came to see the vital role of the non-profit sector in addressing many social challenges.

Seeing the importance of the non-profit sector also meant trying to understand the sector better. In Belgium, the non-profit sector is a formidable economic force that consisted of 140,188 active NPOs and employed 538,857 workers at the end of 2022 (King Baudouin Foundation [KBF], 2022). This sector accounted for 12.6% of the remunerated employment and 4.9% of the gross domestic product in Belgium in 2017 (Biernaux et al., 2020). The actual numbers behind these percentages are even more profound; with around 19,070 NPOs generating a gross value added of 21.6 billion euros in 2017. But who is funding all these NPOs?

The Challenge of Fundraising and Its Impact on NPOs

A 2024 survey by the KBF found that 59% of Belgian NPOs in 2024 received private funding from individuals (KBF, 2024). This means that people like you and me play a crucial role in financing these NPOs. At the same time, this survey revealed that 25% of NPOs in Belgium faced financial difficulties in 2024, while still 22% of NPOs were expecting their finances to worsen in the next twelve months. These financial difficulties stem from various factors such as an increased difficulty to get government subsidies, inflation, and also a decline in private funding from individuals. If NPOs did not change their fundraising efforts, lower private funding from individuals means that some fundraising campaigns are becoming less effective.

F2F Fundraising and the Role of Ethical Beliefs in Donation Behavior

This raises an important question: How effective are the different fundraising campaigns run by NPOs? Let us take face-to-face (F2F) fundraising as an example. Research on this fundraising technique indicates that F2F fundraising campaigns can be a promising and cost-effective way to raise donations (e.g., Beldad et al., 2023). However, research also states that some NPOs lose money on donor recruiting activities via F2F fundraising (e.g., Sargeant et al., 2006), which in turn can be attributed to the high attrition rates that are associated with this technique (Bennett, 2013). This challenge could explain why some NPOs like Red Cross-Flanders have abandoned the use this technique altogether (Rode Kruis-Vlaanderen, n.d.).

So why do people choose not to donate when approached via F2F fundraising, or why do they stop donating afterward? We investigate whether there is a possible relationship between donors’ ethical beliefs on F2F fundraising and the effectiveness of a F2F fundraising campaign. In other words, we explore whether part of the answer to the previous question can be found in the ethical beliefs people hold. Research, for example, shows that consumer perceptions of retailer ethics positively predict consumers’ purchase behavior and word-of-mouth communication, with this relationship being moderated by ethical beliefs for consumers with strong ethical beliefs (Cheung & To, 2020). At the same time, consumers do not always convert their ethical beliefs into purchasing decisions, creating an intention-behavior gap (i.e., gap in ethical consumption) (Casais & Faria, 2022).

Exploring Donors’ Ethical Beliefs

In our research, we first use in-depth interviews to explore the ethical beliefs of donors and recruiters, the underlying rationale for their beliefs, and the solutions proposed by them to improve their ethical beliefs. In order to investigate the possible relationship between ethics and effectiveness, we use surveys. These surveys are used in a second step, where we investigate how the proposed solutions impact donors’ ethical beliefs and their donation behavior in the short-term. In a third and final step, we use recurring surveys to explore donors’ ethical beliefs at the time of solicitation and their donation behavior throughout time.

By studying the possible relationship between ethics and effectiveness in F2F fundraising, we aim to improve our understanding of this technique and its short- and long-term effects. We believe that a better understanding of this technique can deliver a triple-win, benefitting NPOs, recruiters, and donors alike. Our studies on the ethical beliefs of donors and recruiters, the effect of donor’s beliefs on their donation behavior, and the possible solutions, will provide NPOs and recruiters with necessary insights. By connecting ethical beliefs with donation behavior, for example, we allow NPOs to anticipate the effects of unethical fundraising practices, which today is mostly done based on gut feeling. In addition, recruiters can receive training to engage with potential donors in a more respectful and ethical manner. A more ethical solicitation will also improve the interaction between donors and recruiters which can only benefit the parties involved.

Tayyeb Hadi is a PhD student at the Department of Marketing at KU Leuven and is currently conducting research into ethics and face-to-face fundraising under the supervision of prof. dr. Tine De Bock, prof. dr. Tine Faseur and prof. dr. siegfried dewitte. He has studied economics at Universiteit Gent and international politics at KU Leuven, and has also been active himself in the non-profit sector.

References 

Beldad, A. D., Bax, I. L., & van Hoof, J. (2023). A Few More Words for a Few More Cents: The Roles of Beneficiary and Message Frames during a Door-to-Door Donation Collection.?Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing,?35(4), 414–437. https://doi.org/10.1080/10495142.2022.2130494 

Bennett, R. (2013a). Factors Influencing the Break Even Probabilities of Agency Recruited Low Value Charity Donors.?Voluntas (Manchester, England),?24(4), 1091–1112. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-012-9314-9 

Biernaux, O., Lemaire, P., & Volon, H. (2020). Het economische gewicht van instellingen zonder winstoogmerk in België (uitgave 2020). Koning Boudewijnstichting.

Casais, B., & Faria, J. (2022). The Intention-Behavior gap in Ethical Consumption: Mediators, Moderators and Consumer Profiles Based on Ethical Priorities. Journal of Macromarketing, 42(1), 100-113. https://doi.org/10.1177/02761467211054836

Cheung, M. F. Y., & To, W. M. (2020). The Effect of Consumer Perceptions of the Ethics of Retailers on Purchase Behavior and Word-of-Mouth: The Moderating Role of Ethical Beliefs. Journal of Business Ethics, 171(4), 771–788. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-020-04431-6

King Baudouin Foundation. (2024). Barometer van de verenigingen – 2024: Resultaten telefonische enquêtes – 11de meting. https://media.kbs-frb.be/nl/media/12678/Barome ter%20van%20de%20verenigingen%202024

King Baudouin Foundation. (2022). ZOOM: Barometer van de verenigingen 2022. https:// media.kbs- frb.be/nl/media/10180/Zoom_barometer_verenigingen_NL_2 022

Sargeant, A., Jay, E., & Lee, S. (2006). Benchmarking Charity Performance: Returns from Direct Marketing in Fundraising.?Journal of Nonprofit & Public Sector Marketing,?16(1–2), 77–94. https://doi.org/10.1300/J054v16n01_05 

Rode Kruis-Vlaanderen. (n.d.). https://www.rodekruis.be/wie-zijn-we/onze-organisatie/dit-doen-we-met-je-geld/fondsenwerving/