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| Path: Main Street : Resources & Library : Research Articles : Feature Article |
A picture of the donor in Canadian society todayby Sarah Dover
February 12, 1996; Canadian FundRaiser"The data presents a clearer picture of the donor in Canadian society today," concludes The 1995 Goldfarb Report. This Report, which focused on philanthropy, was formally presented to Heritage Canada on January 31st. Goldfarb Consultants, based in Ottawa, conducts the research for the annual report every January/February and releases the exclusive document to subscribers in the summer.
The privilege of receiving the nine-volume report costs each of the reported 500 subscribers $20,000. The document, published by Martin Goldfarb, former pollster to Pierre Trudeau, evaluates each major sector of the economy and focuses in on one theme. The 1996 theme will be the Internet.
The 1995 Goldfarb report provides relevant information on volunteerism, corporate and individual donation patterns. Since 1980, the report has asked Canadians "Have you done any volunteer work in the past year?" While rates of volunteering have risen since 1990, overall they have declined from 1985. In 1995, 40% of Canadians responded that they had performed some volunteer work, where 44% responded in kind in 1985.
Volunteering with more than one organization
Religious organizations topped the list of ten categories of organizations in rates of volunteering, with 29% of respondents participating in their respective volunteer activities. Community/social groups achieved the second place with cultural organizations at the bottom of the list. The data collected on which organizations people volunteer with indicates that people are volunteering with more than one organization across different fields of interest.Door-to-door works well with women Individual Canadians were more seduced to donate by door-to-door campaigns and lotteries/raffles than payroll deduction or direct mail appeals. While 53% of Canadians participated in lotteries/raffles and door-to door- donations, the former attracted 35-49 year-olds with income ranging from $35,000 to $39,000, and the latter was most popular among women. Health and Sport/Recreation organizations most frequently benefit from both of these popular fundraisers. Special events have been most effective for Arts & Culture, Sports/Recreation and Youth Development organizations. Health groups are well represented in almost each category, but reign supreme in direct mail. 36% of Canadians responded to an appeal by a health organization with environmental groups soliciting the second most responses at only 11%.
Business should carry a greater responsibility
The Report claims that 61% of Canadians give according to the amount of disposable income available to them, 29% because of sympathy or affiliation, and only 2% for tax reasons. While the general public is responsible for 32% of charitable donations, 20% of people believe that business should carry a greater responsibility. People also believe that corporations should receive recognition for their philanthropy and not give anonymously. This sentiment is consistent with consumer buying patterns, as 55% of individuals said that a company's association with charities or causes has a fair to great deal of impact on their decision to buy the product/service.
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