At the Nov. 3 lunch meeting, members heard Cindy Banyai, an expert on international aid, community improvement, fundraising and sustainability talk about what types of images appear in the media and how the emotional reactions they provoke affects viewers’ willingness to contribute money and time to a cause. Mainly, she cautioned against “poverty porn,” or depictions of people to be helped by a fundraiser as helpless and pathetic victims.
Words also can push cause marketing into the realm of poverty porn. More effective in garnering response and more respectful to those in need are words like challenge, opportunity, aspires to, living with, affected by and change; need, problem and victim are examples of “deficit thinking” and are best avoided.
Banyai also pointed out that a change was taking place in the way younger people want to give money or time. Rather than just “checking a box” for money to be deducted from paychecks or sent to a particular organization and not hearing about it again, millennials want to see directly how their donations are helping.
In other meeting business:
·
Kate Gooderham, APR, CPRC, Vice President for
Professional Development, recognized four new APRs who received certification
this year. They each receive a pin and a check for reimbursement of part of the
testing fee.
·
Lisa Davonzo of the Special Projects Committee
announced details for the Merry Mixer, Dec. 3, 5:30 to 8 pm at Six Bends Harley-Davidson
in south Fort Myers at Daniels Parkway and I-75. The cost is $20 for members,
$25 nonmembers, $15 for students. Members can sponsor nonmembers at $20 each.
·
Members were reminded to renew by Dec. 31. All
who had already renewed were entered into a drawing for a basket of prizes.
Winner was Lisa Rizzio.
·
Guests included two people from Hope for Haiti,
five from the Southwest Florida Community Foundation and one from Greenfield
Advertising Group.
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