A new study by Fenton and Globescan suggests that donations to non-profit organisations in 2012 will remain at 2011 levels, which is encouraging considering the uncertainty in our economy.

The survey found that 75% of UK respondents say that their charity giving in 2012 will remain the same as last year. Respondents acknowledge that non-profit organisations were the most effective change makers. Of those surveyed, 12% of UK respondents said that they are planning to give more in 2012.

The largest motivator for giving to charity is a personal connection.

While this is encouraging news, non-profit organisations need to be more aware now more than ever that planned donations are stalling, partly due to the public’s lack of faith in their efficacy and money management. Less than half of the respondents that took part in the survey, felt that non-profits and charities do a good job of spending funds and managing operations. The study also showed that the more a person knew about the non-profit world, the more positive they are about charities.

Instead of focusing huge media budgets on television advertising campaigns, which try to acquire new supporters, charities should perhaps involve a retentive measure into these messages and explain where funds have gone in the past and a related message about where they would be focused in the future.

The retail adoption packs are a successful way for the charity to send a message out about their project and aims. The literature that goes out to the retail adoption supporter through their year’s worth of support, contains factual information on the animal and the projects that support them.

Some research in the early days of the retail animal adoption life span, showed that 76% of the people who were registering their chosen animal had not previously supported the charity before. I like to think that the exposure to the charity that the packs have introduced have turned a lot of people from non-supporters to people who are now actively supporting non-profit organisations, for 2012 and many years yet to come.