Charity Digital Podcast

With the combination of sensitive data records, funds, and limited cyber security resources to protect them, charities can look like prime targets for cyber criminals. The 2024 Cyber Breaches survey from the UK Government revealing that around a third of charities identified cyber breaches or attacks in the last 12 months. For today’s podcast, sponsored by PIR.org, the organisation that looks after the .org domain name globally, we are joined by Vinita Srivastava (Executive Leader - Product Development, Strategy, & Operations, PIR.org) to discuss the importance of maintaining a secure online presence, exploring the potential risks of neglecting security measures and sharing tips to keep you and your mission-driven organization safe online. RESOURCES: .ORG Learning Center - .ORG Learning CenterCharity Digital - Cyber Securityhttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cyber-security-breaches-survey-2024/cyber-security-breaches-survey-2024Secure Your Website, Save the InternetSmall Charity Guide

​​As the world moves from in-person to remote, how can charities build lasting relationships with supporters? ​The picture might seem a bit bleak. Data regulation has impacted outreach opportunities. The pandemic and advances in technology have resulted in changes in supporter behaviour. Trends show a decline in the number of people supporting charitable causes. ​But the loss of old opportunities presents new ones – charities have an opportunity to rethink how they engage with supporters. Digital enables charities to build stronger, more meaningful, and more engaged relationships with supporters than ever before. In this session, recorded from our 2023 Conference, Alan Perestrello from Trillium and Declan Hunt from ClearCourse show us how to grasp digital opportunities, the possible strategic routes you could take, and some practical tips to immediately start making changes within your charity.

The world has gone digital, and tin many ways, that’s great: processes are quicker and easier than ever before, information is transmitted seamlessly across the globe, and new opportunities have been unlocked far and wide. But what about those who can’t experience these numerous benefits? People of any age and socio-economic background can be excluded from using devices and the internet, meaning that everyday tasks such as accessing information, staying in touch with friends and family, and being able to work – are threatened. It’s a hidden problem that can combine with other difficulties in a person’s life to create a Catch-22 that’s difficult to recover from. And the problem is widespread: one in seven people are deprived across two or more dimensions of digital, according to the Digital Poverty Alliance’s most recent report. In the digital age, all organisations, and indeed individuals, must play a role in creating an inclusive online environment. So, what is the role of charities, and how can they get started? Resources: Information about Good Things Foundation's free-to-join National Digital Inclusion NetworkInformation about the scale of the digital divide in the UK

During the cost-of-living crisis, many supporters have had to review how much they can continue to support their chosen charities, often causing a drop in income. With the number of lottery players in the UK still growing, Your Hospice Lottery and Make a Smile Lottery explain how offering supporters something in return (such as a chance to win money), can help retain and grow income during times when all charities are feeling the financial strain of rising costs. The session, a recording from our 2023 Conference, is delivered by Gemma Zweck and Jill Moore from St. Helena Hospice Limited, and Tony Bloomfield from the British Limbless Ex-Service Men's Association. The session will cover, among many other things, how charities can overcome 2023’s financial strains by starting a new reliable income stream, how to throw a lottery from the point of view of a charity, the general benefits of collaboration, and so much more.

We might have to whisper...but 2024 looks…promising. Giving trends suggest an uplift. The economic outlook is encouraging, with lower inflation, wage growth, and more spending power. There is a strange feeling in the charity sector, one that we have not felt for years: optimism. That optimism will shift fundraising. We still expect flexible giving to deal with the cost-of-living. We still expect ‘inverse giving’ to dominate and we expect charities to move away from big social media platforms. AI will have a hefty impact on forms of fundraising and Gaming for Good will still rise. But, on top of that, we expect an embrace of the long-term. Charities, with new economic freedom, might invest generative AI, might finance new socials, might put on more extravagant events, might focus on corporate partnerships, might shift to legacy giving. Or, indeed, they might not. The future is unwritten, but we will discuss that future with people who write about it. So join the Charity Digital Content Team for our final podcast of 2023, in which we discuss fundraising in 2024.

It’s been a year of perpetual crises: the hangover of the health crisis, the emergence of geo-political crises, national and international economic crises, and an environmental crisis. Charities had to navigate various issues, overcome myriad threats, and practice resilience in the face of all challenges. But, in the face of such challenges, we’ve also seen so many positives. Charities have shifted towards flexible giving, found innovative solutions to service user demands, embraced new and exciting tech such as ChatGPT, trialled new platforms such as Threads, and broadly embraced the digital. We want to discuss the ups and downs of 2023. The Charity Digital Content Team, Laura Stanley, Josie Sparling, and Ioan Marc Jones dives into key developments, explore reactions to crises, and talk about tech. So join us to review 2023 in the UK charity sector.

Our 2023 Climate Action campaign may be coming to an end in December, but that doesn’t mean we should stop acting on climate change. Indeed, climate change won’t stop acting on us. Our survey ‘Climate change in the UK charity sector’ found that more than four in five charities are concerned about the impacts of climate change but the majority rate the sector at a six out of ten in how well they are enacting sustainability in their organisations. Clearly there is still work to be done. Our report showed that the sector lacked clear communication on sustainability among their peers, and while many charities praise the work of environmental organisations, they were unsure about what they could do to tackle climate change themselves. The responsibility for tackling climate change in the sector of course does not rest only with environmental charities, but they perhaps understand the challenges more than most. Having discussed this challenge with guests from across the sector in our last podcast, today we speak to guests from environmental charities to get their say: what role does digital technology play in climate action and sustainability, what is the current state of affairs, and where do we have left to go?

This year, Charity Digital has been focused on climate action, aiming to raise awareness about climate change, show charities how digital and tech can help them to minimise their carbon footprint, and empower charities to take meaningful action to protect our planet. But we, along with many other charities, are still trying to improve our environmental impact. Our survey found that although 88% of charities are concerned about climate change, only 48% are taking serious action to address it. So, we want to know: how can we bridge that gap? In this episode, we sit down with Sila Ugurlu from the British Youth Council and Alison Gowman from City Bridge Foundation to learn more about the state of climate action in the sector right now and what we can all do to help secure our planet’s future.

More than four in five charities see digital as more of a priority as a result of the pandemic, according to the 2022 Charity Digital Skills Report. Demand for digital services has increased, with 72% of charities actively working towards progressing with digital through tools, skills, infrastructure, and more. But what, exactly, does progress look like? The charity sector has grown significantly in confidence when it comes to basic digital skills, but the digital world changes rapidly and technology grows increasingly sophisticated. How can charities keep pace without fear and with limited resources? In this podcast, we explore how charties can embark on new digital projects with intention. Join our host Lisa Chomette (Head of Partnerships, Charity Digital) and guests as they discuss the importance prioritisation, how charities can measure of performance, and, crucially, how they can avoid overwhelm.

Web accessibility is increasingly a priority for the charity sector in efforts to reach more people and improve the lives of the people they serve. Around 1.3 billion people around the world experience significant disability, according to the World Health Organisation, representing one in six of the world’s population, many of whom are our beneficiaries, donors, volunteers, employees, leaders, and supporters. Web accessibility is essential to enable everyone to participate in your mission. In this podcast, sponsored by PIR.org, the non-profit organisation that maintains the .org domain, Charity Digital’s content team share what they’ve learned about web accessibility, its impact on the charity sector, and why charities must embrace it now and in the future. Guests: Ioan Marc Jones, Head of Content, Charity Digital Laura Stanley, Content Writer, Charity Digital Josie Sparling, Content Assistant, Charity Digital Resources: .ORG Learning Center - .ORG Learning Center A digital world accessible to all. | AbilityNet A beginner’s guide to digital accessibility - Scope for business Charity Digital - Topics - An overview of the W3C Accessibility Standards Charity Digital - Topics - Where to start with web accessibility Accessibility Bookmarklets (accessibility-bookmarklets.org) UK laws that cover web accessibility - Scope for business Understanding accessibility requirements for public sector bodies - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) Accessibility Checker - ADA & WCAG Compliance (Free Scan) Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools List (w3.org) Top 5 Accessibility Plugins & Widgets Reviews | Top 5 Accessibility

Content people are a nervous bunch. We write in darkness, surrounded by books, shrouded in mystery. Many of us picked our roles precisely because we did not have to speak, or because we could speak through writing. But, on occasion, writers and editors have good ideas. And, on even rarer occasions, we might want to share those ideas, with other people, in the actual real world. The Charity Digital Content Team wanted to improve our delivery on podcasts, reduce our nerves and eliminate stage fright, find a way to minimise the ‘Umms’ and the ‘Likes’, and stop having so many breakdowns. So we decided to read, write, and train ourselves, gaining outside help and help from free sources across the internet, hoping to improve our overall public speaking. In our latest podcast, we discuss some of the great public speaking tips and tricks we have found. We cover how you can boost your confidence, improve delivery, develop your vocal landscape, embrace word power, make the most of your pauses, and so much more. So join a slightly less nervous Charity Digital Content Team as they aim to show off their new public speaking skills.

More than four in five charities are concerned about the impacts of climate change, according to Charity Digital’s recent survey, Climate Change in the UK Charity Sector. Yet only 52% of charities say environmental sustainability features in their strategy. But what do these findings actually say about the charity sector? Charities may well be concerned about climate change, but are they taking meaningful action to address it? If not, what is preventing them from doing so? In this podcast, we explore answers to these questions and more, uncovering what charities think about environmental sustainability as it stands and what steps they can take next to go green. Join Ioan Marc Jones (Content Editor), Josie Sparling (Content Assistant), and Laura Stanley (Content Writer) as they discuss the full findings of the report, available to download now on the Charity Digital website.

2023 has proved another challenging year for the charity sector. The Cost-of-Living crisis has provoked a Cost-of-Giving crisis, meaning many charities have been faced with less funds to deal with increased demand. But, as ever, we’ve seen charities prove their resilience with a host of novel fundraising solutions and creative forms of service delivery. In 2024, charities will go even further. They may flex their muscles with flexible giving, invert expectations with inverse giving, prove anti-social on social media, embrace the art of artificial intelligence, start playing around with Gaming for Good, and so much more. The future of fundraising is a fascinating landscape, with plenty of room for experimentation. Our three Charity Digital guests, Laura Stanley, Lisa Chomette, and Ioan Marc Jones, discuss the above fundraising trends and so many more, explore some of the core challenges and obstacles charities face, look at digital tools that can help with fundraising, and so much more.

How you speak to your audience matters. From building trust, to being clear, showing respect and sensitivity, and differentiating your charity from others, it’s important that you get it right. Using the right tone of voice is about being intentional with your words in order to build the best relationships possible with service users, supporters, and other stakeholders. However, communications can often take a back seat in the charity sector, with crisis after crisis exacerbating more immediate pressures around service delivery and fundraising. In this episode, Charity Digital’s Content Team give a quick guide to cultivating an appropriate tone of voice, including the immediate actionable steps you can take to make sure that your message is both understood by your audience and taken to heart.

Content is ever evolving, and it is now evolving at rapid speed. The content of today looks drastically different to the content of five years ago. And content in five years will look drastically different to the content of today. We want to discuss how it might look, the main changes that may take place, the core trends that are set to define the future of content, and so much more. Our guests discuss the unstoppable growth of video content and livestreaming, the mirroring effect of content creation and social media, the upsurge of nano influencers, the debate around quantity and quality, the dependency on user-generated content, the personalisation of content, and so much more. And, of course, all of that will be underpinned by the rise of generative artificial intelligence. So join our host, Lisa Chomette, as she questions the Charity Digital Content Team on some of the most important content trends that are set to define the next five years.

Three years after the beginning of a global pandemic, and now months into a cost-of-living crisis that shows little signs of slowing, the 2020s have been a tumultuous time for the charity sector. As we leap from crisis to crisis, charities face a rise in demand for their services, concerns over their ability to fundraise, and rising costs themselves in order to keep the lights on. For those working in the charity sector, meeting these challenges over a long period of time can lead to burnout. Recent research revealed that one in four charities are worried about staff burnout, amid problems with employee recruitment and retention. This, in turn, has an impact on services, as half of those organisations with vacancies have been forced to pause them. In this podcast, Charity Digital’s Josie Sparling (Content Assistant, she/her) is joined by colleagues Alice Roche (Chief Operating Officer, she/her), Chiara Simmons-Wood (Event Marketing Executive, she/her), and Laura Stanley (Content Writer, she/her), as they discuss how stress is affecting the charity sector and what charities can do to prevent it in the future. Resources How to help your staff avoid burnout A guide to mental health awareness

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has already long impacted our lives, but recent developments in the technology have created a frenzy around its possibilities and risks. While some are excited about saving time and money with new AI technologies, others are sceptical and would much rather proceed with caution. The most common ways AI is used in 2023 are to respond to people via text or email, answer financial questions, plan a travel itinerary, craft an email, prepare for a job interview, write a social media post, and summarise complex or lengthy copy. We want to know how charity professionals think these, and other, uses will impact upon the crucial work of charities. In this episode, Charity Digital Content Writer Laura Stanley (she/her) speaks to CEO Jonathan Chevallier (he/him), Transformation Manager Kiki Tetley (they/them), and Content Editor Ioan Marc Jones (he/him) to learn more about the different perspectives of AI in the charity sector, how it’s already impacting the ways we are working, and how it could impact charity work in the future. Resources CDDO – Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data Gov.UK – National AI Strategy The White House – Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights NIST – AI Risk Management Framework Update on He Jiankui, the scientist who used AI to edit genes: The Guardian – Scientist who edited babies’ genes says he acted ‘too quickly’

There are lots of theories about life working in the charity sector. We’ve heard that it provides huge job satisfaction, that it is bureaucratic and frustrating, that it pays badly or well, that the benefits are few or many. Surveys suggest a sense of fulfilment, but also point to an unhealthy work culture, high expectations to go above and beyond, and a poor work-life balance. So we thought we’d clear the air. We use our knowledge from working with people across the sector, our experience from working in a charity, information collected from surveys and reports, and additional research to explore what it’s really like to work in the charity sector. The podcast covers, among other things, reasons people are attracted to working in the sector, the drawbacks of non-profits, problems we’ve encountered in our research, how charities can improve working life, and so much more. So join our host, Chiara Simmons-Wood, and our Content Team, Josie Sparling, Laura Stanley, and Ioan Marc Jones, to discuss working life in the charity sector and why it might just be the best place for you.

Content bots are a form of generative AI that create content in seconds. ChatGPT, Jasper, and various other platforms generate content at overwhelming speed, averaging around 20-30 seconds to respond, offering complete articles, lists of facts, and even poems. The content bot can provide huge benefits to charities. But they also pose substantial risks, not just in terms of your organisation, but in terms of wider social problems they create. So charities need to practice caution when using content bots, always remembering the various ethical concerns. This podcast will look at content bots, exploring the benefits and drawbacks, but mostly diving into the social, political, and ethical concerns. Our host, Lisa Chomette, is joined by the Charity Digital Content Team who have spent too much of the last month writing about and arguing about content bots.

We discuss how charities can use campaigns to tackle climate change, consider the role of digital technology, and reflect on what we have learnt from our own Climate Action Campaign