For this month’s Charity Spotlight, we reached out to the fundraising team at World Horse Welfare, a leading UK-based horse charity dedicated to improving the lives of horses worldwide. Fundraising plays a vital role in helping the charity improve the welfare of the horses, so it offers supporters many different ways of showing their support, including the sale of charity merchandise.
We asked the team to share their thoughts on what makes merchandise an effective fundraising tool, and what they’ve learned about selecting the right merchandise to reach their goals.
Can you briefly describe World Horse Welfare and what the charity does?
We’re an international charity that’s focused on improving the lives of horses in the UK and around the world. Our goal is to help the largest possible number of horses worldwide by changing attitudes, policy and practice.
Tell us a little bit about your team’s role at World Horse Welfare…
Our team is responsible for driving donor engagement and acquisition. On any given day, we’re working on a collection of projects, conducting performance analysis, attending meetings and figuring out new ways to engage our supporters.
What role does merchandise play in your fundraising strategy?
We like to be able to offer a range of items to meet different spend levels and tastes. We have found that we sell the most of items that retail for or less than £10.
What are some of the factors you consider when selecting merchandise?
We consider previous sales history, return on investment and customer/donor feedback. We have to ensure that we’re brand compliant, that the selling price meets our minimum ROI and that the selling point is within our supporters’ price range.
What is your evaluation process when selecting new products or suppliers?
We tend to search the internet for new ideas and products, but we also try to use existing suppliers where possible. For example, we recently ordered a new product based on customer feedback and chose the supplier based on their ability to provide the goods at the right price.
To learn more about World Horse Welfare and how you can show your support, please visit www.worldhorsewelfare.org.