Just under a month ago, a fire ravaged the historic Cutty Sark Clipper, prompting widespread publicity and masses of public affection.
To collect donations for the restoration of the ship, the Cutty Sark Trust created a fundraising page on Justgiving.
Within a couple of days, the page had collected over £20,000. As an update in a previous blog post revealed, the page collected donations at a remarkably consistent rate of around £485 every hour for the first 48 hours:
And with the page receiving over 20,000 hits in the first week alone, it’s no surprise that as of now, the page has collected 1,126 donations totalling £37,443.19 with just under £8,000 reclaimed in Gift Aid.
The average donation to the appeal was £33.25, compared to the overall average on Justgiving of £32 (including Gift Aid), and around 18% of donations were made from overseas where normally it is 5%.
I asked Louise Massara, Stewardship Manager of the Cutty Sark Trust, some questions about the success of their appeal:
Why did you decide to create an online fundraising page?
We had already set up an account with Justgiving for our London Marathon runners to use so it was simple to set up a page on the day of the fire.
How did you promote the page?
We put the link on to our website straightaway, and included it in our press release. We also asked journalists to include the link in their coverage.
Were you surprised by the number and speed of the donations?
Yes, we were all surprised by how many people gave, from all over the world, and by the speed with which the donations came in.
Was it important that overseas donors could donate?
Yes, very important, as we had a lot of support from overseas and it was an easy way for them to give.
Was it a comfort to your team that so many messages of support were left on the page?
It was heart-warming. We all read the messages in spare moments, and I printed them off to report to our Chairman and Trustees.
What do you hope to do with the funds?
The funds will go towards the recovery of the ship and the continuance of the conservation project to preserve and re-interpret Cutty Sark for future generations.
What proportion of funds raised has come through the fundraising page and where has the other money come from?
About 10% of funds raised so far has come through the fundraising page. The other money consists of three large donations totalling £400,000 and more donations coming in through the post and over the phone.
Do you have any other thoughts/comments about the Justgiving service?
I very much appreciated the personal contact and the practical help we received on the day of the fire, when we were incredibly busy with the police, fire service, and hundreds of press queries. The help we received was prompt and was just what we needed. The follow-up support and interest from Justgiving has also been excellent.
Louise also emailed an update to donors who were happy to hear from the page owner (instructions here) as all good fundraisers should – her email can be downloaded here: Download update_from_the_cutty_sark_trust.doc
For more information on the Cutty Sark Trust, visit their website at www.cuttysark.org.uk or download the latest update emailed to donors: Download cutty_sark_trust_update_19_06_07.doc
