Travelers' Philanthropy Handbook - Center for Responsible Travel

Comments from a Travel Partner on Customer Relations:“We use a 3-fold outreach approach: 1) in pre-trip info we send all the project info andlinks. 2) On the trip, guides also talk about the project and donation opportunities. 3)Follow-up survey and info contains donation links as well, via email. We used to dohardcopy but just switched.” Robin Neal, Safari Ventures• Concepts to Encourage Donations1. Make giving EASY. Your “ask” should be succinct and to-the-point, stressing situation,immediate need, suggested donation and want to donate (printed form, link).2. Encourage REPETITIVE Donations. Take a cue from the big NGOs like Oxfam, Save theChildren, World Wildlife Fund, etc. Their communications encourage regular (monthly orannual) donations of low amounts. One-time donations should be the second option.3. Online Donations. All your e-mail/Internet communications should have a direct link to awebsite giving portal such as Travelersphilanthropy.org’s donation form.4. Matching Funds. If the donation is made by a certain date (near future) it will be matchedby a donation from your company (up to a certain amount). This leverages your company’sparticipation.5. Travel Vouchers. An alternative to matching funds, you might reward donations with acertificate for a matching discount off the next trip. This idea has the advantage ofencouraging repeat bookings. CREST has suggested a cross marketing system among allthe travel companies in CREST’s Travelers’ Philanthropy program -travelers who give atleast $250 to one company’s Travelers’ Philanthropy project can be used with any of theother companies in the CREST Travelers’ Philanthropy program as a coupon for $250 off thetrip.6. Keep It Personal. Donations flow more easily if there is a personal connection between thedonor and the recipient. This connection can be created in a number of ways:• Photographs and testimonials from actual benefactors• Direct communication (letters) for the more generous donors• Detailed stories about improvements and what they mean for individualsComments from a Travel Partner on Encouraging Traveler Donations withPersonal Connections to the Project:“We’re incorporating a lot of these ideas into our guests’ communications. Whenguests are on site, the biggest thing for them is an afternoon talk with the founder. Itconveys the reason behind why we are doing this, and they get teary eyed and want tohelp.” Laura Ell, Jungle Bay Resort and Lodge, www.junglebay.com139