Almost half of people find it “very annoying” when charity fundraisers ask for money on their doorsteps or over the phone, according to a new set of survey data from nfpSynergy.  

The report’s results, compiled in January from a sample of 1,000 people, show that 48 per cent of people find telephone and doorstep fundraising to be the most annoying form of fundraising, while only eight and 12 per cent of people respectively believe they represent effective ways of raising money.

This is a marginal improvement on the previous year, when 54 per cent of people said doorstep fundraising was very annoying, and 51 per cent said telephone fundraising was very annoying.

The survey data was also used by nfpSynergy to create what it’s called a “net annoyance score”. This score takes into account “those annoyed” by the various fundraising methods minus “those who understand its effectiveness”. Telephone fundraising had the highest “net annoyance score” with 40 per cent, while television and newspaper adverts were the most popular, with a net annoyance score of -24 per cent.

In keeping with this theme, only three per cent of recipients said they were happy to be asked to donate over the phone, while five per cent said they were happy to be asked on their doorstep. Some 35 per cent of those surveyed said they were most happy to be asked to donate via collecting tins, while the next most popular fundraising method was through television adverts with phone numbers attached, which scored 20 per cent.

Joe Saxton, founder of nfpSynergy (pictured), said that while some of the data will be “sobering” for the sector, there is plenty of good news to be read into the survey as well.

“This data is yet another sobering reminder of the irritation fundraising can cause and it’s become all too tempting to chase that extra pound without worrying about the long term damage.

"The good news is it is possible to change how people see fundraising. A decade ago, street collections were widely despised, but now a fifth of people understand they’re effective, even if they don’t really like them.

"Charities simply must listen to donors and the public because ignoring today’s irritation only makes it more difficult to raise funds tomorrow.”

Non-fundraisers must be involved in regulation

In light of recent events surrounding the death of Olive Cooke, nfpSynergy has said it wants to see people from outside the sector be involved in setting up future fundraising rules and guidelines.

“Charities do great work and they must fundraise, but they must also talk to people to find out how often they want to be contacted," said a statement from Rob White, marketing and PR manager for nfpSynergy.

"We also want to see more people included in the process of setting fundraising rules, such as donors, politicians or other members of the public. At the moment, the rules are only set by fundraisers themselves."

White also rejected the idea that “everyone in the UK is being bombarded” by fundraisers as “inaccurate and unhelpful”.