Wild Philanthropy has been working hard to support our partners over the last few years. The original plan was simply to act as a fundraiser, linking our partner organisations with donors and funds. As we’ve evolved, so we have developed our approach, and found other ways to support our partners.
As you know, Wild Philanthropy works alongside Journeys by Design, borrowing many of the skills, experience and people-power to deliver our mission. One of Journeys by Design’s strengths is its small but highly effective marketing team. As a small non-profit, having access to this resource has really helped Wild Philanthropy develop its brand. This led us to wonder if we could persuade the JbD marketing bods to help us help our partners.
As a trial, we set them the task of helping one of our Core Ecosystem partners, the Tongwe Trust. This small organisation, operating off an annual budget of about $35k, had a website which, while containing some great content, needed updating, restructuring, and a new look at its functionality.
The marketing team stepped in to review the old site and used it’s fantastic narrative and film as the basis for developing a proposed new structure. Sourcing images from the few who have travelled to Ntakata, in Tongweland (and enriching the Tongwe’s story from a range of materials, including work published by the Trust itself), they designed and built a draft site.
However, it needed to be more than a shop window. It needed to be a means for directly raising funds for the Trust. Following discussion with the team on the ground, it was agreed that Wild Philanthropy’s online capabilities would serve the need best, especially given the fact that we guarantee that 100% of donations will reach the Trust thanks to our Friends of Wild Philanthropy who underwite our operating costs.
The end result, I’m sure you’ll agree, is a beautiful website, built on shoestring, that not only explains what the Tongwe Trust are all about, but allows people to support them without going through multiple parties. It is the first time in the history of the Trust that its story and the materials that support that story can be found in one place. The site approved, it went live today.
So, all that is left now is to test out the donation function. Go on, have a go – the Tongwe Trust’s work is massively deserving of our support. Click here to donate!