While the branding looks legit, when I asked if he worked for Paralympics Australia directly, he said he was employed by a Melbourne based marketing company. In the event it is a genuine booth, if the booth is being run by a marketing company – how much of my donation is actually going to the Paralympics team? Seen in Coogee.
Posted by No-Cat-762
30 Comments
That’s so….deceiptful…
Probably fuck all.
Had one on and off in Pyrmont last few months. Said hi, was open to a donation to paralympics but when they said minimum donation was like $50-60 and I don’t think it was a one off either, wasn’t for me
>he said he was employed by a Melbourne based marketing company
This is the standard chugger business model. The marketing firm gets a commission for each sign-up they get, of which the individual chugger gets a cut.
It’s likely legit in that the marketing company he works for is working with Paralympics Australia. But he is working on commission and some of your donation is going to him.
Don’t donate to these people, because it just means they’ll keep setting up shop like this and harassing people. Some of them are *really* pushy and will yell out compliments/insults to try to flatter you/guilt you into donating. Donate directly to the charity if you feel the cause is worth it, never to chuggers (charity muggers).
> It is commonly reported that the marketing agency takes the first 3 to 12 months (or up to 60-93% of the first year) of donations.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-10-27/charities-reveal-high-marketing-costs/1117486
If you want to donate, at least go direct. **Never entertain Chuggers.**
This guy seems relatively benign but I hate these guys camped outside Woolworths exits or train stations. Absolute scum of the earth.
There is enough funding from the government for our athletes.
I had one a few days ago in my local area in Western Sydney. I didn’t stop to find out more.
Used to do this many years ago for a company called ‘Appco’ (or Jam Prospects or something like that).
20% of the ‘donation’ went to paralympics, the rest went to the MLM chain.
PA receive nearly $300 million a year from the feds. They don’t need to fundraise.
The marketing company takes a massive chunk of your donations- NEVER give through these setups, or door knockers etc. If you decide you want to donate go to the organisation’s website and donate directly
Oh God are Chuggers still a thing ?! I was hoping that business model died after COVID.
Chugger!
I once got harassed by guys fundraising for a veterans charity…got told I don’t give a f&)k about vets….stopped and said hey champ, I am a veteran…never seen a dumber look on someone’s face lol
He was in crows nest a week or two ago. I think it’s legit but raises massive questions about what percentage of money actually makes it to the cause (I imagine quite little). I won’t engage with these guys.
The unfortunate thing is that paid donation collectors like this have been shown to raise more money.
While their company takes a cut, if they aren’t there no one thinks of the cause to begin with so they get less donations.
I dont agree with the tactics, but if things aren’t in people’s faces they won’t donate.
Its easy to say ‘I’d prefer to donate directly’ but many people dont have the thought until they are otherwise asked.
Most of them aren’t paid on commission anymore.
But if you want to know if they’re legit they’ll have a badge and you can follow up with the Public Fundraising Regulatory Authority to make sure they’re legit. If they’re harassing you that’s also where to make complaints. You can also reach out to them if you want to make sure they don’t go to your door.
It’ll always be better for you to donate directly to a charity if you have a cause that you care about, but this method is one of the more cost effective ways for charities to recruit new donors which is why they still do it.
Better to donate directly via the website if that is an option. These are contracted marketing companies working on commission.
It’s legitimate in the sense that the organisation for which he claims to be fundraising has engaged the company for which he works for donation services.
However, these companies are generally massive MLM style corrupted business models, in which the individual who signs you up for donations takes a cut, his boss takes a cut, the local rep takes a cut and the overarching firm takes a cut. By the time the organisation to which you originally intended to donate receives their cut, it is generally less than 10% of the original donation.
The organisation still wins because 10% of something is better than nothing, but otherwise the entire thing is a fucking scam.
If you want to donate, then donate directly.
If anyone ASKS you for a donation, it’s generally best practice to ignore them.
Unfortunately, asking people to donate is very effective against a small subset of people, especially vulnerable older people. So everyone has to deal with chuggers.
You ought to try being a wheelchair user, they peg you and give you that look as if you should feel obliged to donate.
This happens almost everyday whilst walking my dog in Surry Hills.
There’s been one at engadine shops lately
Not necessarily this guy but this group for the Paralympic were in the Blue Mountains about 3 weeks ago. Firstly at Blaxland IGA and then Springwood IGA the next day
My mother was an aid worker for many years. There’s an entire industry based around fundraising. And it involves a whole bunch of middlemen who all get a cut. Even well known charities can soak up most of their money in operations.
It’s probably legit. But this bloke will be earning bugger all, and the charity might be getting even less.
Fuck. Chuggers.
Signed, former chugger before I knew better.
A few years ago I was at a table of backpackers in a pub near Central. They were talking about their various charity collecting gigs.
One girl was collecting down near Wynyard that morning. It was old fashioned money-in-a-tin donations for a major charity. She got a $50 note stuffed in the tin by an elderly gentleman, and when such an event happened she would rush into the toilets at Wynyard station. Armed with two paddle pop sticks which she kept for this exact purpose, she explained how she extracted the note from tin, only to find out that it wasn’t AUD $50 note, but NZD $5 note instead, which is brownish, like our AUD 50.
Anyway, everyone laughed and commiserated her on missing out on a good payday. I was absolutely sickened as no one seemed to think there was anything wrong, just that the girl had been unlucky.
I have never given anything to a street charity collector since. And if we all stop, possibly they will go away.
I accidentally/naively worked a day with one of the pyramid scheme companies that run these fundraisers..
I remember going home from my “trial day” and saying to my then bf “I hope this job isn’t a scam” knowing in my heart of hearts it was, but figured I needed to stick it out at least one day. Saw the whole sales pitch in the morning where they talk to their different levels and explain that once I get 5 people working under me then I’m one step closer to the Hunter Valley conference. Got on the train with my team leader, travelled almost all the way back home again to set up for the day. At the end of the day I told the girl I wasn’t going back to the office and her response was “well normally we both have to go back, sign the table covers and what not back in but since it’s your first day and your close to home you can just go” I told her I wasn’t going back ever and scrawled a brief resignation letter on the back of one of the donation forms and cried the whole way home (which thankfully was only 10 minutes)
Pisses me off that charities employ these tactics
Last year I had someone come to my door and try to get me to sign up like a subscription service but to donate to a charity. I was like “bruh, is there an option to just do a single donation?” He said “there was not”. I told him “that’s dumb”. He agreed. He then left.
Even if it is, we should not encourage chuggers, every. single. day. there’s a different one bothering me on my lunch break, taking their own huge wadge of commission out of what you offer – some actually end up losing money in the situation as most stop donating after a couple of months which isn’t enough to cover the marketing teams fees, absolute parasitic scum stealing money from those that need it the most.