An IceBucket on future donations
Or why your chain letter needs an exit strategy.
Regardless of what you think about the #IceBucketChallenge in support of ALS, and lots of people have thoughts, it’s clear that they, ALS society, are on to something.
The challenge has caught on with a number of celebrities big and small. And it seems that most people (from a sample size of my friends and acquaintance) know that the campaign benefits ALS, although few knew exactly how the money part worked. Regardless, it seems that the overall public awareness of ALS has increased, and that’s a win right.
Right.
But …
What about next year? What happens when the Save the Weasels Foundation of South Calgary succeeds with it’s PurpleNurple for the Furred campaign? Will the ALS society be able to keep all of its new, and very high profile, donors?
The #IceBucketChallenge involves a network element where once you complete the challenge, you then challenge 3 others to do it, and so on and so on. This was a bit of brilliance by the ALS society, ensuring the challenge went viral, but let’s face it, it’s really a glorified chain letter. So the question is, when the same chain letter comes around to you again, a year later, do you keep the chain going or say “once was enough, thanks.”
If you happen to work at the ALS society, you’re job now would be to ensure your chain letter is seen as an annual escape from the heat, and not a drop in the bucket.
