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Post by showgirl on Nov 1, 2018 5:11:03 GMT
As it's the time of year once again when people are collecting both for the British Legion Poppy Appeal and (in theatres) for Act Up, the theatrical charity, I've been reminded how awkward I feel when volunteers ask for cash of any sort, as I don't carry change and only a couple of larger-denomination notes which can go untouched for a couple of months because I use contactless methods for day-to-day expenses and book my cinema and theatre tix online.
OK, collectors (especially for Act Up at present) jokily emphasise the fact that cash is heavy so notes would be lighter for the bucket-bearers, but does anyone else have this issue when unexpectedly asked for cash? I know I could arrange to have some temporarily but maybe collectors need to accommodate modern payment methods too.
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Post by NeilVHughes on Nov 1, 2018 8:02:13 GMT
Same, there was a collection for an Actors charity at Menier on Saturday, felt uncomfortable walking past Jasper Britton and his bucket on my way out, the lowest note I had was £10.
For me it is contactless all the way.
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Post by stefy69 on Nov 1, 2018 8:06:15 GMT
Quite the opposite for me : Cash is still king...
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 9:28:35 GMT
I have designated charities I donate to at the end of each year. Theres only so much 'spare change' (none of it really spare as I'm still broke at the end of each month) I can afford to give away. Knowing that, I feel no guilt in saying no to other charities asking for money throughout the year. When prompted by a bucket or asked for donations so I don't appear rude I quite often justify my not giving and am usually met with a grateful response.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 9:29:10 GMT
Tangental but a cafe in the Bay here has gone totally cashless, which while it may be the future seems a bit premature to me. Especially in an area that is very tourist heavy, and also how shall we say, an outing for the older generation of a day time. Now tourists might not have a bank card that works/is contactless, and older people often prefer cash. So it seems a little bit premature to assume everyone is a young hipster who doesn't do cash anymore!
I either have a wallet full of change or nothing at all, so I feel that donanation pain too.
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Post by showgirl on Nov 1, 2018 9:42:48 GMT
Yes @emicardiff , I definitely think normal outlets should still take cash, especially in areas where that's likely to be necessary or popular and absolutely, they wouldn't only be disadvantaging potential customers if they didn't but also their own business. I've felt embarrassed seeing tourists turned off London buses because they couldn't pay via a contactless method.
As for donations in general, Serial Shusher makes another good point. I donate monthly by standing order (ie rather than annually) to a couple of chosen charities but that way they know they're receiving a guaranteed, if small regular income and can claim the tax relief on top, so it's worth more - an opportunity completely lost with one-off cash donations. Charities also benefit from this extra tax relief if you donate to their shops and are registered: for instance, both my local hospice and Oxfam do this, so I'm sure it's pretty widespread now, and I quite like receiving the annual email telling me how much my donations have raised and how much difference the tax relief has added.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 9:50:53 GMT
Yes @emicardiff , I definitely think normal outlets should still take cash, especially in areas where that's likely to be necessary or popular and absolutely, they wouldn't only be disadvantaging potential customers if they didn't but also their own business. I've felt embarrassed seeing tourists turned off London buses because they couldn't pay via a contactless method. As for donations in general, Serial Shusher makes another good point. I donate monthly by standing order (ie rather than annually) to a couple of chosen charities but that way they know they're receiving a guaranteed, if small regular income and can claim the tax relief on top, so it's worth more - an opportunity completely lost with one-off cash donations. Charities also benefit from this extra tax relief if you donate to their shops and are registered: for instance, both my local hospice and Oxfam do this, so I'm sure it's pretty widespread now, and I quite like receiving the annual email telling me how much my donations have raised and how much difference the tax relief has added. I agree! As someone who had no end of trouble with bank cards while living abroad as Canada was an early adopter of chip and pin...I now sympathise greatly with tourists! Re: charity donations, I love those emails too saying how much they raised! that said a good friend of mine is a fundraising person for a charity, and for them the 'bucket collections' is really about promoting awareness of them (in terms of both the service they provide and encouraging larger donations) so I think they serve more of a 'marketing' purpose, which they've proven does generate bigger donations down the line (and for smaller charities every little really does help). But I agree to properly 'support' a charity it's monthly and Tax Relief that's the big earners. (I'm nerdy about fundraising and I don't even want to be...I fell into this life arrrrggh) |
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Post by tysilio2 on Nov 1, 2018 10:13:39 GMT
Tangental but a cafe in the Bay here has gone totally cashless, which while it may be the future seems a bit premature to me. Especially in an area that is very tourist heavy, and also how shall we say, an outing for the older generation of a day time. Now tourists might not have a bank card that works/is contactless, and older people often prefer cash. So it seems a little bit premature to assume everyone is a young hipster who doesn't do cash anymore! I either have a wallet full of change or nothing at all, so I feel that donanation pain too. At least two cafes/bistros here in Llangollen (in the North) still don't take card payments!. It's lovely here in 1976!! |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 10:15:30 GMT
Tangental but a cafe in the Bay here has gone totally cashless, which while it may be the future seems a bit premature to me. Especially in an area that is very tourist heavy, and also how shall we say, an outing for the older generation of a day time. Now tourists might not have a bank card that works/is contactless, and older people often prefer cash. So it seems a little bit premature to assume everyone is a young hipster who doesn't do cash anymore! I either have a wallet full of change or nothing at all, so I feel that donanation pain too. At least two cafes/bistros here in Llangollen (in the North) still don't take card payments!. It's lovely here in 1976!! Ah North Wales, forever another world  Which reminds me I went into a pub near Mold earlier this year, and honestly from the interior I was surprised they took 'new money' haha (with love, the North is lovely!) |
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Post by NeilVHughes on Nov 1, 2018 10:24:37 GMT
with love, the North is lovely!
@emmicardiff as a gog I am pleased to hear it.
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Post by Tibidabo on Nov 1, 2018 10:36:55 GMT
maybe collectors need to accommodate modern payment methods too. Well, I recently passed the Air Ambulance people in the street and took out my purse to give them some cash. They refused it, saying that they weren't allowed to take it on the street any more and would I mind signing up so they could hassle write to me for a donation. I minded. Anyway, it was my lunch break and I didn't have time. They were actually very lovely and said that they had lost out on lots of donations that day for the very same reason. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 10:44:15 GMT
with love, the North is lovely! @emmicardiff as a gog I am pleased to hear it. I don't get there often (bloody big mountains get in the way and let's not get started on the Welsh rail networks shall we....) but it is lovely up there. I'm also jealous of Theatr Clwyd and the great work they do. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 11:09:26 GMT
Same with office collections - the envelope always ends up with a couple of quid plus a load of apologetic IOUs from people who don't carry cash that they never make good on!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 12:35:51 GMT
let's not get started on the Welsh rail networks shall we You only have to wait an hour or seven. The trains get started eventually.
I love the Cambrian coast railway, straight across the middle and up to Pwllheli. It's a shame they dropped the Friday night service from London Euston to Pwllheli because that was wonderfully weird: it stopped in the sidings at Shrewsbury late in the evening and the train crew would go home and leave all the passengers on board waiting for the next crew to take the train forward to Welshpool on Saturday morning. No platform or anything.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 12:42:42 GMT
I don't understand why people don't carry cash. I use a debit card when I can, but there are always places where there's a minimum transaction amount for card payments and sometimes there are issues with payment services where cards get declined, so it's worth having an alternative available.
As for charities, I hate the sort that expect you to sign up for a regular donation. I don't mind a one-off contribution but if I sign up for regular payments I'll forget that I've done it and never cancel. Which is the entire point, of course: to get people to contribute more than they want to.
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Post by david on Nov 1, 2018 12:53:27 GMT
I’ll quite happily give cash donations if buckets are available, but for me, giving out my card details is a big no. I feel bad every time someone from a charity approaches me in the street or knocks on my front door asking me to sign up to their charity. I keep telling them that it’s nothing against them or the charity they represent, but I won’t give out my card info to a complete stranger where I don’t know where the information is going to end up. Thankfully they understand. I try and be fair by treating everyone the same. I’ve heard too many stories about people who have signed up to a charity and they keep getting phone calls asking for more and more money. I’m sorry, these charities do great work, but when you keep getting hassled over the phone, I’d be more than inclined to cancel donations as a result.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 13:27:25 GMT
I'm like Her Maj, I don't carry cash.
Yet another thing we have in common.
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Post by londonmzfitz on Nov 1, 2018 13:50:08 GMT
Tangental but a cafe in the Bay here has gone totally cashless, which while it may be the future seems a bit premature to me. Especially in an area that is very tourist heavy, and also how shall we say, an outing for the older generation of a day time. Now tourists might not have a bank card that works/is contactless, and older people often prefer cash. So it seems a little bit premature to assume everyone is a young hipster who doesn't do cash anymore! I either have a wallet full of change or nothing at all, so I feel that donanation pain too. At least two cafes/bistros here in Llangollen (in the North) still don't take card payments!. It's lovely here in 1976!! Oooo I love Llangollen! Have travelled the canal many times, and the steam train! It's lovely!! *Adding on subject ... I always have a quid or two in my pocket. For "good" charities and for homeless. Can't be doing that rifling through the handbag when I see someone needy, especially late at night. Couple of quid in a pocket, easy done. |
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Post by Jon on Nov 1, 2018 15:04:03 GMT
The Jungle had contactless terminals to raise money so they do exist for those with cards
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 17:44:13 GMT
Otherwise, I now only give to charities where as near 100% as possible goes to the cause and not on the admin team's wages and marketing. That's a shame, having worked for several charities in the past I firmly believe that charities should spend more on marketing nowadays, not less. Good marketing doesn't just help increase donations but also (and sometimes more importantly) helps increase awareness. With the pressure on charities to fill several huge gaps left by cuts by successive governments, expecting them to run on volunteers with very little outgoings and still succeed is almost unachievable I fear. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 1, 2018 17:44:32 GMT
Otherwise, I now only give to charities where as near 100% as possible goes to the cause and not on the admin team's wages and marketing. That's a shame, having worked for several charities in the past I firmly believe that charities should spend more on marketing nowadays, not less. Good marketing doesn't just help increase donations but also (and sometimes more importantly) helps increase awareness. With the pressure on charities to fill several huge gaps left by cuts by successive governments, expecting them to run on volunteers with very little outgoings and still succeed is almost unachievable I fear. |
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Post by theatreian on Nov 1, 2018 17:53:18 GMT
I'm like Her Maj, I don't carry cash. Yet another thing we have in common. Is that from one old queen to another? I may be banished to the Tower of London for that! I still carry cash. I'm an old fashioned boy!(Well not exactly boy!) |
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Post by Tibidabo on Nov 1, 2018 17:56:38 GMT
Bit of a gremlin in the quoting function - Monkey said what's in Ryan's quote box, not me.
Both @theatremonkey and @ryan make very valid, but differing, points. I used to volunteer in a charity shop. The hours I did saved the charity about £60 a week had they actually paid someone to do what I did. One day a lightbulb needed changing. Believe it or not, we were not allowed to climb up a ladder/on the counter/on each others' shoulders, but had to call out the maintenance team to change it. It so happened that the company lightbulb changer was based over a hundred miles away and guess how much the charge was to get him to drive down and change our bulb? Yes, £60. What a totally stupid waste of money.
However, I do agree with Ryan that charities cannot survive on volunteers alone - the shop managers had a bit of a tricky task having to manage non-paid workers alongside the paid ones.
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Post by kimbahorel on Nov 1, 2018 18:15:26 GMT
I don't have a debit card so everything is cash for me. Saying that I have a cash card for my saving account that I get money out of an ATM. But, working in retail the amount of times things go wrong with the card machines or peoples cards / banks... and they don't have cash to pay.
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Post by kathryn on Nov 1, 2018 18:47:18 GMT
You have to invest to get a return, though, Monkey. They do it because they ultimately raise more money as a result.
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