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Conservation fundraising: Evidence from social media and traditional mail field experiments

Kubo, Takahiro, Yokoo, Hide‐Fumi, Veríssimo, Diogo (2022) Conservation fundraising: Evidence from social media and traditional mail field experiments. Conservation Letters, 16 (1). Article Number e12931. ISSN 1755-263X. (doi:10.1111/conl.12931) (KAR id:99129)

Abstract

Funding shortages limit conservation impact, making it vital to find effective fundraising methods. To explore how traditional and digital conservation fundraising methods perform, we conducted real‐world field experiments by using direct‐mail and Facebook advertisements. We compared three types of message frames (simple, seed money, and ecological). We found that the seed money frame, which emphasizes the amount already donated, increased the number of donors, whereas the ecological frame, which focuses on the fact that the fundraiser benefits threatened species, led to a relative reduction in the number of donors. We also found that while Facebook advertising costs exceeded donations, while the opposite was true for the traditional mail experiment. This highlights the importance of identifying appropriate donor pools for online and offline fundraising before implementing campaigns. Our findings illustrate some challenges associated with online fundraising and the importance of behavioral evidence to enhance effective fundraising in conservation.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1111/conl.12931
Uncontrolled keywords: LETTER, behavior change, behavioral science, donation, endangered species, Facebook, forest conservation, fundraising, Japan, nudging, social media
Subjects: G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GN Anthropology
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Anthropology and Conservation
Funders: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (https://ror.org/02m7axw05)
SWORD Depositor: JISC Publications Router
Depositing User: JISC Publications Router
Date Deposited: 14 Dec 2022 16:03 UTC
Last Modified: 04 Mar 2024 17:46 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/99129 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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