SUMMARY OF JUST ASK CAMPAIGN CASE STUDIES
This is a summary of the key
themes from the feedback gathered on the Just Ask Campaign. We would like to thank all the organisations
who contributed to the case studies.
How did you hear about the Just Ask Campaign?
Most organisations heard about
the campaign through Volunteer Development Scotland, either in a newsletter or
from their website. Other ways
organisations found out about the campaign included the Scottish Government
website and The Gathering event.
What tools from the Just Ask Campaign did you use?
All of the organisations we spoke
to used the postcards and some also used the certificates. Aberdeen Council for Voluntary Organisations
‘used the logo on promotional materials and used one of the certificates to
welcome one of their new volunteers’.
Lead Scotland ‘used the postcards and certificates alongside their own
materials’ and North Edinburgh Dementia Care said about the postcards ‘anybody
willing to take one got one’.
Have the Just Ask Campaign postcards been helpful in attracting new
volunteers to your organisation?
There was a mixed opinion on
whether or not the postcards were helpful in attracting new volunteers. Organisations such as Aberdeen Council for
Voluntary Organisations (ACVO), North Edinburgh Dementia Care, St John’s
Hospital NHS Midlothian and Badenoch and Strathspey Community Transport Company
think that the postcards have been helpful.
ACVO said they have ‘definitely been helpful’ and St John’s Hospital NHS
Midlothian think they have ‘helped attract younger volunteers’ to their
organisation. North Edinburgh Dementia
care feel ‘that just handing them out raises awareness of volunteering’ and
Badenoch and Strathspey Community Transport Company think that although they
are helpful they ‘are not aware of any new volunteers they’ve had through it
but that these things take time’.
Do you think they were useful tools to have?
The majority of organisations
found the postcards useful to have because ‘they are a good size’ – North
Edinburgh Dementia Care; ‘the colours are good’ and they are ‘something nice to
give out’ – Aberdeen Council for Voluntary Organisations; ‘easy to pick up’ and
‘nice and simple’ – Lead Scotland; they ‘help to spread the word about
volunteering and about helping your community’ – Badenoch and Strathspey
Community Transport Company; The Bridge think they are useful but are ‘not sure
how useful a generic one is’ and feel they ‘need to be more adaptable’.
If we were going to run the Just Ask Campaign again would you recommend
any changes or additions?
Most organisations liked the idea
of a postcard and wouldn’t make any changes although Badenoch and Strathspey
Community Transport Company mentioned that ‘because of the finish they couldn’t
put them through the printer’. In
addition to the postcards National Trust for Scotland, Aberdeen Council for
Voluntary Organisations and St John’s Hospital NHS Midlothian suggested having
business cards available. Perth &
Kinross Council Education and Children’s Services also suggested having
posters, stickers and an electronic toolkit.
The Bridge would like the postcards to be ‘more adaptable’ and have a
‘more interactive design’, they also feel it would be useful for smaller
organisations to have them printed as they may not have access to the resources
required for large-scale printing.
Do you think national campaigns like Just Ask are helpful?
All of the organisations we spoke
to think that national campaigns like Just Ask are helpful because they ‘raise
the profile’ of volunteering (The Bridge), ‘highlight volunteering’ (St John’s
Hospital NHS Midlothian) and ‘make people more aware of volunteering’ (Lead
Scotland). North Edinburgh Dementia Care
and Aberdeen Council for Voluntary Organisations think the Just Ask Campaign
was helpful because it was a national campaign which could easily be adapted at
a local level. Perth and Kinross Council
Education and Children’s Services think the campaign could be better if there
were local briefings and information on the campaign was out earlier. In addition to this Gartnavel Royal Hospital
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde feel there hasn’t been enough coverage of the
campaign and that it would be ‘a lot more helpful if more people were actually
aware of the campaign’.
If you would like to read more in-depth feedback on the Just Ask Campaign, then please click here