Case Study » Sourcing Volunteers for the British Heart Foundation

Challenge

The British Heart Foundation is the nation’s heart charity. To achieve its vision of a world where people do not die prematurely of heart disease it relies upon dedicated and skilled staff and volunteers. Recruiting can cause overheads to skyrocket and so, for many charities, finding reliable volunteers can be a cost effective way to not only fundraise & build links with communities but recruit for future employee’s and meet business goals.

Solution

At Charity People we’re passionate about the not-for-profit sector and continuously identify new ways to promote the industry including launching forum3. forum3 is the UK's only dedicated recruitment, volunteering and networking event for the not-for-profit and public sectors and since its launch in 2001 has become the largest event of its kind in Europe.

forum3 presents the perfect environment for exhibitors to showcase their organisation and volunteering opportunities to the 15,000 visitors that attend the two day event. And with over 150 value-led organisations exhibiting at forum3 the event is also a great place for networking.

Nearly 5,000 of the people that attend forum3 are seeking volunteering opportunities, making it the ideal location for launching your organisation’s volunteering programme.

There are a number of reasons for exhibiting at forum3:

• Meet thousands of proactive volunteers face-to-face
• Network with professionals from over 150 organisations
• Extensive seminar programme with over 70 sessions attracts dedicated visitors
• Get immediate results by screening and accepting applications on site
• Generally cost-effective compared to advertising and marketing initiatives
• Promote your volunteering programmes and your training courses
• Build a database of potential employees, volunteers, donors and fundraisers
• Promote your products and services in the market place
• Raise the awareness and strength of your brand and organisation
• Established industry event

forum3 is extensively promoted using a variety of mediums including national and regional press, key media partner titles, direct marketing, radio, an outdoor promotion and a fully integrated PR campaign. Resulting in thousands of bright and proficient visitors to the event each year.

Result

The British Heart Foundation has been exhibiting at forum3 since 2002, using it as vehicle for recruit numerous volunteers and employees. Exhibiting at forum3 is an effective and efficient way to source staff compared to the cost of recruitment advertising, allowing exhibitors to meet potential volunteers and employees face-to-face over the 2 days.

The British Heart Foundation also uses the event as a platform to inform people about their cause. Helping to raise their brand awareness, educate the public about their work and canvass for future donations.

forum3 is recognised across the not-for-profit sector as the industry’s leading volunteering, recruitment and networking event.

Interested?

If you’d like to find out more about our forum3, including:

• Exhibiting
• Marketing opportunities
• Running a seminar

Please email Deborah Hockham, or call her on 020 7939 7434.