Tag Archives: UNICEF

Are Communicators Missing Brand Purpose?

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Our stakeholders want us to help on big societal issues. Communicators should be taking the lead on brand purpose (image source: Lokus Design)

Sometimes, well most of the time, we should listen more. Listen without bias, and just sit there and take in what others are saying. This is especially true at conferences, where there’s lots being said but few people listening. I’m can be guilty of not taking my own advice, and this equally applies to me.

Let me explain. The good people of PRovoke (formerly the Holmes Report) held their annual PRovoke MENA event last week. And they asked me to be part of a panel on brand purpose. The idea of brand purpose matters personally to me; I’ve worked for a number of not-for-profits, and I’ve seen how much it matters to a cause when a business steps in to help. And then there’s the bigger picture; given what’s happening in the world around us, the public are demanding that businesses do more on societal issues.

To me, brand purpose isn’t a buzzword. It’s a realization that there’s more to the business world than profit. We can’t keep doing what we’re doing and expect everything to be well if we’re not tackling environmental issues, inequality, poverty or any of the Sustainable Development Goals.

I know that brand purpose isn’t still widely understood or put into practice here, but even I was shocked by what I saw. When we kicked off the panel, I asked the audience of 150 communicators if brands here were doing enough to tackle big societal issues. Only one hand went up. This single vote was even worse in the context of the day’s agenda. The first panel was packed with the country’s biggest brands, talking about how their presence had grown globally. The panel prior to the brand discussion was all about the region’s youth and what they wanted to see in business.

“We want to see brands making more of an impact but we can’t expect a global brand to be 100% ethical overnight,” said Middlesex University student Cham Alatrach who was part of the youth panel. “Small strides do matter. That way you can see the process and what goes behind it. The youth want to see a change, and that doesn’t happen overnight.”

An Issue that Communicator Should Own

As far as I’m concerned, brand purpose should be our cause. Many communicators also include corporate social responsibility in their role, and it’s easy to see why. We engage with stakeholders, we listen to their issues as part of a wider dialogue, and we look to see how we can support their needs. Brand purpose is a natural extension of CSR in many ways. It also matters to employees (it’s the basis of employer branding), and so should be seen as part of internal communications.

My concern is that we’ll miss the boat when it comes to brand purpose, like we did during the introduction of social media. This was an idea based on engagement and dialogue, and yet everyone jumped in, from creatives to media buyers, marketers and even customer support.

How Agencies Can Add Value

I’ve had the good fortune to work with a company that was a pioneer in cause marketing. P&G has been brilliant in creating brands that serve a greater good. For an example of this, look at Pampers-UNICEF and the work this partnership has undertaken to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus.

One aspect of my job with P&G which I’ve enjoyed more than anything else has been the opportunity to create new cause ideas. And this is where agencies can add real value, by understanding what’s happening outside the client’s offices/world, looking at the potential to partner with a charity, and make a real impact on a big issue.

I’d pay an agency good money to give me ideas that would contribute to my brand’s purpose. For me, that’s valuable and strategic. And yet, who was coming up with new concepts? It was the creatives. We’ve got to change this.

It’s About Our Reputation Too

One final thought for all of us. The public relations industry has been maligned for years; we’ve been described as spin doctors, as unethical. For me, I’ve always believed that good communications benefits everyone. And brand purpose goes beyond saying, and focuses on the doing, which is at the core of reputation building. Our actions must speak louder than our words, and nothing gives me greater satisfaction than to leave the office and head home knowing that me and my company have supported a big issue, and contributed to positive change.

I want us all to lead on brand purpose. If you’re struggling with this issue (one of the big challenges is how to win over management), please do reach out to me, and I’ll do my best to help.

How to fundraise in Dubai (legally)

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Dubai’s fundraising law is meant to regulate giving in the Emirate. While the process is long, it is simple enough and will mean that you can fundraise legally (image source: http://www.thirdforcenews.org)

After a number of incidents, I thought it was about time that someone with experience of fundraising in Dubai wrote on how it should be done (I’ve been fundraising here for about four years, and applying for approvals every couple of months with different charities). While there are legal papers on the issue, most notably from DLA Piper, I’ve been through the process and know its ups and downs, which can be different from what is written in the statute books.

So, here goes.

  • Fundraising is regulated. 

Firstly, let’s start with the obvious. Fundraising is regulated in Dubai, and to fundraise you must do two things. Find a charity that is allowed to collect donations. Then you must submit a request to the Department of Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities (IACAD). Once this is approved you can fundraise.

If you don’t follow the above, you can face either a year in prison or a fine of up to 500,000AED. And when I mean you, I mean YOU! Even when fundraising is undertaken by a company, an individual must bear responsibility for the application.

  • You have to donate to a Dubai-based charity that is permitted to fundraise.

The number of charities who are licensed to fundraise is short, it used to be seven in total. These include the Dubai Charity Association, Dar Al Ber Society, Dubai Autism Centre, Beit Al Kheir, the UAE Red Crescent Authority, Awqaf & Minors Affairs Foundation, and The Relief Committee.

Other charities have been added to the list since then, including the Dubai Foundation for Women and Children, the Al Jalila Foundation, and Friends of Cancer Patients. For a comprehensive list, do contact the Dubai Chamber of Commerce’s Syed Atif on Syed.Atif@Dubaichamber.com. The Dubai Chamber is particularly active in terms of promoting engagement with charities in the country, and they’ll be able to give you on who and which charity aligns with your cause.

Once you’ve found your charity, you’ll have to talk to them about what you’re doing and why, in order to get their buy-in and support. This may take time, especially when dealing with one or two of the charities on the list of seven above.

Any application through the charities above to IACAD will take up to one month. On the form you’ll need to state what you are doing, why, how much is being raised and how you are raising it. The form is simple enough, and I’ve include it below. You cannot funraised until you have permission from IACAD, who will also follow up after the fundraising, to ensure that the charity has received the money.

There’s another option, which is to support a charity based in Dubai’s International Humanitarian City (IHC). These include Save the Children, SOS Children’s VIllages and UNICEF. In this case, IHC will act as the charity and then route all funds to the intended recipient. This process will take longer than the month mentioned above, so you’ll need to plan ahead.

  • Online fundraising is not exempt from the legislation (and penalties).

Many people I know in Dubai used to fundraise through online sites such as http://www.justgiving.com when undertaking a charity drive. This isn’t strictly legal, as has been shown by a recent criminal case. If you want to fundraise online, then either do it through a registered charity as per the above, or don’t do it in Dubai (ie do it when you’re out of the country and not breaking the law).

To make it as easy as possible, I’m attaching an IACAD form which you can fill in either in Arabic or English. The form is here, and includes contact details at IACAD – Islamic_Affairs_Request_Eng_Arb.

I’ll end on an important note – this only covers fundraising in Dubai. If you want to fundraise in any other Emirate, there are separate procedures you have to follow, or you’ll have to partner with the Emirates Red Crescent, or the Al Jalila Foundation. These are the only two organizations which have the pre-approval to fundraise across the United Arab Emirates.

If you need more advice on fundraising, please do drop me a comment and I’ll help further. While the above isn’t easy, I don’t want people to think that they should stop fundraising. The procedure does take time, but it doable, so keep on fundraising and supporting good causes.

#AylanKurdi, the image that has defined the refugee tragedy and what you can do to help

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There are moments when we come across an image that is so powerful that it can drive us to tears. Such an image can galvanize a generation, it can melt the coldest of hearts or it can create a well of emotion inside of us. Think of the Vietnam war’s “Girl in the Picture”, of the naked Vietnamese girl who had been burned by napalm and was in agony, or the picture of the lone student protester who held up a column of tanks during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.

This morning, I saw another image that was so powerful it literally made me cry just looking at my screen. The images below are of a three year old Syrian boy whose name is Alyan Kurdi. Like hundreds of thousands of others from Syria, Aylan and his family sought refuge and a new home in Europe.

As a father of a young child, all I care about is her safety and well-being. I can not imagine the horror that Aylan’s father, who was on the boat with Aylan and who lost his other son as well as his wife, is now living through.

This image of three year-old Aylan Kurdi is the story of Syria’s refugee tragedy. Alyan drowned while his parents were trying to reach the Greek island of Kos from the Turkish mainland (image source: Reuters/The Independent).

My one hope is that this image and story will melt hearts across Europe and worldwide, and drive people to step up and help those from Syria and other countries who are fleeing violence and who want to make a home for themselves in a new country, a home that is safe where they can live far from the shadow of death.

For me, Aylan’s story and the images taken by Reuters are heartbreaking. I beseech you to take action, especially if you are European. You can either the suggestions from the Independent or donate to organizations such as UNICEF or Save the Children which are supporting Syrian refugees.

Let’s do more, let’s help those in need. Let’s join together to ensure that there isn’t another Aylan.