The Coronavirus pandemic has hit almost every industry, forcing companies to tighten budgets, furlough staff and even reconsider the entire way in which they operate.

The third sector is no different. The pandemic has created numerous challenges for charities, from finding new ways to replicate physical fundraising events to keeping donors engaged.

This practical guide covers four key things your charitable organisation can be doing right now to help alleviate these immediate challenges, while also ensuring you remain sustainable for the future:

• Communicating with your audience – clear, consistent communications that hit the right tone
• Creating an omnichannel strategy – joining the dots between strategically crafted print and digital
• Rethinking the charity shop – how to adapt for social distancing, or take it online
• Taking events virtual – creating engaging, shareable events for your audience

Download the guide for more information, including practical examples and actionable ideas to make these four strategies work for your organisation.

The stereotypical relationship between marketing and procurement is often portrayed as a fractious one. With marketing professionals resenting the interference of the ‘cost police’, and procurement frustrated by creatives who fail to consider the impact on the bottom line.

But does this generalisation really hold true, or have marketing and procurement learnt to coexist and value the others’ input? To examine this more closely, we spoke with leading marketing and procurement professionals and asked them to share their experiences – the good, the bad and the ugly. We also review the tangible lessons we can take away as we aim to forge productive partnerships with colleagues, who are often incentivised to pursue different sets of goals.

Featuring insight from Cath Hill, director at CIPS, Kate McNamee, director of marketing and communications at Alliance Manchester Business School, Richard Beaumont, former VP at Rolls Royce and CPO at the Co-operative Bank, Michael Tierney, brand and marketing manager at OneFamily and Marium Ali, marketing director for EMEA at ECCO Safety Group, we identify five common themes:

• Valuing complementary skills
• Nurturing respect for innovation
• Agreeing shared objectives
• Seeking collaboration, not confrontation
• Keeping communication constant