20 times the number of online donations for the 2020 Poppy Appeal

WPNC Digital has supported The Royal British Legion’s 2020 Poppy Appeal, handling a big rise in online donations. The number of online donations is 20 times higher than in 2019.

With face-to-face collecting for the Poppy Appeal restricted by the Coronavirus pandemic this year an effective digital donation strategy was crucial.

The agency handled the online donation funnels for the charity. This included stress-testing the funnels to ensure they continued to work efficiently during an anticipated major increase in supporter activity.

This year, supporters could also donate via QR codes on the charity’s posters in outlets such as its corporate partner Sainsbury’s. The code links directly to goDonate, WPNC’s donation platform, for a seamless experience. You can see the platform in action here.

The scale of digital success of the 2020 Poppy Appeal has been phenomenal:

• 20 times the number of online donations received last year
• More than 13,500 online donations an hour on Remembrance Sunday alone

There is a risk that the overall Poppy Appeal income this year will be lower than in previous years due to the much-reduced number of volunteer collectors across the country so online activity will really help with the overall income.

We’re proud to support the celebrated Poppy Appeal. We know supporters are increasingly comfortable with digital donations and it’s great that we could offer them a range of options, especially when it has been more difficult to donate in person.” Gillian Baxter, Head of Supporter Acquisition at The Royal British Legion, commented: “We needed to adapt the Poppy Appeal significantly this year and develop initiatives for people to still be able to support and obtain a poppy to display. Online donations were crucial to the Appeal and have surpassed our expectations. WPNC has capably and efficiently handled our requirements, ensuring the sites were optimised, stable and closely monitored.

Vicky Reeves, Managing Director Digital, WPNC Digital & goDonate