Earlier this year, Carl Young and Michele Wilkinson headed overseas to attend and present a session at a global conference dedicated to Face-to-Face fundraising.

Michele is the Chief Executive Officer of The FIN Agency and Carl is the Director of Jigsaw Fundraising, a consultancy he founded after a long career in-house, most recently asthe former Philanthropy and Fundraising Director at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.

We asked Carl and Michele what they learned at the second International F2F Fundraising Congress.

Please tell us about this conference for those of us not familiar with it.

The International F2F Fundraising Congress is hosted by the Fundraising Association of Austria in Vienna. It is a global event that brings together some of the brightest minds in face-to-face fundraising. It’s a dynamic and engaging conference where we explore everything from cutting-edge recruitment strategies to regulatory best practices.

The program was developed by a committee of international fundraising leaders such as Daryl Upsall and F2F fundraising experts such as Daniel McDonnell (Global Fundraising and Marketing Specialist, UNICEF) and Elsbeth de Ridder (Global F2F Fundraising Specialist). Speakers led interactive sessions to address challenges and professionalise the F2F fundraising method.

In an industry where face-to-face fundraising is sometimes misunderstood, this conference serves as a celebration of the power and potential of the channel. It’s not just about numbers, it’s about building genuine, lasting relationships with donors. What sets this conference apart is the palpable energy and interactivity. It’s a space for collaboration, for learning from each other, and for truly appreciating the impact of F2F fundraising.

We both agree, the atmosphere is unique – there’s a real sense of camaraderie and shared purpose.

You presented a session about ‘The Circle of Success’. Can you explain what that entails?

The Circle of Success is all about creating a thriving, empowered partnership between charities and their F2F agency partners.

Face-to-face fundraising is a transformational channel – not just because of the recruitment numbers but because of the relationships it fosters, from the public to the boardroom. We discussed how critical it is for charities to see their agency partner not as an external service provider but as an extension of their fundraising team.

In our session, we shared real-life case studies, tips and insights on creating a winning culture that benefits both the charity and the agency. We delved into key areas like setting clear KPIs, negotiating transparent contracts, and navigating challenges, including managing media scrutiny.

Our ultimate aim was to empower charities to optimise their F2F programs and build that mutually beneficial, win-win-win-win-win-win culture for the entire supply chain, which leads to the real win – quality and engaged donors who want to help the charity’s cause for years to come.

The circle of success starts with an assumptive modelling phase to set targets based on industry standards and best practices. This is followed by measurement and analysis, with dynamic reporting and quality control in real time. This gives us key insights into a program right from acquisition through to backend operations (you can’t have a good acquisition program if your back-end processes are weak).

These dynamic insights are used to educate and socialise F2F performance and returns to leadership, management, agency, fundraisers, frontline staff, and database staff, so everyone can understand and support the process and value of the program. This allows fundraisers and agencies to optimise recruitment, infrastructure and systems (including collateral, pitch, training, database processes, on-boarding, stewardship processes etc.). 

If communicated openly to your agency, these evidence-based insights can empower the agency but more importantly guide F2F fundraisers. Receiving objective feedback removes subjectivity from performance and promotes connection to your cause, Instead of feeling they are at arm’s length from the charity and internal fundraisers, they feel valued, included and an extension of the internal fundraising team. In turn this will encourage the F2F fundraiser to seek incremental improvement.

Following this stage, everyone will be focused on acquiring and retaining the right donors – donors who retain at the highest levels – and optimising the average gift rate.

Each of these stages plays a role in determining and final stage – contract negotiations and service agreements that result in  reasonable targets and standards of service delivery that both parties own. 

Each stage is critical in creating a win-win culture and connection. Each stage helps operational staff understand and appreciate the efforts of the agency and their team. Each stage helps the charity and the agency improve, through transparency, data sharing, with evidence-based decision-making leading to honest and open communication. Each stage plays a role in creating realistic contract clauses and KPIs that both parties own and are invested in. There are no surprises – only a win-win circle of success.

You co-presented at the conference. What do each of you bring to the table when it comes to F2F?

Carl: Michele is a F2F legend and brings a wealth of agency experience and what is needed to translate F2F fundraising theory into operational practise. Michele understands what the client needs from an income and quality recruitment perspective and how to work with the client to translate these into effective KPIs and a realistic contractual and service agreement. Michele doesn’t see herself as the F2F agency, but more of an extended member of the charity’s fundraising team. Their cause is her cause. A philosophy that is critical to success and win-win outcomes.

Michele: Carl’s insights on F2F fundraising are rooted in his deep understanding of agency dynamics. Carl’s role is to bridge the gap between theory and operational execution, ensuring that every aspect of the F2F program aligns with the charity’s core objectives. He works closely with clients to set realistic KPIs, negotiate practical service agreements, and ensure that fundraising programs are sustainable. Carl’s philosophy is grounded in building long-lasting, collaborative partnerships that foster a win-win-win-win-win-win-win culture for both charities and agencies along with everyone involved in the supply chain.

Please share some of your top takeaways from the conference.

A key takeaway was that the fundamentals of good F2F fundraising still hold true – a worthy cause and a good pitch to the right demographic – and that Australia is punching above its weight.

The second key takeaway was that the countries with strong regulatory associations, such as the PFRA in Australia and NZ, appear to have more sustainable F2F programs with less media storms. The countries that can self-regulate have higher F2F standards and better working relationships between agencies and charities and a more positive public perception.

Another takeaway is the many different ways to describe F2F fundraising and F2F fundraisers.

Depending where you are in the world, F2F Fundraising can be called: Canvassing, Face-to-Face Fundraising/Recruitment/Giving, Direct Marketing, Street Fundraising, Door-to-Door Fundraising (D2D), Venue Fundraising, Private Site Fundraising, Promotion Campaign, Member Recruitment, Direct Dialogue Campaign/Fundraising, Field/Public Engagement Fundraising, Personal Solicitation, Community Outreach/On-the-or Ground Fundraising

F2F Fundraisers might be called: Canvassers, Facers, Fundraisers, Dialoguers, Independent Sales Agents (ISA), Ambassadors, Recruiters, Changemakers, and Social Promoters. but in Vienna nobody ever mentioned the “C’ word, respect was the flavour of every day. Everyday F2F and fundraising was celebrated.

One of the most affirming takeaways from the conference was seeing how established, sophisticated and regulated the F2F fundraising channel is in Australia. While we sometimes look to Europe and North America for guidance, in our opinion Australia is leading the way – particularly in terms of self-regulation. Australia and New Zealand set the standard for F2F fundraising globally, ensuring that our programs operate with the utmost transparency and professionalism. This conference reinforced that and we left feeling even prouder of our sector.

It was also a reminder that, while the channel continues to evolve, the fundamentals – such as strong donor relationships and ethical practices – remain as important as ever. This reaffirmed our belief that F2F fundraising has the power to drive real, lasting change for the causes we care about.

Who was your favourite speaker at the conference and why?

The overall quality of speakers was exceptional, and it’s hard to pick just one favourite. The collective energy, enthusiasm and commitment from all the speakers created a space for real learning and connection. What stood out most was the authenticity of the speakers. Many had firsthand experience with the challenges and successes of F2F fundraising, and their insights were not just theoretical but grounded in reality.

It was less about one standout speaker and more about the collective impact of their messages. What they all shared was a common thread: that Face-to-Face fundraising is about building real, human connections that can drive transformative change for the causes we serve. As long as humans[CJ1]  are the epicentre of giving, it will remain the most powerful channel in which to recruit committed long term donors.

What F2F benchmarks should fundraisers in Australia and New Zealand be aiming for?

Australia and New Zealand F2F fundraisers should continue to focus on securing high-value donors who are committed to being long-term partners in the mission. Recruitment is vital, but retention is where we truly see the impact.

A high-value donor is someone who stays engaged, and the key to this is minimising early attrition. This is the time to throw the kitchen sink at making the donor feel valued and appreciated. This can be achieved by focusing on a streamlined and effective 6-month bonding period for new regular givers (see table below)  

Top tips include

• Engage donors aged in their 50s at a higher average gift.
• Minimise no shows rates (these should be kept around under 7%)
• Maintain monthly attrition rates after 6 months at or below 3%.
• Focus on the valid donor submission rate of 65%+ (ie donors successfully processed and verified through the back-end system) as this will support data integrity and minimises downstream attrition.
• Ensure at least 70-75% of donors complete the verification call within 72 hours (depending on the campaign) as this indicates strong fundraiser communication and donor commitment.

Most importantly, never lose sight of the importance of quality over quantity. The goal should always be to nurture meaningful relationships that go beyond the initial donation and create sustainable, long-term engagement with donors.

To support this, PFRA quality control standards play a critical role. These include:

• Mystery Shopping Programs to assess fundraising conduct, compliance and adherence to script.
• Complaint Tracking and Management with reporting mechanisms to Agencies and the PFRA within 4–48 hours for serious complaints.
• ID Badge Requirements, including valid expiry dates, accurate fundraiser names and clear charity identification.
• Ethical Compliant Fundraising which will include regular training refreshers and compliance declarations to ensure fundraisers understand their ethical and legal obligations.

What advice would you give any nonprofit thinking about starting a F2F program?

Our advice is simple: don’t overthink it — take the leap! But before you do, it’s important to have the right systems and structures in place to support a sustainable F2F program. It’s not just about recruitment and putting all the responsibility on the F2F agency; it’s about managing the full lifecycle of the donor relationship.

Nonprofits must have the resources and infrastructure to track and manage all aspects of the program – from recruitment data and no-show reconciliation rates to contract management and real-time reporting. Have the right CRM system and processes in place, ensure your internal teams understand the intricacies of contract negotiations and you’re equipped to handle complaints and FAQs effectively.

Finally, join the PFRA (Public Fundraising Regulatory Association) to show your commitment to ethical, regulated fundraising and to signal to the public that your organisation is adhering to best practices.

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