Permission Marketing in Bulgaria

MAIN REPORT

1.0. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Research Aim

o To evaluate, trough the people awareness, the effectiveness of the UNICEF Bulgaria marketing policy.

o To investigate, do the techniques of Permission marketing are known and used in the work of UNICEF Bulgaria.

o If this techniques still are not used, to research whether or not customers and organization will prefer start using it.

1.2. Management Question

Is it effective, the used marketing policy of UNICEF Bulgaria, in order to fulfill its mission?

1.3. Research Objectives

To investigate and describe the work of UNICEF -Bulgaria

o To investigate and describe the products and services of UNICEF-Bulgaria

o To identify the target groups for volunteers and donators.

o To create a set of criteria for the effectiveness of the application of traditional marketing components such as the Marketing Mix: product, pricing, place, promotion, people, process management and physical evidence in the UNICEF marketing approach

o To collect relevant data for volunteers and donators that relates to measuring the effectiveness of the used marketing approach.

o To give more light about the " Four W's" of the Volunteering i.e. "What (definition), Where (context), Who (Characteristics of volunteers) and Why (motivation) in Bulgaria.

o To evaluate UNICEF activities in Bulgaria, trough people awareness, and to investigate whether Permission Marketing is used in their work.

o To evaluate the data for effectiveness.

o To appreciate the results.

2.0 BACKGROUND

2.1. The Organization

"UNICEF is the world's leading organization focusing on children and child rights, with a presence in more than 190 countries and territories. We work with local communities, partners and governments to ensure every child's rights to survive and thrive are upheld. UNICEF UK raises funds for UNICEF's emergency and development work around the world. "(UNICEF, 2010).

The work of UNICEF has 64 years of history, the beginning was placed with humanitarian aid for injured children from the horrors of Second World War. Since 1953 UNICEF is permanent agency of the United Nations, but receives no funding from the UN budge, the funding rely entirely on voluntary donations.

The humanitarian aid continues up to day, providing food, medicines and supplies for children affected by the war or natural disasters, provision of drinking water or combating against communicable lethal diseases, providing vaccine for the children, or engaging local communities in different educational programs.

In the years the activities of UNICEF has acquired a holistic character: the organization has involved into projects as: Health care for all, UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), Campaigning for children affected by HIV and AIDS, Environmental policy and many others. In 1965 UNICEF has received the Nobel Peace Prize for "the promotion of brotherhood among the nations."(UNICEF History, 2010)

The presence of UNICEF in Bulgaria was registered as a charity organization and established in 2005.

"The overall goal of the UNICEF country programme is to support the Government's vision for Bulgarian children to grow up healthy, educated, informed, socially active and responsible in a safe, secure, enabling and supportive family and social environment so they feel confident in their development as young people. Pursuing this goal will contribute to ensuring children's rights and to the sustainable implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the child." (UNICEF Bulgaria, 2011)

The organization work in Bulgaria is separated on two levels. At national level UNICEF Bulgaria assists to the existing national institutions to introduce and establish an integrated national policy framework about the children rights. At sub-national level, UNICEF supports the district and municipal authorities to develop and adopt different programs for the child protection. (UNICEF Bulgaria, 2011).

"The components of the programme of UNICEF (2010 - 2012) are "Social integrity and Reduce of Child Poverty" and "Social Mobilization and Communication for Development".(UNICEF Bulgaria, 2011).

2.2. The problem and the questions that had raise.

In 2009, two scholars form the Australian Marketing Research Innovating Center (MRIC) in School of Management and Marketing of the University of Wollongong, made an survey study with sample group of 136 non-profit organizations from USA, UK and Australia, where the findings ware that, small percentage of the nonprofit organizations use marketing tools, such marketing research and strategic marketing to achieve their goals furthermore as the authors state, citing Anderson and Kotler's (2003, cited in Dolnicar, Lazarevski, 2009, p.2) assertion, most of the non-profit organizations are "organization-centered" and not " market-orientated". (Dolnicar, Lazarevski, 2009, p.2)

The questions that had rise are:

- Are the loyal customers the best solution for NPO's and which is the best approach to achieve that?

- Is it possible to create a strong bond between customer and nonprofit organization using permission marketing and will this relationship effects positively the work of the organization ?

2.3. Is the permission marketing the solution of the problem ?

"The environment within which such organizations exist is increasingly subject to market forces, and altruism is no longer enough". ( Brassington and Pettitt 2007, p. 27 )

Speaking about the nonprofit organizations, the authors punctuate on that, NPO have to embrace the marketing techniques used by the profit orientated organizations, in order to fulfill their mission; they state that the non-profit organization must start using marketing approach in their work, starting with identifying, anticipating, and satisfying customer requirements, action with vital importance