Strategic social media usage sees Movember named most talked-about charity

A recent survey that analysed the most talked-about brands in the voluntary sector saw Movember crowned number one, and many experts are pointing to its excellent use of social media and popularity among young adults as a main reason behind its triumph.

The second charity to create the most buzz for the public was Macmillan Cancer Support – which also won the ‘best brand of 2013’– followed by Help for Heroes and Combat Stress.

The Third Sector Charity Brand Index, conducted by Third Sector and Harris Interactive, saw 3,069 people questioned on their awareness of charities. The results revealed that clever marketing by the team behind Movember helped raise awareness for its cause and get more people involved in a competitive ‘stache-off.

The news also confirms recent results from Thinkhouse’s recent Youth 100 announcements, which saw Movember feature among the top 100 most popular brands for Brits aged 16-24.

According to the report, Movember’s ‘tactical use of social media as a marketing strategy’ helped ensure they succeeded at ‘raising awareness and funds for prostate cancer research’, despite only running for one month a year.

The news should be positive for other charities also looking to get involved in digital and social media marketing to promote their brand and gather new fundraisers, and highlights the power of social media in helping enhance enthusiasm behind charitable campaigns.

Highlighting its desire to stay ahead of the pack, Movember has also made the exciting announcement that fundraisers will be able to take their online Mo Space experience to their Android or iOS device via a new mobile app.

Martin Bradley, senior research executive at Harris Interactive, said: “Creating buzz around your charity and getting people to talk about it is a hard thing to do. The most talked-about charity in 2013 is Movember, followed by Macmillan Cancer Support. It is no coincidence that these are two of the major success stories from this year’s Charity Brand Index.”