719 ADVERTISING STRATEGIES FOR CHARITIES Limitations and suggestions for future research The extant literature suggests that diverse demographic variables should be considered when seeking the best way to promote donations. For example, gender is known as an important determinant of reactions to charity appeals (Brunel & Nelson 2000; Nelson et al. 2006). Studies also revealed that older people are more civic-minded (Putnam 2000) and other-oriented (Briggs et al. 2010), and therefore donate more than do younger people (Pharoah & Tanner 1997). Age seems to be particularly influential when donors choose resources to donate. For example, students and the retired have more free time and might prefer volunteering. The issue needs thorough investigation. Moreover, certain types of personal characteristic apparently influence the type of resources that donors are willing to donate. Some types of people prefer donating money, whereas others prefer volunteering. For example, donors with a highly self- important moral identity prefer donating more time than money (Reed et al. 2007). Donors personal characteristics also influence their reactions to different kinds of advertising. A good example of this characteristic is in Nelson et al. (2006), who argued that men prefer egoistic advertising appeals whereas women prefer altruistic appeals in masculine societies. However, men prefer altruistic appeals and women prefer egoistic appeals in feminine societies. Moreover, donors and non-donors react differently to different advertising appeals. For instance, Bennett and Kottasz (2000) found that non-donors prefer egoistic advertising appeals to altruistic appeals. All of these studies suggest that individual characteristics and situational variables should be included to understand fully how donors react to different advertising stimuli and to design the best way to invite donations. The manner in which charity advertising influences donors should also be investigated. This study claimed that donors different reactions are caused by their different mindsets, attitudes, or feelings resulting from different ad appeals, beneficiaries states and modes of conveying the message. Egoistic ad appeals claiming that donors should donate to help themselves, and showing needy beneficiaries, inspire an egoistic helping mindset, which results in egoistic helping behaviours. People with egoistic mindsets will attempt to reduce or eliminate their guilt or negative feelings, and will be more likely to donate money instead of time because monetary donations require less effort. However, altruistic ad appeals addressing the altruistic mindset and showing the helped beneficiaries inspire an altruistic helping mindset, which results in altruistic helping behaviours. Donors exposed to these stimuli tend to act altruistically and are more likely to donate time than money because giving time is more moral than giving money (Reed et al. 2007). The process proposed in the study should be proved empirically to offer further implications for both practitioners and researchers. Downloaded by [McGill University Library at 01:34 07 February 2015
