ASPCA commercials

[John Connor]

I am sick and tired of seeing every damn channel with this stupid commercial wanting money for animals. "Oh look at that innocent face, call in the next ten minutes to donate your 19 bucks a month and help an innocent animal."

LMAO!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4wsfeWxIOs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Waqe_Pc3iDw

:twisted:

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

What irritates me as I have to field phone calls for a local animal rescue. People call and say "so and so dog is being abused, someone has to help him!" I tell them to call the sheriff as he is the only one who can handle animal cruelty in the area.

Then they go on about how they donated money to the ASPCA and that money should go to help the dog the person is mistreating. Then I have to tell them the closest ASPCA center is almost 600 miles away and they are pissing in the wind if they think it's doing any good locally.

I'm not saying anything bad about the ASPCA at all, folks just need to realize not every city has an ASPCA, or Humane Society for that matter.

 

[MWink]

I too despise these commercials. If you really want to help an animal, adopt a homeless cat, dog, etc. If you just give money you have no clue where it's going to end up.

 

[DrPizza]

I too despise these commercials. If you really want to help an animal, adopt a homeless cat, dog, etc. If you just give money you have no clue where it's going to end up.

Sure you do! Out of your $19 dollars, $18 goes to paying for the advertising agency, etc. Someone's gotta pay for those commercials!
(not sure what the actual percentage is that goes to direct costs of taking care of the animals.)

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

Sure you do! Out of your $19 dollars, $18 goes to paying for the advertising agency, etc. Someone's gotta pay for those commercials!
(not sure what the actual percentage is that goes to direct costs of taking care of the animals.)

A quick look at their financials shows $160M in revenue and $31M in "Membership development and fundraising" which I assume equates to advertising.

So about 20%.

 

[Genx87]

I am sick and tired of seeing every damn channel with this stupid commercial wanting money for animals. "Oh look at that innocent face, call in the next ten minutes to donate your 19 bucks a month and help an innocent animal."

LMAO!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4wsfeWxIOs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Waqe_Pc3iDw

:twisted:

So what is your problem with it exactly? Don't like seeing what people do to animals that cant defend themselves? Turn the channel to shield your delicate sense of reality.

 

[lxskllr]

Sure you do! Out of your $19 dollars, $18 goes to paying for the advertising agency, etc. Someone's gotta pay for those commercials!
(not sure what the actual percentage is that goes to direct costs of taking care of the animals.)

I recently half heard a TED talk about charity financing. I wasn't paying close attention, but the gist was spending money on advertising gets better results than spending little money on advertising. IOW, by advertising, they generate more money for their cause than they would by giving a higher percentage of money directly to the cause(omitting fundraising).

That doesn't mean it's all cool, and there aren't scammy, poorly run organizations, but I don't think a cursory look at the finances tells the whole story.

 

[Newbian]

So get a dvr and don't watch them if you watch broadcast tv.

Problem solved.

 

[Dankk]

I'm an animal lover and I make monthly donations to the ASPCA. I'm normally hesitant about such things, but they're very transparent about where the money goes.

 

[Newbian]

I recently half heard a TED talk about charity financing. I wasn't paying close attention, but the gist was spending money on advertising gets better results than spending little money on advertising. IOW, by advertising, they generate more money for their cause than they would by giving a higher percentage of money directly to the cause(omitting fundraising).

That doesn't mean it's all cool, and there aren't scammy, poorly run organizations, but I don't think a cursory look at the finances tells the whole story.

Reminds me of a earlier thread talking about all the scammy pink for breast cancer charities

 

[Red Squirrel]

Serious question: Does money to the SPCA mostly go towards the animal shelter itself? Or is it like other big charities where the execs are making 100k+ and most of the money goes to them?

I like to donate towards the animal shelter every now and then and like to hope it helps them expand, or buy food, pay staff that clean etc... But I often wonder if that donation is really helping or not.

I guess this answers my question LOL:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTrhQd9GHlE

 

[Raizinman]

Yes, I also hate those commercials. When those commercials start, I often change the channel. Animals die everyday. Some are shot, slaughtered, and many starve in the wilderness. We don't need an organization for each animal. We don't need every starving or caged animal waved in our face. I suggest you change the channel and call the TV station protesting that particular commercial. No different than showing some malnutrition children in Africa wanting money for that too.

 

[Capt Caveman]

More often the better to piss off the douchebags in this thread.

 

[Broheim]

I recently half heard a TED talk about charity financing. I wasn't paying close attention, but the gist was spending money on advertising gets better results than spending little money on advertising. IOW, by advertising, they generate more money for their cause than they would by giving a higher percentage of money directly to the cause(omitting fundraising).

That doesn't mean it's all cool, and there aren't scammy, poorly run organizations, but I don't think a cursory look at the finances tells the whole story.

this.
people are dumb, fickle animals with an attention span similar to that of a goldfish, if an ad that makes them feel bad doesn't show up in between their daily scheduled programming of pansexual, overweight toddler brides and bearded dancers singing in the woods or what ever the hell people watch these days they simply wont donate. Advertising works, relying on human kindness does not.

 

[brandonb]

I don't care for the commercials but if I'm going to donate to any charity, this is the one I would.

I love animals.

 

[Ruptga]

Finally, something we can agree on. Those ads insult the intelligence of everyone subjected to them. They normally don't have any content except *(sad music) baaaww look at the dowggy it is in a cage and so sad" and then they go on like that for what feels like five minutes, and sometimes they actually DO go on for five minutes!

I'm actually somewhat interested in their cause, but I'm not going to give them anything when their entire ad campaign is a paper thin guilt trip.

 

[John Connor]

Sure you do! Out of your $19 dollars, $18 goes to paying for the advertising agency, etc. Someone's gotta pay for those commercials!
(not sure what the actual percentage is that goes to direct costs of taking care of the animals.)

http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=3286

 

[DrPizza]

http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=3286

Thanks, didn't expect someone to actually look for that link.

A quick look at their financials shows $160M in revenue and $31M in "Membership development and fundraising" which I assume equates to advertising.

So about 20%.

It appeared to be a bit higher in JC's link above. Closer to 42% in advertising and administrative costs.

this.
people are dumb, fickle animals with an attention span similar to that of a goldfish, if an ad that makes them feel bad doesn't show up in between their daily scheduled programming of pansexual, overweight toddler brides and bearded dancers singing in the woods or what ever the hell people watch these days they simply wont donate. Advertising works, relying on human kindness does not.

Hopefully you weren't referring to me - Lately, I've preferred to help out locally with volunteers where 100% of my donation goes to where it's needed. Hence my earlier cynicism toward national level fundraising campaigns. I'm amazed that at the local level, there are so many people able to volunteer their free time to run various organizations; but at the national level, there seems to be a huge deficit of like minded people - perhaps retirees who ran successful businesses and became wealthy - who would donate time to oversee organizations such as these.

 

[John Connor]

I really don't mind donating to charities. The last charity I donated to was Childs Play here on Anandtech. I did give some money to the Salvation Army before Christmas. I do love animals and have 4 cats! One is a big old main my excellent compatriot who is homeless. I named him paws since he has large paws. LOL It's just that these ASPCA commercials are like a sob story or something. And to see it all the time on the TV is just ridiculous!

See what PETA had for a score on Charitynavigator? LOL 2 stars!

 

[Linflas]

More often the better to piss off the douchebags in this thread.

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[Vapid Cabal]

The general public