We have witnessed the generosity of the Belgians every year for over 15 years

The current health crisis brings out the worst and the best in everyone. Just think of all those people who work incredibly hard for us and our loved ones. And of our solidarity with people in difficulties. This generosity will certainly remain in the collective memory. It has motivated the team of Martine Constant Consulting Group for many years to use its skills in the humanitarian sector. By supporting associations in their fundraising and search for partners, we too have the feeling that we are taking care of our world.

 

ARE THE BELGIANS GENEROUS? A WORD FROM ONE OF OUR CLIENTS

L’Ilot has been tackling social inequalities for over 60 years. This non-profit organization, which we are proud to count among our clients, is particularly committed to meeting the needs of homeless people and those in very precarious situations. In these times of COVID-19, l’Ilot distributes more than 50 breakfasts and 80 hot meals every day in its day centre, which is twice as many as in normal times… Ariane Dierickx, the General Manager, answers some questions.

Would you say that Belgians are generous?

Yes, I would. From the very beginning of this crisis, the Belgians have shown a lot of solidarity, but also an incredible creativity to face the lack of masks, to reinvent the way of having social contacts, to find support from neighbours… It’s fantastic! At l’Ilot, we saw this spontaneous outpouring of generosity from the very first days of the lockdown: more volunteers, cloth mouth masks for our team, food from restaurants that were forced to close… We even got some unexpected gifts like this superb song “Dans nos maisons”, written especially by Saule for the benefit of L’Ilot. It subtly speaks of how lucky we are to have a “home”, especially during such a period!

What thoughts does this crisis raise for you?

On the one hand, of course, we are delighted by this generosity. It reflects the capacity for empathy of people who are privileged compared to others who are much less so. On the other hand, this extraordinary generosity should make us wonder about the state of our society. It is no longer investing enough to provide shelter and food for the entire population, and it is making cutbacks so that hospitals are forced to rely on donations to buy essential equipment. In a way, we have chosen such a society ourselves. So it also means that we can change it. At l’Ilot, we continue to appeal to the generosity of the population to support our actions and our target audience. Besides, now more than ever, we want to remind the governments of their responsibilities: we want the assurance that every person, regardless of their background, can live in dignity.

How can the business world contribute to this dignity for all?

Homelessness is a complex phenomenon that concerns the whole of society: no one can bear the idea that women, men and increasingly children have to live for years without a roof over their heads. At l’Ilot, we are convinced that we all have a role to play in putting an end to homelessness. Of course, in the first instance, we think of the public authorities, but their help will not be enough. The charities will also have to rely on the goodwill of citizens – there are already thousands of them supporting us – and on businesses that want to do their bit for a more cohesive society.

What do you remember about working with Martine Constant Consulting Group?

We particularly appreciate the empathy, respect and listening of Martine Constant’s team towards our donors. For us, it is of the utmost importance that everyone has a positive impression of l’Ilot, which is far from obvious with telemarketing fundraising. So we are very satisfied with their working method of handling each call with the necessary attention. We are also grateful to Martine Constant and her team for supporting us since the beginning of the crisis. Their support has been invaluable in two ways: in raising funds and in recruiting loyal donors.

Working with charities is a pride and an honour!

When we started working for the humanitarian sector over 15 years ago, some wondered whether it was a good idea for professional marketers to “meddle in the affairs of NGOs”. However, experience has shown that the humanitarian and social sectors have everything to gain by professionalising their fundraising and partner/sponsor search! Today, Martine Constant Consulting Group has carried out dozens of B2C and B2B missions for numerous associations: Médecins du Monde, L’Ilot, Fondation contre le cancer, Entraide&Fraternité, Les Petits Riens, Unicef, La Croix Rouge, Greenpeace…

Our commitments to our clients from the humanitarian sector include:

  1. We approach each project with passion and authenticity as if we were part of the association whose values we are promoting. That is why all our employees have excellent social skills.
  2. We look after the interests of our clients and do not implement actions that we do not consider appropriate.
  3. The databases provided by our clients remain their exclusive property.
  4. We provide our clients with multidisciplinary know-how and marketing strategies that are realistic, optimal, measurable and innovative.