Building digital support systems

Jo Wolfe

@msjowolfe

Care, support and information

from day oneWhen you have breast cancer, everything changes. From the day you notice

something’s not right to the day you begin to move forward, we’ll be here to

help you through.

Online discussion forum

What it does…

“Best of all was finding this forum as you can weep

and wail on here when you don't want to show your

distress to your family, you can ask ANY question

and some wise woman who has experienced it will

pop up and answer it for you and most of all, when

you feel low or down, they will pick you up again

with some reassuring words or dark humour.”

And some stats…

Forum launch1999. Since then it has become our biggest

service for people affected and their families.

Post frequencySomeone posts in the forum every eight

minutes.

Busy timesUsed 24 hours a day. Busiest in evenings

(8pm-10pm).

600k

Visitors

45k

Reg.

Users

9k

Active

Users

1999?

So why are ‘digital services’ a

new trend for charities?

1. Digital device usage is established

2. NHS agenda for self-care

3. Digital transformation – push for

charities help people through tech

4. Competitors from corporate world

moving into this space

1. Digital use

• In 2014, UK smartphone use reached 70%

• 75% of UK population goes online for

health info

• Over 100,000 health apps

• By 2017 it’s estimated that the market will

be worth $26 billion

• There are an estimated 13.1 million users

of wearables in the UK

2. NHS agenda of self-care

• 2014 report – Personalised Health and

Social Care 2020

• National Information Board

recommendations

• NHS Alpha – new vision for NHS.UK

3. Tech for good

• Increased reach

• Ability to scale more quickly (than face-to-

face services)

• Cost efficiencies?

• Support new generation of clients

• Convenient – devices and tools people are

already using – e.g. wearables

4. Competition• Many health apps from private companies

– they’ll do it if we don’t

So what should you consider?

1. Be user-focussed and start with clients’

needs – co-creation

2. Funding can be tricky, are new funding

models needed?

3. Change management within organisations

4. The role of the Digital Team

1. User focus

User-centred service

2. Funding

• Expensive set-up and ongoing costs

• Options:

• Trusts

• Philanthropists

• Corporate sponsors

• Advertising

• Option to donate in-app…

… or through NHS Commissioners

3. Change management

Task Squad Case Study

4. Role of your Digital Team

What’s our big idea?

@msjowolfe

Visit the CharityComms website

to view slides from past events,

see what events we have

coming up and to check out

what else we do:

www.charitycomms.org.uk

Seminar

28 January 2016

London

#charitydigital

Digital communications

trends for 2016 and

beyond

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