Charities and Telemarketing The Make a Wish Foundation is a globally known volunteer organization that seeks to help children with life-threatening medical conditions. The organization was founded in 1980 and has reached more than 193,000 children around the globe. Children with life-threatening medical conditions are selected to have a personal wish come true by a staff of volunteers. They are encouraged and inspired to dream despite their medical condition. This organization creates an unforgettable experience for a child in need. The organization receives all funding from fundraisers and donations. Other than fundraising and donations, would telemarketing affect the organization’s spirit of volunteerism? Making donations to the Make A Wish Foundation can help make children that are diagnosed with terminal illnesses dreams come true. It is the community’s donations that help make children’s dreams come true. Not only does the foundation benefit the children, but it also benefits the children’s family and its volunteers. Members of the child’s family, and the family as a whole benefits mentally and emotionally from the experience with the foundation. The wish experience provides both stress relief and support to the family, and strengthens the family during difficult times. The foundation contributes stability to the families, allowing the parents to deal more effectively with health issues and challenges. It improves their ability to cope with their children’s illness and its effects on their lives. Volunteers are also impacted by the wishes in ways that are connected to the foundation’s mission. They benefit emotionally and socially from their involvement with the foundation. Granting wishes fosters an emotional connection with the children and their families. Even President Barack Obama has aided in granting wishes by meeting with some participants of the foundation (See figure 1, Appendix B). When people think of telemarketing they often hang up immediately after answering the phone, or they do not listen to whatever the person on the line has to say. If a volunteer organization decides to use telemarketing as a way of asking for donations, it may change the audience’s view of the organization. Also, the organization could suffer greatly from the decreased amount of people who are willing to donate. Telemarketing can be defined as “a new marketing discipline that utilizes telecommunications technology as part of a well-planned, organized, and man- aged marketing program that prominently features the use of personal selling, using on-face-to-face contacts” (Johnson p. 21-22). The majority of people see telemarketers as con artists. Some con artists may try to confuse people by using names that sound like well-known charitable organizations or even law enforcement agencies. Although most phone calls are made on behalf of legitimate organizations offering opportunities, many of them are frauds. Many people lose billions of dollars a year to telemarketing frauds. Telemarketing is a powerful marketing tool that is often misunderstood. There are two forms of telemarketing: inbound and outbound. Inbound telemarketing is used by charities to make themselves available to their customers and their members. They can also use inbound telemarketing to hire new clients. “The key to successful inbound telemarketing is the use of mass media advertising, direct mail, and other promotional techniques to stimulate calls from supporters, clients, and members. A toll-free 800 number, featured in advertisements and other promotional materials, encourages people to call for added information, to request services, or to contribute to the organization” (Johnson, p. 20-21). Outbound telemarketing is the form that most people have experienced. A telemarketing firm only makes phone calls to those who have not responded to the organization’s “person-to-person approach or the direct-mail campaign.” After the organization has tried the other