market research for charities and nfps
insight for charities
OKO provide insight that enables charities & other NFPs to build brands, drive fundraising and engagement, raise awareness for their cause and design information and services for beneficiaries.
Using person-centred qualitative and quantitative methods and advanced analysis, we deliver trusted evidence, fresh ideas and clear strategies to help our clients achieve their goals.
our work
"OKO's research supports us in taking significant decisions around our strategy. They bring a lot of credibility and experience to the projects they deliver and in many ways feel like an extension of our team"
"OKO have a depth and breadth of experience unrivalled in the industry that they applied to our work throughout, we weren’t passed onto junior staff after the initial stages like other agencies we’ve worked with in the past. They demonstrate excellent sensitivity towards the complexities of our research and the participants, and they really get to the heart of the matter, providing top quality work that moves us forward.”
"I re-read OKO’s report yesterday and wanted to thank you for a great piece of work. The research was proactively and professionally managed and produced actionable insights, presented in a really digestible format. From our perspective, a fantastic first experience and outcome with OKO!"
"OKO helped us tackle a very complex, tricky topic to research with our supporters, one that none of the internal team had researched before. They delivered a high-quality, well-run project from start to finish. The team were a pleasure to work with, and I would be delighted to work with them again."
"OKO’s approach remained agile to our challenges, right from the point of tender. They really listened to our needs and those of our agency partners and came up with an approach that got us what we needed, on time. Thanks to OKO we are confident we know our audience better which is informing our work in multiple areas."
"Their qualitative research approach is based on coaching methods – that skill shone through, they were a calming and caring presence which fitted very well for this piece of work. OKO’s general enthusiasm and passion for Battersea shone through."
"OKO’s approach was very collaborative, it really felt like we were part of a team working together. They were highly responsive, did what they said they would do and continue to help us maximise the value and impact of this work in optimising our supporter strategy.”
"OKO provided real clarity and a robust process for decision-making that challenged our thinking and helped us to develop innovative new solutions."
"The audience insight work that OKO did for our charity was superb, it will change the way we fundraise and the way we interact with our audience. It has also brought our team closer together, thinking in a more audience centric way, rather than from a team/channel perspective. Not only were the outcomes excellent, they delivered fantastic sessions that engaged the whole team and made people excited for what was possible in working in this new way."
"OKO very quickly understood our brief and key objectives of the project. They have a very thorough process, kept us informed and brought us on the journey whilst being responsive to our feedback throughout. OKO kept us informed, challenged some of our thinking on the subject and provided key insight which will now feed our strategy. They are also genuinely easy and nice to work with.”
"OKO were a pleasure to work with. Their extensive knowledge of the charity sector shone through as they added value at every stage of the project. The end result delivered everything we asked for; in depth and detailed insights into our supporters and their motivations for legacy giving, as well as clear signposts for future action.”
"OKO are really knowledgeable about the charity sector. They are inclusive and collaborative, easy to work with, professional but down to earth.”
"OKO will always be top of mind when asked about anything to do with consumer insight, this is both because OKO is fab at what you do and also because you are great bunch of people.”
"We worked with OKO to research what was one of our biggest books. The research gave us a really rich understanding of the consumer context into which the book was published. OKO put a lot of thought into constructing the perfect methodology, and at PRH we especially appreciated the strategic, decision-focused research outputs that we received at the end of the project.”
"Working with OKO in designing our marketing research module makes a real positive impact on our students’ learning and prepares our students for the real world.”
" OKO’s work has helped us to better understand one of our key audiences, and how they use pharmaceutical information as part of their workflow, to make confident decisions to improve patient safety.”
"OKO quickly understood the sector and its challenges and gave us clear insight and recommendations as to how we could develop our offer in line with the changing needs of our younger members. They were able to credibly communicate this with presentations up to Board level to ensure that the key messages from the research really landed.”
"Working with OKO was like working with a strategy consultancy, brand agency and insight consultancy all wrapped up into one. In particular, our immersion and ideation day was really effective in bringing us closer to our community and tapping into the creativity of the team.”
oko services
We provide research services for charities & NFPs in three key areas across supporters, beneficiaries and other stakeholders.
Supporter loyalty strategy and measurement
Supported profiling/needs assessments
Supporter segmentation
Market opportunity/growth assessments
Beneficiary needs in relation to services
Lived experience and service experiences
Fundraising product portfolio/strategy research
Specific fundraising product development research covering: Cash Giving | Community | DYOT | Computer Gaming | Corporate Partnerships | Events | Legacies | Lottery/Raffles | Mid Value/Major Donors | Regular Giving | Sponsorship | Subscription Products | Volunteering
Beneficiaries service development research
Service portfolio and architecture
Brand proposition/platform development and testing
Product proposition development and testing
Advertising concept development and testing
Campaign concept development and testing
Information/awareness campaigns
Beneficiary service communications testing and development
market research for charities and nfps
sector research
As well as providing insight to individual clients, we conduct our own research and make this available in free, evidence-based reports to the sector.
Our latest report, “Beyond the Emotional” sets out 7 key areas of focus for charities to address significant shifts in supporter attitudes and behaviour, giving them a more tangible and engaging experience that builds loyalty through interest, interaction and flexibility.
If you work for a charity and would like to receive our reports, please get in touch.
oko research methods
Desk research
Meta analyses of existing insight and data
In-depth interviewing
Paired depths/triads/friendship/family groups
Ethnography, including longitudinal research
Focus groups
Online quantitative research using client sample and an array of general and specialised UK panels
Advanced analysis, including integrating sample from multiple sources and from multiple formats into a centralised platform; advanced analysis such as factor, cluster, regression, Latest Class segmentation, CHAID and Structural Equation modelling; data visualisation and application of scoring to clients’ databases
Client workshops, including insight activation, creative thinking, innovation and strategy
market research for charities and nfps
our team
Our team have an average of more than 25 years’ experience in insight and strategy, including working agency and client-side in the charity sector, providing industry training via the Market Research Society and guest lecturing & insight course design for Lancaster University Management School.
We are hands-on on every project, involved directly in design, fieldwork, analysis and client delivery.
market research for charities and nfps
why oko?
More than 95% of our work comes from existing clients and their recommendations and referrals to new clients.
We were the first ever agency to win AURA’s (Association of Users Research Agencies) Best Small Agency, the only award in our sector for which agencies cannot apply. OKO was nominated by Macmillan and voted winner in a ballot of more than 200 users of research agencies.
market research for charities and nfps
how we work
OKO works virtually right across the UK in order to be able to provide charities with more diverse research samples, access to hard-to-research audiences, better quality research and fantastic value for money.
working with:
other research for good
As well as our work for charities, we work on a small number of carefully selected projects ‘for good’. These include research projects for clients like Sky Arts, The Economist and Bristol University around:
- Supply chain transparency and traceability in agriculture
- Animal welfare in food production
- Recycled and recyclable plastics
- Work force empowerment
- Global standards in pharmaceuticals
- Local supply and community in retail
- Making the arts accessible
If you work outside of the charity sector, but think OKO might be the right fit for your project, please get in touch.