A perfect disclaimer for stock photos
File under: Using stock photos to hide identities
A perfect disclaimer
Being clear about the need for privacy
[time/place: March 27 half-day mega-webinar on the topic of money-making donor newsletters; guest expert Lisa Sargent; moderator, Julie Cooper; presenter, Tom Ahern; the following emerges during the 2.5 hour "all you can eat" Q&A]
[moderator Julie Cooper] Allison has this question. "We are a domestic violence org., so we have to keep so much of our clients' info and stories confidential. We struggle with using clients' stories authentically. Any tips on how to be authentic while keeping donor stories vague?"
[guest expert Lisa Sargent] Yes, tons of thoughts on that. For a long, long time, I was the fundraising writer at Merchants Quay Ireland and Denisa Casement was head of fundraising.
Our clients were trying to rebuild their lives. These are people who were living on the streets, people who struggled with addiction mightily.
And so they would come into Merchants Quay and they would get a hot meal, a cup of tea, and that kind of thing.
What we did was we would use stock photos almost all the time [in our newsletters]. We would also change the names. And sometimes we would change story details so that they didn't reveal too much about the individuals, any details that might give away the person's identity....
Here's the disclaimer Lisa Sargent used with Merchants Quay's stock photography, in newsletters and appeals:
At [Name of org] we respect everyone who comes to us for help – and many are working toward a fresh start in life. So while their stories are true, client names and images may have been changed to protect their privacy. Thank you for understanding.
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