The Ice Bucket Challenge is still popular - both for ALS/MND and for Macmillan.
It has been incredibly popular in the US and have moved to the UK where Macmillan has tried to hi-jack it.
They've tried to explain that it's completely fine for them to try to shift the focus from ALS/MND to cancer because no-one owns a hashtag and that it started out with people nominating a charity anyway.
But it really isn't about who started it.
I think there are a lot of people who believe that charities aren't like normal corporations. That charities have a moral obligation, that they aren't void of decency, ethics and good behaviour, even when they are conducting business.
We hear about so many issues with normal businesses - banks investing in arms dealers and shops selling products made by children. You would not expect this from banks, but most certainly not from charities.
Sadly many charities have forgotten their roots and instead act like corporations. They compete for charity spend, covet other corporations for donations; call it lobbying if you like.
Macmillan have not just tried to hi-jack a hashtag and a viral phenomenon by butting in with a few clever tweets. They have paid for adverts to be placed on Google and Facebook - and not only have they paid for the keywords Ice Bucket Challenge (and probably others), no no, they've made sure that when people search for 'ALS Ice Bucket Challenge', then they'll show up.
So Macmillan have actively targeting MND/ALS related traffic in an effort to make money. This would seem to be unethical, and is perhaps symptomatic of a wider issue the charity has with its marketing team/agency who clearly lack the moral compass required to work in the industry. Or, is this now acceptable? I hope not, but then I'm not a marketing person.
They are effectively trying to get people who want to know more about the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge to go to the Macmillan website and donate to them rather than assist the ALS/MND sufferers. They have caused confusion for people - some people think they are doing the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, but have given to Macmillan instead. You tell me if this is just and fair?
They are basically poaching from a much smaller and less known charity - just so they themselves can make more money. If I'm not mistaken, Macmillan made more from their last Coffee Morning than MNDA did the whole of last year.
The head of digital at Macmillan, Amanda Neylon, wrote a blog post (here: http://www.thinkgrowcreate.co.uk/why-we-got-all-hot-and-bothered-over-the-icebucketchallenge/) about this whole thing - explaining that no-one owns a hashtag, how it wasn't the ALS charity that started this and how Macmillan are just doing so well. And a lot of 'us', 'we' and 'our'. But Amanda, it was never supposed to be about You, Cancer and Macmillan. And the fact that you have made a massive effort and paid to turn a great campaign for ALS/MND into something that's all about you says a lot more about you than you'd ever think.
I am not the first and probably not the last to withdrawn my support for Macmillan
