Guide Dogs Most Trusted Charity

For the second year running, Guide Dogs has been voted Australia’s Most Trusted Charity in the annual Australian Reader’s Digest Magazine’s Most Trusted Brand poll.

This charity is followed closely by RSPCA and Red Cross as Highly Commended and Cancer Council,  Heart Foundation, St Vincent de Paul, The Smith Family and the Salvation Army rounding out the top seven.

Based on a survey of 2,400 respondents nationally, Guide Dogs was recognised for its services, including providing guide dogs to Australians who are blind or vision impaired for over 60 years.

“We’re humbled by and grateful for this level of public recognition in our vital work, which enables Australians who are blind or vision impaired to be more independent,” CEO of Guide Dogs NSW/ACT, Dr Graeme White, said.

Dr White said the award was a reflection of the support from the charity’s donors and volunteers.

“We wouldn’t be in a position to receive this award without the assistance and continued trust of our loyal supporters,” Dr White said.

“Over the next 10 years it’s predicted that more than 2,000 guide dogs will need to be trained to keep up with growing demand from Australians who are blind or vision impaired, at a staggering cost of over $60 million – it’s the public’s generosity that will make this possible.”

The August 2014 issue of Australian READER’s DIGEST outlines why Australians place their trust in one brand or organisation over another, including transparency, commitment to quality, reliability, effectiveness, well established and consistency.

"Australians are a generous, open-hearted people and to be chosen as the country's most trusted charity is a wonderful achievement, and a fitting tribute, for the Guide Dogs organisation," Australian Reader’s Digest Editor-in-Chief Sue Carney said.

“It  also carries the responsibility of maintaining a high set of expectations. As well as the all-important emotional bond, trusted brands promote desirable values, market leadership, accessibility and high quality. They become benchmarks in the market and their every move becomes monitored and pursued by competitors.

“Trust is a badge of honour that needs to be carefully nurtured and protected.”

Trusting brands makes perfect sense to 81 per cent of Australians, because doing so makes their life easier, Carney said.

“This is not a reader’s poll, but an independent commissioned survey which has been running for 13 years now which surveyed more than 2,400 Australians to identify the products that dominate our lifestyles and hold our all-important trust,” she said.

Dr White will accept the Most Trusted Charity award on behalf of Guide Dogs at a ceremony in Sydney this Thursday, July 24.