3. As people of color become majorities in
communities across America, successful
nonprofit organizations will need to have a
diverse donor base to sustain and grow their
operations.
-Dr. Emmett Carson
4. 4
Next Generation of American Giving,
May 2013
Online survey of 1,014 US Donors
Adults 18+ who report donating
to a charitable cause in the last 12
months (beyond school, place of
worship, union)
Looking at the giving habits of
Gen Y, Gen X, Boomers and
Matures
Data is self-reported, not
transactional
Diversity in Giving, October 2014
Online Survey of 1,096 U.S.
Donors
Utilized the web-enabled
KnowledgePanel®, the nation’s
only probability-based panel,
recruited to be representative of
the U.S. population
Oversamples of African-American,
Asian, and Hispanic respondents.
Used Census definitions
Survey offered in English and
Spanish
Two Studies
5. Generosity Across the Ages
% Giving
Totalannualgiving
$0
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
60% Give
32.8M donors
$481 yr/avg
3.3 charities
$15.8 B/yr
88% Give
27.1M donors
$1367 yr/avg
6.2 charities
$37.0 B/yr
72% Give
51.0M donors
$1212 yr/avg
4.5 charities
$61.9 B/yr
59% Give
39.5M donors
$732 yr/avg
3.9 charities
$28.9 B/yr
Matures
Boomers
Gen Y
Gen X
4
7. 7
Checkout Donation 51%
Purchase for Proceeds 42%
Online Donation 40%
Pledge 39%
Street Canvassing 29%
Retail giving 27%
Responded to mailing 22%
Checkout Donation 52%
Online Donation 47%
Purchase for Proceeds 39%
Retail giving 29%
Street Canvassing 25%
Pledge 22%
Responded to mailing 10%
Checkout Donation 53%
Online Donation 42%
Honor/Tribute Gift 42%
Purchase for Proceeds 41%
Responded to mailing 40%
Pledge 39%
Street canvassing 26%
Responded to mailing 52%
Checkout Donation 44%
Honor/Tribute Gift 42%
Pledge 38%
Purchase for Proceeds 36%
Online Donation 27%
Gen Y
*Arrows indicate statistical significance between 2010 and 2013.
Gen X
Boomers
Matures
Which of the following charitable giving methods have you used in the past two years?
Multi-channel As the New Normal
8. 8
66%
53%
10%
64%
58%
22%
61%
61%
40%
56%
64%
52%
Mail from a charity
is very or
somewhat
acceptable
Mail is important
way for charity to
stay in touch
Gave a donation
in response to a
mail appeal in the
last 2 years
Gen Y Gen X Boomers Matures
What’s the Deal with Direct Mail?
9. Does Money Matter Most?
9
How do you feel you can make the biggest difference?
Donate money
25%
Donate money
36%
Donate money
45%
Donate money
48%
Other=fundraising,
advocacy, donating goods
Word-of-
mouth 18%
Volunteer
30%
WOM
11%
Volunteer
31%
WOM
13%
Volunteer
20%
Other
14%
Volunteer
24%
Other 23%
Other 19%
Other 16%
WOM
8%
M
B
X
Y
10. 10
Comfort-level Sharing Info about Charities Support
Spreading the Word
Gen Y
65% very comfortable telling
others
Gen X
56% very comfortable telling
others
Boomers
45% very comfortable
Matures
47% very comfortable
11. How Social Are Donors?
11
43% Y and X
Think OK to post on social networking site and ask for
donation
20% Boomers
6% Matures
Social Media Activities Doing with
Charities Today
55%
50%
30%
8%
47%
38%
22%
10%
27%
19%
5%
5%
12%
9%
2%
1%
Follow on social media
Share about charity on
FB
Follow charity’s Twitter
feed
Made a donation
through FB, Twitter, etc
Gen Y Gen X Boomers Matures
12. 12
71%
78% 78%
70%
Gen Y Gen X Boomers Matures
Supported Someone Else Raising
Money on Behalf of a Charity
Fundraised on Behalf of an
Organization or Participated in
a Run or Event to Raise Money
Gen Y MaturesBoomersGen X
Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
13. 13
53%
49%
36%
20%
Retail giving, last 12 months
Gen Y Gen X Boomers Matures
Retail Giving
72%
are first-time donors
33% plan to donate directly
in future
Retail Philanthropy
14. 14
59%
53%
46%
22%
Have given in the workplace
Workplace Giving
Gen Y Gen X Boomers Matures
(filtered among those employed or student)
Workplace Giving
15. 15
% Agree Gen Y Gen X Boomers Matures
I am concerned about what portion of the dollars I give to
a non-profit/charity goes to overhead versus the cause. 69% 79% 82% 90%
I have an idea of which non-profits/charities I will
give to each year. 73% 72% 82% 91%
I have an idea of how much I will budget for non-
profits/charities each year. 44% 53% 62% 64%
I am more likely to support a non-profit/charity when my
friends and family ask me to, than if the request
comes directly from the organization itself.
52% 49% 39% 42%
Most of the charitable giving I do is spontaneous, and
based on who asks me and/or what pulls at my
heartstrings.
41% 40% 32% 30%
I like supporting non-profits/charities by
participating in social events (i.e. parties, dinners,
walks, runs, etc.).
49% 37% 26% 19%
I like when non-profits/charities offer their supporters
promotional giveaways (i.e. T-shirts, coffee mugs,
etc.).
40% 31% 25% 17%
I feel it is my responsibility to support non-
profits/charities by signing petitions or engaging in
other forms of advocacy on their behalf.
34% 31% 23% 22%
Differences in Mindset
18. Donors Share Core Values
Religion and faith are both drivers and indicators of giving.
The impulse to help those in need is universal.
Wealthier individuals donate more in absolute terms
than those with mid-level or lower incomes.
20. African American Donors: At A Glance
20
Religion and faith are a
more important part of
philanthropy than among
any other group
More than any other
group, interested in
supporting their unique
heritage and community
Giving is more personal
and spontaneous
Not as likely to give
through direct response
channels, but also not
being asked
17
21. African American Donors: Demographics
Gender Generation Income Religion
Significantly more likely
to be lower or middle
income
More likely to be engaged with
religion; significantly more
likely to self-describe as
evangelical Christian
Female: 54%
Male 46%
Matures: 13%
Boomers: 45%
Generation X: 22%
Millennials: 20%
48%report household
incomes below
$50,000/year
64%
49%
48%
Religion very
important
Attend services
at least once a
week
Born-again/
evangelical
22. 22
50%
40%
37%
37%
23%
21%
12%
Place of worship
Local social service
Children’s charities
Health charities
Military/veterans
Youth development
Anti-hate/equality
Top Charities Supported 75% say is important to
support their place of
worship, far surpassing
any other group
On average, say give
13% of income
to place of worship,
more than any other
group
(among those who give to place of
worship)
↑
↑ Significantly higher than donors
overall
↑
18
African American Donors: Giving Priorities
23. 23
66%
57%
46%
45%
58%
43%
28%
32%
Tend to give in small ways
(toy/food drives, checkout
donations, etc.)
Responsibility to support
orgs positively impacting AA
community
Like when orgs offer
promotional giveaways
Like supporting by
participating in social events
Giving Habits/Attitudes:
More Likely To Agree
African -
American
Donors
All Donors
↑
↑ Significantly higher than donors overall
↑
↑
↑
23
African American Donors: Giving Habits/Attitudes
24. African American Donors: Giving Habits/Attitudes
65%
60%
47%
79%
80%
56%
Have an idea of which
orgs to give to
Concerned about
overhead vs the cause
Have idea of how
much I will budget for
donating
Giving Habits/Attitudes:
Less Likely to Agree
African American Donors All Donors
↓
↓ Significantly lower than donors overall
↓
↓
25. 25
49%
28%
19%
11%
18%
43%
18%
31%
19%
24%
Have made donations at
checkout
Have given to canvassers
on street/at home
Have given online via org's
website
Have become monthly
donors to a cause
Have made a tribute/
memorial donation
Donation Channels:
More and Less Likely to Use
African -
American
Donors
All Donors
↑ Significantly higher than donors
overall
↓ Significantly lower than donors overall
↑
↑
↓
↓
↓
20%
One out of five
African
Americans says
he or she would
support more
organizations if
asked more
often
20
African American Donors: Outreach
27. 27
Giving priorities are
different—more likely to
support emergency relief
efforts and education; religion
not as important as driver of
philanthropy
More likely to plan and
research their philanthropy
Generous U.S. donors, even
though this group is more
likely to have been born
outside the U.S.
Younger, well educated
(82% college degree+),
more likely liberal and
female
Most technologically
connected and willing
to use alternate giving
channels
21
Asian Donors: At A Glance
28. Asian Donors: Demographics
Gender Generation Income & Education Religion
Less likely to feel it is
their responsibility to
support nonprofits
because of their faith
Female: 60%
Male 40%
Matures: 13%
Boomers: 33%
Generation X: 29%
Millennials: 25%
42%40%
42%
College
degree
Post-graduate
degree
Highly Educated
29. Asian Donors: Giving Priorities
Place of worship not top giving
category
↑
↑ Significantly higher than donors overall
↑
36%
35%
35%
34%
29%
24%
18%
Health charities
Children’s charities
Local social service
Place of worship
Emergency relief
Formal education
Youth development
Top Charities Supported
↑
30. 30
40%
36%
29%
27%
28%
24%
Always visit a nonprofit's
website before becoming
a supporter
Like when orgs offer
promotional giveaways
Prefer to give to orgs that
change policies/laws
Giving Habits/Attitudes:
More Likely To Agree
Asian
Donors
All Donors
↑ Significantly higher than donors
overall
↑
↑
↑
49%
Asians are more
likely to support a
cause if the
request comes
from a friend or
family.
And this group is
nearly twice as
likely to give via
crowdfunding.
30
Asian Donors: Giving Habits/Attitudes
31. 31
39%
19%
19%
38%
31%
10%
24%
43%
Have given online via
org's website
Have donated through a
crowdfunding site
Have made a tribute/
memorial donation
Added a donation at
checkout
Donation Channels:
More and Less Likely to Use
Asian Donors
All Donors
↑ Significantly higher than donors
overall
↓ Significantly lower than donors overall
↑
↑
↓
↓
23
Asian Donors: Outreach
33. 33
Give larger percentage of
income to church than
donors overall
Not asked for donations as
frequently as others, and
not as likely to give
through traditional direct
response channels; most
interested in hearing more
from nonprofits
Youngest of all groups
and most likely to have
children in their
households
Much more likely to say
they give spontaneously,
when something pulls at
their heartstrings
Strong commitment to
children's causes
33
Hispanic Donors: At A Glance
34. Hispanic Donors: Demographics
Gender Generation Income Religion
Cite their place of
worship first among
nonprofit categories
they support
Female: 43%
Male 57%
Matures: 7%
Boomers: 30%
Generation X: 33%
Millennials: 30%
45%
More likely to be lower
or middle income
45%report household
incomes below
$50,000/year
35. Hispanic Donors: Giving Priorities
45%
40%
31%
30%
Place of worship
Children’s charities
Health organizations
Local social service
Top Charities Supported
Health and local social service
organizations are popular, but
Hispanic donors are still less likely
to give to either than donors as a
whole
↑ Significantly higher than donors overall
36. 36
52%
18%
21%
36%
9%
10%
Most giving is
spontaneous/pulls at
hearstrings
Would support more
nonprofits if asked more
often
Would like to support
more nonprofits but don't
know how
Giving Habits/Attitudes:
More Likely To Agree
Hispanic
Donors
All Donors
↑ Significantly higher than donors overall
↑
↑
↑ 55%
More than
half of
Hispanics
say they
prefer
appeals in
English
36
Hispanic Donors: Giving Habits/Attitudes
37. Hispanic Donors: Giving Habits/Attitudes
63%
57%
39%
80%
79%
56%
Concerned about
overhead vs. cause
Have an idea of which
nonprofits will give to each
year
Have an idea of how much
will budget for nonprofits
each year
Giving Habits/Attitudes:
Less Likely to Identify With
Hispanic Donors
All Donors
↓
↓ Significantly lower than donors overall
↓
↓
38. 38
22%
23%
13%
23%
27%
18%
18%
24%
31%
32%
Have given to canvassers on street/at
home
Donated through a 3rd party vendor
Have donated in honor/memory of
someone
Have donated through an
organization's website
Have given in response to postal mail
appeal
Donation Channels:
More and Less Likely to Use
Hispanic Donors
All Donors
↑ Significantly higher than donors
overall
↓ Significantly lower than donors overall
↑
↑
↓
↓
↓
26
Hispanic Donors: Outreach
39. 39
1. Get serious.
2. Embrace the change from the inside out.
3. Stop obsessing about Millennials.
4. Don’t forget to listen.
5. The fundamentals are the fundamentals.
6. Think about the baton pass.
7. Moving from a linear/transactional relationship to
“giving in the flow of everyday life.”
Embracing the Changing Landscape
40. Dennis McCarthy, Ashley Thompson and Erin Duff
at Blackbaud
Pam Loeb, Mariel Molina, Erin Wagner and Lisa
Dropkin at Edge Research
Mark Rovner at SeaChange Strategies
And for inspiring us all: Dr Emmett Carson of the
Silicon Valley Foundation
28
Thank you to those who helped with this project
41. Thank you!
Read the whitepaper here:
www.blackbaud.com/GivingDiversity
For additional information, please contact:
Dennis McCarthy | Dennis.McCarthy@blackbaud.com
Pam Loeb | loeb@edgeresearch.com
29
Notes de l'éditeur
Data points in a flow of research since 2008. Built on that, updates, solidifies some findings, and introduces some new insights
Recognize our partners and give a little history
Gen Y ages 18-32 (b. 1981-1995)
Gen X ages 33-48 (b. 1965-1980)
Boomers ages 49-67 (b. 1946-1964)
Matures age 68+ (b. 1945 or earlier)
NB: THIS IS ATTITUDINAL DATA AND NEDS TO BE READ IN CONJUNCTION WITH TRANSACTIONAL
PAM
***
Q07: In the last 12 months, in which of the following ways have you supported non-profit organizations and/or charitable causes? [must answer ‘Donated money’ to qualify for survey]
Q9. Approximately how many non-profit organizations and charitable causes have you donated money to in the past 12 months? Please exclude your trade union, children’s school, alma mater, and place of worship.
Q11. Approximately how much did you give in total in the last 12 months to all charitable or cause-oriented organizations, excluding your union, schools and place of worship?
PAM
***
Q11. Approximately how much did you give in total in the last 12 months to all charitable or cause-oriented organizations, excluding your union, schools and place of worship?
PAM
***
Q18: Which of the following charitable giving methods have you used in the past two years? Please select all that apply.
PAM
***
Q18: Which of the following charitable giving methods have you used in the past two years? Please select all that apply.
Q24: Now thinking broadly about all of the charities you support, financially and otherwise, how are you currently involved with these charities? Please select only those items that you currently do with those organizations. Please select all that apply.
Q26: How important are each of the following as a way to stay in touch with charities that you financially support?
Q30: Below are a variety of ways that a charity may approach you and ask for a donation. How acceptable are each of the following to you personally?
PAM
***
Q17: How do you feel you can make the biggest difference with the charities you support? Please select one.
PAM
***
Q35: Which of the following best describes how comfortable you are sharing information with others about the charities you support? Please select one.
PAM
***
Q36: Following are some ways that charities and causes connect online with their supporters. For each, please indicate how often you do that activity, if at all. If you have not taken part in that activity, please indicate if you are likely to consider that activity in the future.
PAM
***
Q32: In the last twelve months, how often (if at all) have you supported someone you know who was raising money on behalf of an organization via participation in a run, walk, race, contest, party, or some other event? Select one.
Q33: When you make a financial donation to a person you know who is fundraising on behalf of a charity/group, is it more about supporting the individual, or supporting the organization? Please select one.
Q34: In the past twelve months, how many times (if at all) have you fundraised on behalf of an organization via participation in a run, walk, race, contest, party, or some other event? Please select one.
PAM
***
Q20. One type of charitable giving involves making a purchase where a portion of the proceeds goes toward an organization. Examples include [Nike’s “Livestrong” gear and apparel and the Gap (RED) t-shirt campaign]. In the last 12 months, have you made a purchase where a portion of the proceeds went toward these or any other charitable organizations?
Q21: Thinking of the purchase where a portion of the proceeds went to a charitable organization, how important were each of the following in motivating you to make this purchase?
Q22: Which of the following applies to you? Please select all that apply.
PAM
***
Q23: Some employers encourage their employees to support charities. In the last 12 months, have you done any of the following? Please select all that apply.
PAM
***
Q27: When donating to a charity, which of the following do you prefer to do?
Q28: How much impact would each of the following have on motivating you to make a larger donation to a charity?
And as we started to think about what’s next, and how our country’s demographics are changing, decided to look at each of the major racial and ethic groups by generation …
- The first data point that really jumped out at us was what we call the “Donor Gap” – Philanthropy today looks a lot like the US population of 1990, 25 years ago. Not like the pop of today, and certainly not of tomorrow
- The green bar indicated the percentage of donors in each of the 4 main ethnic/racial groups today. The light grey bar reps US pop in 90 …
73% of donors today are non-Hispanic whites, despite the fact that they only make up 64% of the population
You can see that AA and Hispanics are under-represented in the donor universe
Asian donors are on par with the US population
But this does not suggest that whites are “more generous.” In fact, regression analysis shows that neither race nor ethnicity are sig predictors of donation amount
As we analyzed the findings from this research, it was clear that donors agree on a lot of the big things – regardless of their race or ethnicity
First … and what I mean by that majorities across all of the main racial/ethnic groups Feel Responsibility to Support Non-Profits /Charities through Monetary Donation. And roughly a third across all groups take time to volunteer
Second … You’ll see as we get into the data, that religious orgs capture a significant proportion of dollars donated (even though giving to religious institutions has slowed since the mid 1980’s), religion/faith continue to be a major driver of philanthropy across racial and ethnic groups
. Beyond that, donors who are actively engaged in their religious community are not only more likely to give, but give more
Last Income is, not surprisingly, the key driver of donation amount. Meaning …
That doesn’t mean that wealthier individuals contribute a larger percentage of their income to charities (in fact other studies would show that they do not), but they do contribute more in total dollars – regardless of their race or ethnicity
So lets take a look at where there are some notable differences by group. And I’m going to start off with a few slides that look at the African American Donor community
There are 4 trends that are worth noting, and you’ll see when we get into the data
Let’s take a quick look at demographics
Gender pretty even split, skew slightly female but not stat sig
Disproportionately Boomers – more so than any other group
Sig more likely to be lower or middle income
All told, the most religious of the groups we examined
Some more data underscoring how foundational religion is in their philanthropy
Half say they give to their place of worship – significantly more than any other charitable category. Even more think its important to support their place of worship. And among those AA who give to their church, report giving on average 13% of their income – a larger percentage than any other group
4-in-10 also give to ss, kids, health
Interesting to note 2 places where they over-index: youth dev, and AA are near twice as likely to support orgs that fight hate, prejudice, and inequality
Compared with the overall donor universe, AA’s are more likely to …
- And AA are more 49% (126) are very comfortable telling others about the charities they support, higher than any other racial/ethnic group
They are less likely to be prescriptive in their giving
Their channels vary slightly from donors overall. More likely to give in small ways at checkout. Interestingly, more open to canvassing efforts, which is an interesting opportunity for some orgs
Less likely to have made a donation online, and index lower on other traditional dr channels like mail and email appeals
But this group is not asked as often as Caucasian and Asian donors, and 20% say they would support more orgs if asked more often, suggesting that AA’s may be left out of mainstream fundraising efforts
Turning to the Asian Donor Community. Before I get into the data, one question I have been asked is what languages the survey was offered in. So many Asian dialects, would become cost prohibitive. We had respondents who speak Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Tagalog, etc.
Asian donors are quite generous, report giving more on average than several other groups, and give to more charities. But interestingly, less than half were born in the US – mostly first and second generation Americans
As you will see in a minute … (point 2)
This is a particularly technologically savvy donor group and they are open to non-traditional channels
Their giving priorities are a little different …
And we will see that they definitely plan and research who gets their dollars
Skew more female
Younger – more than half are under 50
8-in-10 have a college degree plus – the most educated of the donor cohorts
Religion does not play as strong a role in their giving
In fact, religion is noticeably absent from the top 3 charitable categories
Asian Donors are as likely to give to health, kids, and ss charities
And they are more likely to give to emergency relief and formal education (i.e. their alma mater) than donors overall – not surprising given the education level
Like Caucasian donors, Asian donors are more deliberate in where they give their dollars – they budget and plan
They are the group that is most likely to visit an organization’s website before becoming a supporter
They are also more likely to respond to word-of-mouth. Asian donors, more than any group, say that they support a cause when the request comes from friends or family
Thus its not surprising that Crowdfunding is more popular with this group. 19% of Asian donors say they have donated through a crowdfunding site, compared to just 10% of donors overall
They are also the most likely to make a donation directly through an org’s website
Last, but not least, I want to talk about the Hispanic Donor Community
This is the youngest of all groups – 2/3’s are under 50, and they are the most likely to have kids in their HH. Those with kids actually donate more than those without
So their strong commitment to kids’ causes makes a lot of sense
Spontaneity is the hallmark of Hispanic giving. Hispanic donors tell us they give “in the moment” based on what pull at their heartstrings
Again, we see a group that is probably underserved by traditional direct marketing channels. They are not asked to give as frequently, and are interested in hearing more from NGO’s
Here’s a little on demographics
I think the biggest takeaway is around age. This is by far the youngest donor cohort, with 30% Millennials, and 33% Gen X’ers, and the Hispanic population in the US will continue to grow into the foreseeable future. If you are thinking about lifetime value, this is a group on which to focus
Hispanic donors prioritize their church, followed by children’s charities
Health and ss are also priorities, but actually a little less so than donors at large
As I mentioned earlier, Hispanic donors are the group most likely to say that most of their giving is spontaneous, when something or someone grabs them emotionally
And a big question I hear debated a lot – should our fundraising appeals be in English, bilingual, in Spanish. 55% of our respondents said they actually prefer English, and another 17% are fine w/ both
Two-in-10 tell us that they would support more ngo’s if asked, but they don’t always know how (go to Tweet)
- Giving in the moment means Hispanic donors do less planning in advance and are less concerned about administrative issues than donors on average
In terms of channels – Hispanic donors are less likely to give through some of the more traditional channels like mail and website
But more have given to canvassers on the street or at home
And done some type of retail philanthropy by making a donation where a portion of the merchandise they buy goes back to the cause
So that’s a quick overview of the data. I’m going to hand it over to Dennis to wrap-up with some parting thoughts