Multichannel approach is the ‘key to bridging generation gap in charitable giving’
Howard Lake | 25 April 2013 | News
Software and services firm Blackbaud and consultancies Xtraordinary Fundraising and Stratcomare are advising charities to adopt a multi-channel approach to their fundraising in order to address the gap in giving between older and younger donors.
According to their The Next Generation of UK Giving report, mature donors (those born in 1945 or earlier) are giving 27% more each year than Generation X donors (born between 1964 and 1980), and 38% more than Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964).
If Generations X and Y donors continue at their current level of giving then UK charities will experience a drop in overall giving levels.
Advertisement
Levels of giving
The research involved surveying 1,498 UK donors across all ages, asking them about how they donate to and engage with charities and voluntary organisations.
-
Matures (born 1945 or earlier) – give an average of £211.30 per year to 5.3 different causes
-
Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964) – give an average of £153.28 per year to 5.4 different causes
-
Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980) – give an average of £166.63 per year to 4.6 different causes
- Generation Y (born between 1981 and 1991) – give an average of £113.22 per year to 4.6 different causes
Different kinds of support
The research found that the different age groups not surprisingly exhibited different approaches to supporting and engaging with charities.
Mature donors are more loyal to the causes they support: almost 30% have donated to their causes for between 10 and 15 years, and 16% for more than 20 years.
Two thirds of Mature donors use Facebook, and are nearly as likely as Generation Y donors to give via a charity's website. They are most likely to receive information in the mail, while Generation Y are most likely to get information by visiting the website and from social media.
Generation Y supporters might give the least, but they are most likely to volunteer for a cause (29%) and to attend and organise events (16%). They also engage online and sharing actions online with others more than the other age groups; 27% cent follow a cause on a social network to stay informed and 25% share a cause’s online content with others.
Sixty per cent of Generation Y visit a charity's website before making a donation
They also had the strongest desire (43%) to increase money and time commitments to charities.
'No one size fits all approach'
Martin Campbell, Blackbaud Europe’s director of strategy and innovation, said: "There is no ‘one size fits all approach’ to fundraising for not-for-profits, and the key to successful fundraising and engagement with supporters of all generations is to be multi-channel.
"Every generation uses every channel, they just do so in different ways. Adopting an integrated and multi-channel approach will play a major role in bridging this generation gap, targeting the right people, at the right time via the most appropriate channel.”
Digital channels are appropriate to all age groups. Deanna Bickford, senior consultant at Stratcom, commented: "Although Gen Y donors continue to lead the way for online engagement and the use of social media to promote causes, the generational differences with regard to other online activities were not as great as one might expect. Middle-aged donors appear to respond well to online advocacy, video and podcasts."
First contact with charities
Although radio, TV and newspapers account for 15% of donors' first contact with a charity, according to the research, peer-to-peer contact is the most common at 27%. In other words, donors are most likely to learn about a charity through a personal contact, whether that is in person, through email or via social media.
Value of the different generations
Nearly half (47%) of mature donors give to charity through monthly direct debit, double the number of Generation Y donors who do so. Of course, this means that currently Baby Boomers and Generation X supporters are potentially the most valuable to charities.
Stephen Butler, director at Xtraordinary, commented: "Not-for-profits should be targeting Gen X and Baby Boomers, as these donors represent the greatest opportunity for revenue growth in the next few years. Either age group could surpass Matures in total giving, by either finding 3 per cent more donors or by existing donors increasing their average gift by just £12 annually."
He added that, at the same time, because Generation Y are the donors of the future, "not-for-profits should be embarking on a lifetime’s journey with them, educating on the importance of fundraising and engaging them online and via social media."
The Next Generation of UK Giving report can be downloaded from Blackbaud's website.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.