Digital fundraising: the way of the future
The COVID-19 pandemic has required charities/not-for-profits to rethink how they engage their supporter base when traditional face-to-face fundraising initiatives have been unavailable. To overcome this, many charities/not-for-profits have embraced digital fundraising initiatives out of necessity. The question arises, however, of whether Australian givers are ready to embrace this shift too.
Positively, four in five givers (81%) are open to participating in online fundraising initiatives, with almost two in five givers (37%) extremely/very open to online engagement opportunities.
Online fundraising initiatives, the way of the future
Younger Australian givers are behind this openness to online fundraising initiatives, being almost twice as likely as older Australians to be open to participating in online fundraisers (99% Gen Z cf. 59% Baby Boomers). This highlights that there are shifting engagement priorities for each generation. As charities/not-for-profits continue to future proof themselves, engagement of the donor of the future is essential. With 63% of Gen Z extremely/very open to digital engagement, online fundraising is likely to become the new normal for fundraising among this generation.
Knowing and trusting the organisation is key to engagement
Although the delivery medium of fundraising opportunities may be shifting to digital, the key motivator for engagement with charities/not-for-profits is a timeless one. The most significant motivator for online engagement is knowing and trusting the charity/not-for-profit (73%), followed by reputation (69%) and a clear vision and mission of the campaign (66%).
Younger givers are looking for one click donating options.
If younger givers are embracing online fundraising initiatives, it is important to understand what they are looking for and how they are different to their older counterparts. The areas of greatest difference show that Gen Z are 2.8 times more likely than Baby Boomers to be extremely/very motivated by one click donating options and 2.1 times more likely to be motivated by the integration of online and in person aspects of the campaign. The community created around the campaign is also more important to younger givers with Gen Z 1.8 times more likely to be motivated by the online community connected to the campaign.
As digital fundraising increasingly becomes the norm in the not-for-profit sector, understanding how to engage the emerging donor is essential for organisations to thrive. It is the organisations that understand that younger givers are motivated by social needs alongside ease and efficiency that will be able to create initiatives to future proof themselves in these changing times.
