Management Tip: 5 Trends In Individual Giving

This week's nonprofit management tip focuses on 5 recent trends in individual giving:

Giving is changing. That is, if it’s not staying the same. Or, maybe it’s changing and staying the same.


Trying to keep up with giving trends can be an endless exercise, but at 2011 Fundraising Day in New York, Margaret Holman said there are certain discernible trends in individual giving, and knowing them can be helpful.


Holman offered the following:


• Major donors continue to give, but they are narrowing their focus to fewer charities for bigger impact.


• People give when they have a sense of security and optimism about the future. Few Americans do right now.


• Some trends are still true. For example: Lower-income people tend to be more generous than higher-income individuals; The most generous donors are likely to give by mail and less likely than average to give online; More generous donors are more intentional about planning their support; and, Giving still happens because donors are involved with organizations; 42 percent of donors volunteer with their organizations.


• Demographics still matter. There will be a tsunami of Baby Boomers moving into planned giving territory. There is the challenge of feeding the donor pipeline of younger donors.


• People check out charities in the following ways: Talked to someone who supports it; Visited the website or searched the Internet for news; Checked with a watchdog organization; or, Visited the organization in person.

To read more tips like this, head to the Donors section of our management tips page.