{"id":17883,"date":"2020-03-19T15:43:36","date_gmt":"2020-03-19T19:43:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.qgiv.com\/blog\/?p=17883"},"modified":"2024-10-01T15:46:21","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T19:46:21","slug":"generational-giving-how-to-apply-donor-preferences-to-emergency-fundraising-strategies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.qgiv.com\/blog\/generational-giving-how-to-apply-donor-preferences-to-emergency-fundraising-strategies\/","title":{"rendered":"Generational Giving: How to Apply Donor Preferences to Emergency Fundraising Strategies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What a year this month has been!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All joking aside, things feel pretty overwhelming right now. The COVID-19 situation is causing a lot of upheaval, and nonprofits are busy working to adapt their fundraising strategies accordingly. Since we just published our Generational Giving Report<\/a>, I wanted to give you a quick breakdown of how you can apply the study\u2019s findings to your emergency fundraising campaigns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ll take you through each generation\u2019s preferences around donating and communication. I\u2019ll also give you some pointers on how to approach each generation with today\u2019s current events in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A quick note, though: while the coronavirus pandemic is anything but \u201cbusiness as usual,\u201d it\u2019s important to remember that the rules of effective, responsible fundraising are the same. Donors still want to know that they\u2019re making a difference, they still want to be thanked and appreciated for their donation, and they should be treated as the heroes of the story you\u2019re telling. The circumstances of your campaign are unusual, but those best practices are still important!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With that in mind, let\u2019s dig into some strategies you can use to appeal to your donors. Ready? Let\u2019s go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, let\u2019s look at Baby Boomers’ preferences<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Establish trust<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The one theme I saw over and over again in our Baby Boomer respondents is that they’re very motivated by knowing their money will be used wisely. If you\u2019re making an appeal to your Boomer donors, include language around how you\u2019ll use the money they donate. Whenever possible, reinforce their decision to give by including trust indicators or testimonials. Trust indicators can include badges from GuideStar or Charity Navigator, or you could try including things like visual breakdowns of how money is spent at your organization. Adding testimonials from others who are happy about supporting your organization is also a good way to show your Boomer donors that you\u2019re trustworthy and use the money you raise responsibly.<\/p>\n\n\n

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This testimonial appeared right before the “Donate” button on the Greater Spokane County Meals<\/a> on Wheels website.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Boomers are also very generous when they receive urgent appeals. Almost a third of donors from this age group indicated that they\u2019re primarily motivated by urgent appeals from nonprofits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have a plan for processing checks<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you\u2019re making appeals to Baby Boomers, they are probably going to want to support you by sending you a physical check. Baby Boomers are the generation most likely to respond to a direct mail appeal, and 43% of the Baby Boomer donors who replied to our survey indicated that sending a check through the mail is their preferred donation method. Give those donors a physical address to which they can mail their donations. If you\u2019re practicing social distancing or are working from home, have a plan in place for retrieving and processing those checks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next largest group of Boomer respondents\u201424% of them\u2014said they\u2019d prefer to give in person or over the phone. If you\u2019re trying to minimize person-to-person contact, we recommend you not take in-person checks or cash donations<\/strong>. Instead, include a phone number in your appeal that donors can call to make a gift. If you\u2019re working remotely, be sure someone is responsible for answering that phone.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Include these assets in your campaign:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n