Getting Millennials to Give: Two Fundraising Practices and Potential for Growth

March 24, 2010 · by ajlovesya · in

I was recently asked by a reporter from the Chronicle of Philanthropy if I knew of any charities that have been successful in getting millenial donations. I immediately thought of mobile giving campaigns, but I realized that many of those are sparked by urgency (i.e. Haiti, Chile) and are not necessarily used for long term giving.

Although I couldn’t think of charities who have reported engaging a large number of young people in their fundraising efforts, I am aware of two strategies where young people do have a hand in giving and getting money, one that is charity directed, another that is millenial directed each with unique benefits and challenges

1. Young Professionals Groups: I have written about these types of groups before as a form of professional development for young nonprofit employees. However at some organizations these groups act as fundraising power houses, planning events and donating money on their own. The Brooklyn Public Library’s Brooklyn Vanguard group, which requires $150 to join, has fundraising events throughout the year, with one event in 2008 raising $16,000. The Echoing Green Social Investment Council for example, raises enough to support about two or three fellows (about $90,000) a year and requires members to donate at least $1,000 a year and help plan and coordinate fundraising events.

  • When it comes to professional groups, you already have young people who, at the very least, are interested in your cause and organization. However, does engagement move beyond being in that group? Are opportunities for additional leadership available–such as board membership? How well integrated are these groups into the organization in general? How long does participation last?

2. Giving Circles: In its simplest form we see these all the time on college campuses–students getting together to raise money for a cause and organization they believe in. Sometimes the amounts raised can be anywhere from a few hundred to several million over time,  growing from a small campus club event to an all school encompassing fundraising drive.   Additionally, more sophisticated groups are emerging all of the time like the Asia NextGen Giving Circle in NYC which in 2008 gave $30,000 to the YWCA of Queens in support of their Women to Work program for English Language Learners.

  • When it comes to giving circles, the amount of initiative required to start and run a circle indicates a commitment to philanthropy and collective giving (and how, perhaps, it is the collective aspect that makes it more interesting).  How do they select an organization? How do they determine how much to raise and what are their methods? Why do they start giving circles in the first place?

I think once we start exploring the motivations of young people involved in giving in these two forms in terms of why they join, how much they give, who they give to, we can better understand how to reach them.   I also cant help but notice the lack of technology in these forms of getting and giving donations. They arent blowing up facebook or twitter with their work and requests for money, and in fact seem to employ more traditional forms of solicitation, in particular word of mouth.

Do you know of any unique approaches to getting millenial donations or cultivating young people as potential donors? Any successful or not so successful stories?  What do you think of these two approaches?

**Photo credit: California Tenth Amendment Center

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