Donor Loyalty – myth or manic expectation.

There is a lot of musings about how to keep hold of your donors. As campaigns are set up, events scheduled, and donor drives are organized, many nonprofits have embarked on variations of monthly giving schematics. The allure of a steady stream of income is just as captivating for nonprofits as it is for for-profits, and we should not underestimate the stability this gives any enterprising entity. Providing multi-year general operating funds remain the best way to help nonprofits be successful. 

So who can be approached for perennial, stable funding? The “Ok, Boomer” cluster has already been mined enough, so here I will focus on Millennials, with some data on Gen X and Gen Z thrown in to stir the pot a bit. The abbreviations have become a means to categorize generations of – young – people and the ways in which they behave, shop, and, for the purpose of this blog – give. What is motivating one of these groupings is not necessarily the same as for the other. Not only are they somewhat overlapping in ages, there are distinct differences between them as well. 

It is generally agreed that Millennials, roughly between the ages of 20-40 in 2020 are known for being change-makers, tech-savvy, tend to be job-hopping and team-oriented. Gen Xers, born between 1965 and 1980, are more direct, collaborative, but also prone to work-life balance and have a hybrid relationship to technology, while Gen Z, the youngest group, born between 1996-2015, are described as competitive, financially focused and entrepreneurial. We are yet to see how 5-year olds will develop their charitable streaks. Stay tuned! 

Millennials consist of five subgroups, divided in turn by age, gender and, believe or not, mothers (they are: older/younger; male/female; mothers). More on mothers, parenting, and women’s giving in another post. The older bracket is more careful, shocker!, while the younger seems to be more averse to stay in one lane. Female mothers, as a group, have high impact being large consumers. As a group, they are prone to adopting new habits and products but can also sway in adherence and loyalty at the drop of a hat. They have a built-in ability to respond to a changing landscape and adapt to new routines pretty quickly. As parents to younger children, which means that that they are also living in a realm that is defined by progress and process, they act in circumstances and conditions that are constantly changing, as would be expected. By natural order, they are not only unafraid of seeing or trying new things, they kind of have to. Did I say that they are big consumers?

The five Millennial subgroups put a high value on stability, a feature that nonprofits have learned to capitalize on. Loyalty to a specific trait of consumption is one of the cornerstones of consumerism, closely propped up by capitalism, and one that nonprofits have latched on to as well. Instead of engaging in the Nonprofit Hunger Games, nonprofits can use tech-savviness to not only help their own organization, but foster loyalty to behavior that makes a difference, and expect adherence in return. 

Although loyalty is not necessarily in high esteem in any of these groups, including Xs and Zs, nonprofits can create dependable donors by delivering a stable line of goods, meaning a continuous care to programming and delivery of service, messaging and communications, for the dollars that they raise, adding advocacy and activism to the mix. Millennials appreciate, yes, even demand, to know how their donations are used, perhaps even more so than Gen X and Gen Z do, and how results are communicated shouldn’t involve a lot; a simple txt is often enough. 

Individuals in these groups are in a constant learning mode, why offering opportunities to gain knowledge is a safe way to keep them engaged. Being creative around an organization’s mission or inviting them to learn with a shared experience will keep up that engagement as well. Listen, Learn, Engage, Invite, and Enroll are safe bets to keep younger donors and supporters involved. In the end, soliciting loyal donations is not just about building awareness and support for a cause; it’s creating sustained progress for those in need.

Photo: Edward Howell by Unsplash