Finances difficult but most want to donate this Christmas, survey indicates
Melanie May | 8 December 2021 | News
The latest quarterly Donor Pulse report from Enthuse shows that 73% of the 2,000 people surveyed plan to donate over Christmas (up 5% on last year), despite 43% saying that their financial situation makes this more difficult.
The latest edition of the quarterly Donor Pulse report shows that just under half (49%) of the public say they are more likely to give around Christmas than other times of the year, with 38% of people saying they give at Christmas because they are asked to, and a further 42% looking out for opportunities to donate at this time of year.
The average maximum gift indicated by the report’s findings is £41 for the festive period. Donors planning on giving the most are Gen Z at £53 and the least are 55-64 year olds with £33. While Gen Z and Millennials are the most likely to donate over the Christmas period with over 70% of both groups indicating an interest, they are also the least committed to giving with only 30% and 33% respectively stating they were very likely to give.
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This edition of the Donor Pulse also looks at fundraising activity among the public. Among those surveyed, 45% have been asked for a donation by a friend, colleague, employer or school in the last three months. This figure rises to 62% among the under 40s, compared to 34% for those over 40.
Overall, 71% say they have donated in the last three months – the highest level for a year. 43% have given online donations, compared to 39% the previous quarter. Donations directly through a charity’s website remain the most generous with an average donation of £42.63 through the site compared to an overall average of £34.46.
78% of donors also say they remember the name of the charity they last gave to when they donate through the organisation’s site, while only 57% do when using a consumer giving platform.
Chester Mojay-Sinclare, Enthuse Founder and CEO, said:
“The Christmas period is a crucial time for most charities, and even though money is tight for many this year the desire to give remains strong, which is testament to the quality of work across the third sector. The key challenge for charities will be turning those festive donors into regular givers. Taking donations directly through their own site and having total control of all supporter outreach will be a crucial step for charities in building that supporter relationship so they donate time and time again.”
The Donor Pulse report also looks at the idea of ‘in the moment’ giving, and supporters’ feelings on data privacy. On privacy, it reveals that slightly more people reject opting in to marketing communications (39%) than accept it (36%). For those who opt out, over half (51%) of donors say they do not want a charity emailing them asking for further donations, or are not interested in receiving the charity’s emails in general. The second biggest reason for opting out is data management with 49% of donors citing concerns about how their data would be shared by the charity and worrying about the potential of a data breach.
More Donor Pulse findings from 2021
- Public willingness to participate in fundraising events rises October 2021
- New flexible working patterns could impact workplace fundraising July 2021
- Insights into public’s feelings about restarting in-person events revealed March 2021
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.