# Digital giving is driven by emotion and stories; or is it?

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2026/08/19/digital-giving-is-driven-by-emotion-and-stories-or-is-it/
- Published: 2026-08-19T13:33:00+01:00
- Author: Donna Day Lafferty

**Are you making a fundraising mistake because so much of the current narrative 
says that smaller donations are emotionally, rather than intellectually, driven?
So, logically you decide to just tell a lot of stories on your social media? Here
are three things to consider.**

I’m not, for one moment, dismissing the importance and relevance of research into
the emotional and subconscious motivations for giving (e.g. **James III, 2022**).
But, **Elvira-Lorilla, Garcia-Rodriguez, Romero-Merino, and Santamaria-Mariscal****(
2023)** point out that you really do have to ask, they call this ‘fundraising posts’!
Sometimes this gets forgotten. And, a recent research paper by **Rimawati, Hamidah,
and Ardianto** **(2026)\*** has reminded me that we still need to deliver on the
more intellectual, or at least fact-checking, side of the donor’s needs.

Why?

## Advertisement

Because **Rimawati et al. (2026)** found that “Of the 585 respondents, 78% visited
the organization’s website before donating, while 22% donated directly based on 
social media posts (ibid.)”. And asking, come on, you know you have to ask and it
can’t all be about being friendly and sharing stories on social media.

The authors recommend that “Philanthropic institutions should ensure that their 
websites provide transparent and accessible information on legality, governance,
financial accountability, and program detail.” They also discuss the importance 
of making it easy for donors to find this information. For a twist, **Panic, Hudders,
and Cauberghe (2016)**, explore the power of meeting expectations unexpectedly.

## Use social media to generate emotion, then signpost evidence

Social media remains highly effective at attracting attention and motivating action.**
Elvira-Lorilla et al.** found that donations were influenced not by simply having
social media accounts, but by follower numbers, activity, explicit fundraising posts
and supporter engagement.

Charities should therefore use social posts to create urgency and emotional connection(**
Elvira-Lorilla et al., 2023**) but link clearly to website pages that provide fuller
evidence about the appeal, beneficiaries and outcomes (**Rimawati et al., 2026**).

## Make trust-building information easy to find

Website visitors are often looking for reassurance before they give. **Rimawati 
et al. (2026)** found that donors sought confirmation of legality, credibility, 
transparency, distribution of funds and programme detail before deciding whether
to donate.

This information should not be buried in annual reports. Campaign posts and pages
need visible trust cues, such as “how your gift will be used”, “our impact”, “our
governance” and “proof of delivery” links.

## Meet expectations unexpectedly

There is also room for surprise. **Panic, Hudders and Cauberghe (2016)** found that,
on interactive charity websites, an unexpected but still relevant celebrity supporter
created a more positive website experience than an obvious celebrity fit, which 
in turn improved attitudes towards the charity and donation intention. An unexpected
ambassador, introduced through an interactive website feature, short video, quiz
or social-to-web campaign, can make donors pause, think and engage more deeply.

In digital fundraising, social media should spark motivation, while the website 
should validate, reassure and sometimes surprise. When the journey is coordinated,
donors are more likely to move from scrolling to supporting.

_***Rimawati et al.’s (2026)** research report focuses on an Indonesian population,
while there are some cultural differences the report still offers insight that you
should be testing._

## Bibliography

Elvira-Lorilla, T., Garcia-Rodriguez, I., Romero-Merino, M. E., & Santamaria-Mariscal,
M. (2023). The role of social media in nonprofit organizations’ fundraising. Nonprofit
and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 08997640231213286.

James III, R. (2022). The Storytelling Fundraiser: The Brain, Behavioral Economics,
and Fundraising Story. [http://www.encouragegenerosity.com](http://www.encouragegenerosity.com):
Texas Tech University.

Panic, K., Hudders, L., & Cauberghe, V. (2016). Fundraising in an interactive online
environment. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 45(2), 333-350.

Rimawati, Y., Hamidah, & Ardianto. (2026). Digital Users Perceptions of Philanthropic
Donations Across Social Media and Institutional Websites. Journal of Philanthropy,
31(1), e70046.

 * **[What the research says: telephone thanking](https://fundraising.co.uk/2026/07/31/what-the-research-says-telephone-thanking/)(
   31 July 2026)**