Why Donors Give: The Same Answer and Are We Listening Yet?

I was recently onsite with a client where the conversation about charitable giving and the rationale thereof was discussed by a team of people in a basement conference room.  Someone in the group articulated the challenge of charitable giving in today's world based upon the 2017 changes to the tax code that increase the standard deduction and thus removed the need to itemize deductions, which includes charitable gifts. I stood for a second and tried to come up with something that would be pleasant yet rebut that argument. I ended up just telling them that they were wrong.

We keep going back to the concept of charitable giving being driven for tax purposes. And another study has come out saying that it's just not true. The motivation for many donors centers on 3 central drivers, as has been said here many, many times.

• Personal satisfaction in helping others

• Connection to the organization

• Sense of duty to give back (making a difference)

If you don't believe me, then follow the BNY Mellon Wealth Management’s charitable giving study.  They interviewed 200 individuals with net wealth from $5 to $25 million.  When asked about their charitable intents, they listed these three reasons for their willingness to be philanthropic. In fact, when asked about tax reasons, it fell in the bottom three motivators.

I feel like we keep repeating the same conversation every several years. While the number of donors in households making a charitable gift is dropping in the United States, now below 50% of all households throughout the country, there are still many, many people who want to make philanthropic gifts. And while we as nonprofit professionals can't control two of the three listed, personal satisfaction and desire to give back, we do help control the middle motivator: creating a connection to the organization or mission. It's basic. My hope is we pay more attention to this basic concept as we attempt to build deep, meaningful relationships with those who believe in our nonprofit missions.