Each generation living today has come of age with profoundly different experiences concerning mass communication, and these differences directly affect how they give to nonprofits.
Baby Boomers are young enough to be experiencing the rise of new media in their daily lives, which consequently is affecting their life-long giving habits. Gen X and Gen Y both came of age during the rise of mass Internet communications and increasingly shun print communications and fundraising, while adapting quickly to new trends in mobile and social giving.
Because of the rapid speed of technological advancement, from this point forward nonprofits will have to embrace multiple communications and fundraising tools if they want to reach donors and supporters of all ages.
In practice, nonprofit technology is the utilization of hardware and software to manage donors, volunteers and projects; to execute Web and email communications; to launch fundraising and advocacy campaigns; to participate in mobile and social media; and to sell products and tickets online. If you work for a nonprofit that relies heavily on individual fundraising, the decisions you make concerning nonprofit technology will dictate your fundraising and program success.
Fifty-five percent of individuals who engage with nonprofits on social media are inspired to take action. Of that 55%, 59% donated money, 53% volunteered and 52% donated food or clothing.
There are two trends in nonprofit technology that are changing the fundamentals of online communications and fundraising.
The first is the rapid shift away from content being consumed primarily on personal computers to content also being consumed on smartphones and tablets. It would be safe to assume that by 2016 the majority of your nonprofit’s Web content will be consumed on smartphone or tablet…or…through social networking apps, mobile browsers and mobile email clients.
The second shift in nonprofit technology is the rise and maturation of social media. It’s been in existence for more than a decade and has matured to become a very powerful force for distributing content, fundraising, branding and raising awareness for causes and issues. Donors and supporters now expect nonprofit content and fundraising campaigns to be interactive and social. When you combine this expectation with the rise of mobile communication, it becomes apparent that nonprofits have arrived at a tipping point and those nonprofits that focus on upgrading their technology systems now will be well positioned to reap the benefits of the mobile and social Web in the future.
Source and for more information, read “MOBILE FOR GOOD: A How-To Fundraising Guide for Nonprofits” by Heather Mansfield.