Showing posts with label generational cohort. Show all posts
Showing posts with label generational cohort. Show all posts

Prepare Today for Tomorrow's Donors

In planned giving, like any field, it's smart to anticipate future trends. One trend that planned giving professionals won't want to miss is the upcoming cohort of Generation Y donors. Marketers are paying attention to this group because it numbers over 70 million. These individuals are currently ages 19-36. They are also described as the Millennial Generation or Echo Boomers. Below are things you need to know to prepare now for Generation Y donors.

Targeted Marketing: Asking Appropriately

Research shows that the two main reasons that potential donors don’t give are:

1. They haven’t been asked.
2. They don’t support the mission of the organization.

There’s a third reason: Potential donors who do support the mission may say no because “the ask” was not appropriate to their circumstances (such as soliciting an unrestricted gift from younger donors who tend to be more interested in specific impact and accountability). One way to ensure appropriateness is with targeted marketing pieces—and this is relatively easy for universities because they already have two key
pieces of targeting information: degree earned and years since graduation (which identifies the generational cohort).