Fundraising statistics are essential for making strategic decisions, especially when you consider the fact that you’re working in a constantly-changing environment. Though statistics may sound like they’re boring, you can get a lot of information out of them and use them to adapt your strategies and identify where you can improve.
In addition, because of the environment becoming mostly digital, you should start looking into the online fundraising statistics as well as those for offline fundraising to be able to compare the two better and see what platforms work best for you.
On average, nonprofits raise about 8% of its total revenue online.
With the way making donations online has become so easy, it is no surprise that most people are now looking towards the convenience it offers. Although a fairly large portion of revenue still comes from offline donations and fundraising events, the fact that 8% of donations come online means that there is quite a bit of potential for further growth.
30% of online giving occurs in December, with 10% being on the last three days of the year
Although the reasons for this may vary across donors, keeping this statistic in mind will help you plan your donation schemes around December, focusing on the last three days of the year and prompt donors for contributions with a larger likelihood of success.
The average monthly donor gives 46% more in one year than those who give one-time gifts
Keeping this in mind, you can stress the importance of monthly giving programs. Not only do they provide you a stable revenue stream that you can depend on, but as the statistics show, they are also bringing in a lot more contributions, even if in parts, than one-time donors who may be giving large amounts.
21% of online donations made in 2017 were done so on a mobile device
This stresses how important it is to make sure your donation page on your website is not only easy to use but also optimized for mobile. Nowadays, your website is more likely to be viewed on a smartphone than a desktop computer, so you must make sure your website is optimized for such devices.
45% of donors give to nonprofits located outside their country of residence
If you’re limiting your nonprofit activities within your origin country, you can put that aside now. With these stats, you know that not only are people within your country donating to nonprofits outside of it, but that people outside are also donating within your country, and this could include you as well. With the internet turning the world into a global village, you don’t have to worry about a person’s locality. If your cause is something they feel strongly for, then you have an equal chance of getting a donation from them.
Online fundraising is becoming increasingly important for nonprofits across the board. Online donor retention becomes easier because the ease with which online donations take place is appealing to donors, and they become more likely to stick around. Thus, nonprofits should focus on their online fundraising schemes and use the statistics they find to develop their strategies and make data-driven decisions.
Sally Nasr
Salah Hamwi
Awni Shamah