Charitable giving trends are undergoing a significant shift in Europe. A recent study by PayPal indicates that more than half of young people prefer to make micro-donations during online shopping rather than making traditional donations through some form of subscription. The reason? Well, there are actually several reasons. On the one hand we have a reduction in purchasing power and on the other hand a growing distrust towards the final destination of the donated funds.
Approximately 60% of Millennials and Generation Z consider that donating small amounts when shopping online is more in line with their current financial reality. This reality cannot be ignored when fundraising. Strategies to reach out to these channels are key for the long term.
Online micro-donations are democratising the act of giving, making it accessible to the majority, regardless of their financial situation. More than 50% of Europeans say that this method of giving best suits their financial situation and lifestyle. Unlike the strategies for working with patrons, which we talked about in previous weeks in this blog, the way to access this channel requires much more dynamism and less classical methods. New technologies or the well-known guerrilla marketing have to be incorporated into the strategic routine of social economy organisations.
The growing popularity of micro-donations in Europe is due to their adaptability to different budgets and the freedom to choose which social cause to contribute to. During 2023, around 23% of Europeans made micro-donations online. These offer advantages such as accessibility, simplicity in the payment process, no long-term commitments, less personal and bank details required, and the possibility to choose the NGO or social cause for each donation. The diversity of sensitivities as well as changes in the urgency of some issues mean that European donors do not want to fix their cooperation capacity to a single cause.
Only 25% of Europeans donate regularly through NGO affiliation, a figure that drops to 11% among Generation Z. This reflects a growing preference for more charitable options. This reflects a growing preference for more flexible and convenient donation options.
PayPal’s data reveals that micro-donations are not only meeting donors’ immediate needs, but are also reshaping the way people perceive donations. This represents an opportunity for social economy organisations to diversify their fundraising efforts across Europe.
Speed, a strong technological load and a change in language will mark the organisations that decide to work along these lines. In contrast to the strategy of following a single path to work with a patron, here it is necessary to try to reach as many people as possible in the shortest possible time with a constant renewal of fundraising campaigns.
