22 Nonprofit Digital Stats That Matter

The need for nonprofits to have a digital presence may seem obvious. Yet, according to the Nonprofit Research Collaborative, in 2015 only 49% of their respondents were using social media to fundraise. These 22 nonprofit digital stats highlight the importance of an online presence.

The 2016 Fundraising Effectiveness Project provides a graphic overview of the state of fundraising today:

Further, Fidelity’s Future of Philanthropy report indicates three-quarters of their 3,254 respondents were only somewhat optimistic that giving could solve the issues most important to them. The issues they wanted to address included:
Nevertheless, these nonprofit digital stats help us better understand philanthropy and charitable giving in the online environment. Additionally, these stats and trends help nonprofit marketing efforts by improving investments, strategy, and focus points.

Transparency

#1 41% of donors have changed their giving due to increased knowledge of nonprofit effectiveness. — Fidelity Charitable

#2 27% of donors have changed their giving due to technological advances providing convenient tools for researching and funding charitable projects. — Fidelity Charitable

Social Media and Web Usage

#3 YouTube is the number 1 social media site used by US charities and non-profit organizations. — UMASS

#4 7 in 10 of organizations in 2015 reported increased charitable receipts from email appeals and other online requests (such as Give Now links). — Nonprofit Research Collaborative

#5 84% of organizations in 2015 saw the greatest growth in charitable gifts received through social media. — Nonprofit Research Collaborative

NGOs worldwide are embracing the Internet. Among those surveyed for the 2016 NGO Online Technology Report:

• 92% had a nonprofit website
• 95% have a Facebook page
• 83% have a Twitter profile
• 40% were on Instagram
• 75% accept online donations

#6 Of all social media platforms, nonprofit marketers use of Instagram increased the most in 2016 from 38% to 58% — CMI & Blackbaud

#7 77% of nonprofit marketers identified in-person effects as their most effective marketing tactic. — CMI & Blackbaud

Audiences online

#8 Gen Y represented 11% of total charitable giving in 2013. — Blackbaud

#9 65% of Gen Y audience prefers to learn about nonprofits via their websites. Social media followed at 55% — Millennial Impact Report

#10 Cool events were the most likely nonprofit information Gen Y would share on Facebook(74%). Statistics came second with 69% of that audience. — Millennial Impact Report

#11 59% of Generation X give an average of $732 per year across 3.9 charities. Nearly half (47%) would give via mobile device (and that was in 2013). — Blackbaud

#12 72% of Baby Boomers give an average of $1,212 per year across 4.5 charities. Some 21% make their donations monthly. — Blackbaud

#13 88% of Matures give an average of $1,367 annually across 6.2 charities. — Blackbaud

#14 56% of millennials say their giving is more spontaneous while 72% of Baby Boomers say their giving is more planned. — Fidelity Charitable

Sustainability and donations

#15 69% of nonprofits surveyed expected to increase fundraising budgets in 2016. — Nonprofit Research Collaborative

#16 65% of organizations reported increased charitable receipts in 2015, up consistently from 43% in 2009. — Nonprofit Research Collaborative

#17 Larger organizations are more likely to see charitable receipt growth (72% for those with expenditures of $10 million plus as opposed to 54% for those with expenditures less than $250,000). — Nonprofit Research Collaborative

#18 29% retention rate of first-year donors — DonorCentrics

#19 17.4% of all giving happens in December — BlackBaud

#20 The average bequest received was between $25,001 and $100,000 for 33% of organizations in 2015. — Nonprofit Research Collaborative

#21 Every 100 donors gained in 2015 was offset by 96 in lost donors through attrition. — Fundraising Effectiveness Project

#22 59% donate because the cause or organization is important to them. Overall, 74% are motivated by personal factors while 88% are motivated by external factors. — Fidelity Charitable

Related Reading:

• Top Non-Profit Digital Trends
• Non-Profit Marketing KPIs - Metrics That Matter

Nonprofit marketers in the CMI & Blackbaud study identified engagement (82%), brand awareness (79%), and client/constituent retention/loyalty (74%) as their most important goals in 2016. Doing these effectively via digital channels is an important piece of the puzzle.

Nonprofit Digital Stats Sources:
Achieve, Johnson, Grossnickle, and Associates. (2012). The Millennial Impact report 2012. https://themillennialimpact.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/TheMillennialImpactReport2012.pdf
Association of Fundraising Professionals. (2016). 2016 Fundraising Effectiveness Survey Report. https://www.afpfep.org
Blackbaud. (2013, August). The Next Generation of American Giving. https://www.blackbaud.com/nonprofit-resources/generational-giving-report-infographic
Blackbaud. (2016, August). Philanthropy by the numbers 2016. https://www.slideshare.net/blackbaud/npexperts-2016-philanthropy-by-the-numbers
Fidelity Charitable. (2016), The Future of Philanthropy. https://www.fidelitycharitable.org/docs/future-of-philanthropy.pdf
Nonprofit Research Collaborative. (2016, March). Winter 2016 Nonprofit Fundraising Study. https://www.npresearch.org/images/pdf/2016-reports/NRC_W16_FINAL.pdf
Nonprofit Tech for Good. (2016). 2016 Global NGO Online Technology Report. https://www.techreport.ngo/
UMASS. (2014, June). Picture This: Top Charities Master Visual and Social Media. https://www.umassd.edu/cmr/socialmediaresearch/charitiessocialmedia/