Research round-up

Top Takeaways:  

• Income was 9% higher and supporter recruitment up 22% in 2021, compared to the previous year.

• High value giving, Community fundraising and gaming performed the best out of all income products, but income from regular givers continues to decline.

• Supporters tend to be from more affulent households, however, there is a upward trend of younger, less well-off households donating. 

Our members could consider:  

• How as your income and supporter recruitment performed?  

• Is there scope to invest in growing income products?  

• Who are your supporters and is there potential to engage with new demographics who are starting to give more? 

Top Takeaways:  

• The number of people giving to charity across all age groups has increased since summer 2021.  

• Millenials (59%) and GenZ (57%) more likely to donate to multiple causes compared to Baby Boomers (44%)

• Cost of gas and electicity (67%) and other living costs (58%) are the two main reasons supporters are financially worse off.   

Our members could consider:  

• Are you seeing an unpward trend in giving? 

• Are younger audiences a growing or potential new audience for your charity?  

• How have increased living costs impacted your donor base and how can you adapt their supporter experience to accomodate this? 

Top Takeaways:  

• 28% of Britons donated money to humanitarian efforts aiding Ukraine and 34% have not done this but think they will.  

• The higher proportion of donors came from the 50-64 age group (33%), followed by 65+ (31%), 25-49 (26%) and 18-24 (16%). 

Top Takeaways:  

• The proportion of Brits donating to 1 charity in the past three months has increased by 4 percentage points (19% in Aug 2021 to 23% Feb 2022). 

• The proportion of Brits not donating to charity in the past three months has decreased by 3 percentage points (35% in Aug 2021 to 33% Feb 2022).

• The proportion of Brits not donating to 2 or more charities in the past three months has remained stable. 

Top Takeaways:  

• The most pressing challenge facing organisations i generating income/achieving financial stability (58%). 

• Just under two thirds (64%) of charities with an annual income of less than £1m said that they had invested in I.T., new technology & online solutions, compared to 80% of charities with an income of £5m+.

• Only a quarter of charity leaders agree they know how to make their online fundraising truly effective 

Our members could consider:  

• What are your most pressing challenges? 

• What role will digital play in your future fundraising mix? How can you win investment for this?  

Top Takeaways:  

• 31% of respondents have started providing donors with an online dashboard showing their donation's impact, 86% said this was impactful. 

• 42% of respondents in marketing roles said staff at their organizations have built or explored the development of supporter journeys through connected experiences between web, social media, email, etc.

• 38% of marketers who responded said they adjusted their social media strategy with new platforms like TikTok and changes in content strategy.

Our members could consider:  

• How digitally-confident is your organisation and your donors? 

• What scope is there to develop a more integrated supporter experience? 

• What social platforms are you using and is there scope to adopt more? 

Top Takeaways:  

• Total amount given in the UK in 2020 was £11.3 billion (compared to £10.6 billion in 2019). 

• Fewer people are giving, but the average monthly donation has remained slightly higher for much of 2021 compared to pre-pandemic levels- the average monthly donation across January to June 2021 was £49, compared to £42 for the same period in 2019. 

• Cash giving remains at record lows and online giving through an app or website still higher than pre-pandemic. 

Our members could consider:  

• How do you adapt your supporter journey to retain fewer supporters giving larger sums? 

• What role will cash play in your future fundraising? 

• What cashless payment platforms do you currently use and can they support the growing shift towards cashless giving? 

Top Takeaways: 

• Optimism in charities dropped in Autumn of 2021, with 14% saying they were optimistic about their operating environment, compared to 37% over the summer. 

• Over 50% of charities believed that funders supporting core costs or providing long-term funding would increase the impact of their organisation. 

• 38% of charity leaders believe investing in fundraising skills will increase the impact of their organisation. 

Our members could consider:  

• Have your expectations for 2022 been changed due to Omicron? What does this mean for your supporter experience? 

• How can the sector collaborate to create more flexible funding opportunities? 

• Which fundraising skills does your charity need to invest in to grow income? 

Top Takeaways: 

• 5 in 10 charities said they are increasing their focus on supporter retention, and 1 in 3 say their supporter relationships have strengthened during the pandemic. 

• Respondents in the UK are most likely to say they have bigger workloads (63%) and that staff are more stressed (48%) than other European Countries 

• Top channels used were email (85%), then social media (76%) and website (75%) then telephone (51%). 

Our members could consider: 

• Are different fundraising teams collaborating to create longer, more personalised supporter journeys to improve retention? 

• What steps must charities take to prioritize fundraisers' wellbeing? 

• Is current channel use sustainable in light of continued uncertainty? 

Top Takeaways:  

• "Successful" charities tended to have up-to-date databases pre-pandemic, diversified their supporter base by trying new things and were early adopters of digital. 

• "Surviving" charities often needed to shift their fundraising away from face-to-face activities, such as events or retail, although regular giving remained somewhat consistent. 

• "Struggling to survive" charities often lacked diversity in leadership, digital infrastructure and were risk-averse.  

Our members could consider:  

• Is your experience of the pandemic in-line with these profiles? 

• Has your appetite for risk improved since the beginning of 2020? 

• Is your fundraising strategy sufficiently agile to accommodate future changes to social distancing measures? 

Top Takeaways: 

• Donations peaked in Summer 2021 when social distancing restrictions were lifted. 

• Christmas giving might be impacted by rising inflation and cost of energy bills. 

• Of those more likely to give during Christmas, 42% say this is because they enjoy giving at Christmas and are looking for opportunities and 38% say it is because there are more campaigns present. 

Our members could consider:  

• How can you factor the uncertainty from the Omicrom variant into retention plans? 

• To what extent are your Christmas campaigns reaching new audiences? How can you make them stand out from the crowd? 

• Alongside the uncertainty of COVID, how will your long-term plans account for external economic factors? 

Top Takeaways: 

• Virtual events in 2021 raised on average twice as much as 2020 and the number of events raising more than £1M also doubled. 

• 80% of charities cited Facebook and social as their most effective marketing channel. 

• 2020’s top 5 events saw income fall on average by more than -40% this year whilst 7 of the 10 most successful events in 2021 were new to the market  

Our members could consider: 

• Do you know your donors' appetite for virtual events in the future? 

• How is your social strategy developing for events and what resources do you need to make it a reality? 

• With donors consistently drawn to new events, how will you keep innovating to stand out from the crowd? 

Top Takeaways: 

• There were 33,653 charitable estates in 2020, a 1,826 increase on the 31,827 reported for 2019.  

• The value of charitable estates in 2020 increased from £16.1bn to 17.9bn, a growth of 11.2%. 

• 38% of charitable Wills contained just one named charity and 22% contained 2 charities. 

Our Members could consider: 

• With legacies and gifts in wills growing, what role will legacies play in your fundraising portfolio? 

• Are you working across teams to maximise legacy giving opportunities?

Top Takeaways:  

• The majority of grants awarded were small- 67% of grants were for £10,000 or less with a further 29% between £10,000 and £100,000. 

• 48% of charities that received a grant received more than one and 26% received three or more.  

• 26% of grant recipients had not previously received funding from the grantmakers in the report, suggesting increased outreach by funders and more flexible funding programmes. 

Our Members could consider:  

• Will the trend for more frequent, smaller grants continue?  

• If so, how can charities make sure they have the capacity to write more funding applications whilst maintaining long-term relationships with funders? 

• How can the sector continue to support more accessible funding application procedures?

Top Takeaways 

• The top 1% of earners are responsible for at least 6% of overall public giving 

• The total annual income of the top 1% of earners was 20% higher in real terms in 2018-19 than in 2011-12 (rising from £114 billion to £139 billion), yet the total donated to charities fell by 7% over the same period (falling from £1.04 billion in 2011-12 to £969 million in 2018-19) 

• Gift Aid match goes unclaimed on a quarter of eligible donations. 

• A typical top earner gives less than 0.2% of their income to charity each year, if all top earners gave at least 1%, charities would receive up to £1.4 billion additional income each year. 

Our members could consider: 

• How can fundraisers adapt their major giving programmes to make the most of this untapped potential?  

• Are you claiming gift-aid on all eligible donations? 

• How can match-giving encourage philanthropy? 

Top Takeaways:

• 72% of NGOs (globally) say their donors expect remote access to KPIs and the same percent have plans to show real-time KPIs on their website within the next year. 

• 37% of UK-based marketeers adjusted their social media strategy and 95% of them reported this was impactful.

• 24% of NGOs (globally) report changing their fundraising approach to partner with
  other nonprofits or companies and 62% these say they will be permanently be part of their fundraising strategy.

Our members could consider:

• How are you showcasing your impact to donors? Is it working?
• Who (and where) are the organisations with whom you could strategically partner to fundraise?
• What resources do your fundraisers need to be able to effectively partner with other orgnaisations?

Top Takeaways:

• 75% of respondents said their income increased last year due to the pandemic.  

• 58% said their income grew because overall donor numbers increased 

• Those who consider themselves digitally mature are more likely to be gaining supporters and reach new audiences 

Our members could consider: 

• As we enter the last stages of the pandemic, how will other forms of uncertainty, such as Brexit and economic uncertainty, impact giving?  

• If your donor base increased, what is your plan to steward new supporters? 

• How digitally mature is your charity and how will this impact your future fundraising? 

Top Takeaways: 

• Gifts in Wills are estimated to raise over £90m in Scotland 
• In Scotland, average annual Legacy income is growing 7.0% per annum (vs 4.6% in England & Wales) 
• Around 500 Scottish charities are named in Wills each year and 64% are small charities 

Our members could consider: 

• Is your legacy income growing in-line with wider trends? 
• What steps can small Scottish charities take to remain popular recipients of gifts in wills? 
• Is now the time to invest in legacies? 

Top Takeaways: 

• 71% of runners say they are likely to donate to charity in the next three months, compared with 64% of the national population.  
• 37% of runners have represented charities in a sponsored event, as opposed to 17% of the overall British population. 
• Top three most popular causes for runners are Health, Children's Charities and Poverty Relief 

Our members could consider:  

• How they will continue to engage runners as hybrid events develop 
• Could other kinds of challenge events engage non-runners to encourage giving across new demographics? 

Top Takeaways: 

• 94% of corporates and 98% of NGOs believe their partnerships have helped corporates to develop their understanding of the societal and environmental issues.  
• 71% of corporates believe their partnerships focus on problem-solving or are mission-led, compared with 33% of NGOs. 
• 88% of NGOs and 80% of corporates expect they will increase or significantly increase investment into partnerships in the medium term. 

Our members could consider:  

• What are the key barriers to making shared-value partnerships the norm for charities?  
• If you are developing shared-value partnerships, how are you showcasing its impact to your charity, your partner and public?  
• With investment in this area increasing, how can it be best spent to make partnerships beneficial to both corporates and charities? 

Top Takeaways: 

• Income from the public increased by 3.5% to £27.1bn. 
• All other sources of income declined, including government income. 
• Smaller organisations receive a larger share of income from the public than larger ones. 

Our members could consider:  

• How will government support change as we enter into recovery?  
• Can increased support from the public fill the gap from other income sources? 
• What can larger organisations learn from small charities about building a strong supporter base?  

Top Takeaways: 

• Average amount of money given to charity increased by £3 to £27 per donor.  
• The North East had the highest percentage of the population donating to charity- 69%.  
• Giving across all age groups has dropped.  

Our members could consider:  

• Is the increase in the average donation making up for the drop in giving? 
• Are donors in more generous regions giving to local or national charities? 

Top Takeaways: 

• 37% of all charities feel more optimistic about the future than they did 3 months ago. 
• 44% charities increased spending in digital technology, IT and equipment.  
• +90% of charities expect the end of the furlough scheme will have no negative impact on their workforce 

Our members could consider:  

• As we move into recovery, is it easier to identify growth areas and new donors?  
• With technology now becoming integral to both fundraising and work practices, where does investment in this area need to be spent?  
• Will the return of furloughed colleagues resolve capacity issues?  

Top Takeaways:  

• There was 64% increase in text donations to charitable causes.  

Our members could consider:  

• What role could text to donate play in improving supporter experience?  

Top Takeaways:

• The number of people donating has dropped in the last three months, from 69% to 66%, for the first time during the pandemic. 
• 40% of donors would prefer to donate online. 
• Donations directly to charities have increased slightly, from 43% to 48%. 

Our members could consider: 

• How will giving trends for my charity change if the pandemic ends? 
• Are my digital donor journeys able to accomodate more online donations?

Top takeaways:

• Overall income is up 7% on last year. this is largely due to one-off donations. 
• Donor recruitment has increased by 58% from the beginning of 2020. 
• Gaming and community fundraising are attracting a younger, less affluent audience.

Our members could consider:  

• If their one-off donations are in line with national trends
• What is the next step to convert one-off donors into regular givers?
• How could charities continue to engage younger audiences? 

Top takeaways:

• Return on ad spend was highest for search ads (£3.91 for every pound spent), followed by social media (£0.96), display (£0.16), and video (£0.13)
• Email activity and performance (open rates, click-through rates and response rates) increased in 2020.
• Organic Facebook posts reached 7% of a charity’s page’s fans, but 30% of the audience reached by a given post was not already following the non-profit.

Our members could consider:

• Is their digital ROI and investment comparable to organisations with similar causes?
• How can charities better use email to improve supporter experience?
• How do charities strike a the right recruitment/retention balance with social posts?

Top Takeaways:

• Charitable giving among the HNWIs has increased in the latest quarter and is above the levels for this time last year.
• Donors with assets above £5 million gave a median of just over £500 to charity per quarter, 47% said they gave more than planned during the quarter.
• This is a considerable increase, in Q4 2020, they gave just over £300. 

Our members could consider:

• As giving levels are increasing, is now the time to invest in my major giving programmes?
• How should charities improve the recognition and impact of a gift as we shift from emergency to funding to longer term support?
• Do charities need to consider new funding models to maximise opportunities for HNWIs to give?

Top Takeaways

• Shifting to virtual events meant income from the Top 25 fell by less than 50%, from £143M in 2019 to £74.6M in 2020.
• Movember's 'Grow your Mo' brought in the most income- £11.5m
• Physical events will likely be popular again in 2022

Our members could consider:

• How did their mass participation products perform during lockdown?
• How will charities need to change their events post-pandemic?
• Did the shift to digital recruit new supporters in lockdown? How can they remain engaged post-pandemic?

Top takeaways:

• Support for online events is mixed- 60% are not likely to take part in an event whilst 29% would.
• 18-24 and 25-39 age groups are more likely to take part in an event than older demographics.
• Virtual events are still more popular than mass participation events
• 52% would be encouraged in taking part in a hybrid event

Our members could consider:

• Who are their current event participants?
• What is their ideal format- in-person, virtual or hybrid?
• How can charities integrate hybrid events into their offering?

Top takeaways:

• 39% of organisations said staff are working remotely
• 91% of organisations said services have moved online
• 27% expect and increase in paid workforce over the next month

Our members could consider:

• What will the future of work look like for fundraisers?
• Do charities have the infrastructure, knowledge and skills for a long-term digital first environment?

Top Takeaways:

• DCMS awarded the most grants (15,427)
• A total of £1,307,420,627 has been awarded to frontline charities so far
• The majority of grants were awarded to London, followed by the South East.

Our members could consider:

• If they have received COVID funding, how are they building relationships with funders to bridge a potential income gap post-pandemic?
• If they have not received COVID funding, who are their best source of funders and partnerships this increasingly competitive area of fundraising?
• How can the sector raise the profile of regional charities to tackle funding disparity?

Top Takeaways:

• 70% charities reported they performed better than expected at the beginning of the pandemic
• 46% charities expect fundraising events to be back at pre-pandemic level by the end of 2021. 
• 58% of charities reported increased apetite to try new things

Our members could consider: 

• Giving levels have tapered off since Q1 2020, what is the long-term implications of this? 
• Is event income still expected to rebound in Q4 2021?  
• The pandemic pushed many charities to try new things, how can the sector maintain this mindset going forward? 

Top Takeaways:

• 55.6% said remote working has made them more effective and efficient.
• Overall income is down from 2019, but each area of fundraising has been impacted differently, read the report for details on legacy, major giving, regular giving, retail and events.
• Supporter volumes remains stable at around 7m

Our members could consider:

• With income down, but supporter volumes stable, should they invest in supporter experience to grow support from warm donors?
• Will their fundraising portfolio need to shift focus in the long-term?

Top Takeaways:

• This is the second year in a row where the value of charitable estates has fallen that Smee & Ford have identified within the last decade
• 4% of total sector income comes from legacies.
• 37.5% of charitable Wills contained just one named charity and 21.8% contained two.

Our members could consider:

• When will legacy income recover from COVID?
• Where is there cross-over with other teams to maximise legacy income?
• Is their legacy supporter journey agile enough to keep donors engaged in ever-changing circumstances?

Top takeaways:

• Overall, small charities experienced a variation in changes to their total income in 2020, compared to 2019
• 16% of small charities expect to be able to access emergency Covid-19 funding from the National Lottery Community Fund
• 80% of emergency grants from general funders have gone to small charities, representing 57% by total value

Our members could consider:

• How can charities invest in fundraising to make up the income gap?
• Who are the new supporters fundraisers need to start engaging with?
• How will charities maintain strong relationships with funders post-COVID?

Top takeaways:

• Giving has remained stable, between January and June 2020, the public donated a total of £5.4 billion to charity- +£800 million to 2019
• There was an increase in support for hospitals and hospices during the first wave
• Cash giving has decreased in favour of online donations.
• More than half of respondents think charities are trustworthy

Our members could consider:

• Is individual giving income in line with national trends?
• How can charities improve their digital donor journey to maximise online donations?
• How can the sector raise the profile of our impact to convert public trust into donations?