It’s the end of 2022, and the season of giving is upon us. This year, in addition to giving thanks to our donors, we also conducted a survey to better understand what motivates them to give. The reasons for giving are diverse and most people have more than one influence motivating them to give. In this survey, we asked the donors to pick one out of the five most common reasons as to why they give to non-profit organizations.
- Because I trust that the organization will put my donation into good use.
- Because helping those in need is one of my personal values.
- Because I have a personal and/or social connection to the organization’s mission.
- Because I would like to have a tax break.
- Because giving makes me happy.
Charitable giving can be highly personal, 30% of our survey respondents said that having a personal or social connection to the organization’s mission is the most important factor when considering giving. On the other hand, while some donors value the financial incentive of giving, it appears that altruism is the driving force behind why people donate.
Written by Jennifer Shu-Ping Chen