Why (and How) to Change How We Define Generosity

You’ve heard all the bad news before, right? Individual giving continues to drop. Donor retention rates remain stubbornly low. Nonprofits are increasingly reliant on a relatively small group of major donors. Throw in today’s current economic volatility, uncertainty around grants, and changing legislation, and you’ve got a recipe for sleepless nights.

Ready for some good news? People are still generous. Really generous.

Their generosity might just look a little different than what you’d think.

Recognizing, celebrating, and reinforcing that generosity is the future of nonprofits’ fundraising—it’s the skeleton key that unlocks your ability to build the stable, resilient base of supporters that will keep your organization going (and going, and going).

Sounds great. But where do you start?

You start by understanding how everyday donors—the 96.9% of donors who give $5,000 or less every year—support the nonprofits they love. That understanding will help you create effective strategies to engage them now and in the future.

What Is Generosity?

How do we know all this? We looked! Specifically, we looked at five years of donor data to get a picture of how the average donor practices generosity every single day.

Our data set included 99,522 people who donated to nonprofits between 2020 and 2024. We set some giving benchmarks for the panel as a whole, then divided the group into different cohorts based on different behaviors. This gave us insight into the different overlapping ways people supported their favorite causes and how those activities correlated to their financial giving.

Of our panel:

• 29,610 (29.75%) gave to multiple nonprofits
• 2,900 (2.91%) were recurring donors
• 3,601 (3.62%) pledged money
• 14,933 (15%) registered for events
• 12,726 (12.79%) paid for memberships
• 3,729 (3.75%) volunteered
• 1,477 (1.48%) participated in peer-to-peer fundraisers

We were able to identify patterns within those cohorts, too. 39.61% of volunteers also registered for events. 11.17% of peer-to-peer participants also purchased memberships. 8.97% of recurring donors also made pledges. 

Those are just a few examples! Each group was represented in all the others. These people had (and probably still have!) deep relationships with their favorite nonprofits that dedication was expressed in many different ways.

And here’s the beautiful part: Those numbers don’t paint the whole picture. That data only includes activities that were logged in Neon CRM. If a recurring donor’s volunteer activities are logged in a different system, it won’t be reflected here. If a member is a vocal advocate for your work to their friends or family, that kind of advocacy can’t be captured here.

People are even more generous than we can see.

Deep Relationships (Usually) Mean More Revenue

Almost every group of supporters gave at levels above the panel benchmarks, especially as they stayed engaged with their favorite nonprofits over time.

• Recurring donors who gave a single year did so at a level that was 121.24% higher than the benchmark. They maintained higher-than-average giving throughout all five years covered in the study.
• Pledgemakers were exceptionally generous, with one-year donors giving 158.1% above benchmark in their first year and increasing their average annual giving each year. 
• Event registrants gave at levels near the benchmark for the first year or so, then accelerated dramatically after year three
• Volunteers followed a similar pattern; they gave at or below benchmarks for three years before accelerating to 52.76% above benchmark by year five.
• Peer-to-peer participants gave 85.45% above the benchmark from their very first year.

Members were the exception to this pattern. They typically gave at or slightly below benchmark levels. They still increased their giving over time, though, and were engaged in numerous other activities.

What Does This Mean for You?

If you want to become a resilient nonprofit that thrives independent of industry trends and worldwide headlines, it’s time to focus on building a stable community of generous supporters. This data shows that the best way to achieve this is by recognizing, celebrating, and encouraging the different ways your supporters show their love for your cause.

To that end, we have a few suggestions for you.

1. Recognize and Celebrate Every Type of Generosity

Your most engaged supporters may not be your biggest donors. If you define someone’s “generosity” solely by looking at their financial donations, you risk overlooking the other ways they give to you. When you don’t understand and acknowledge those different contributions, you’ll have a really hard time keeping them engaged..

Your supporters don’t just give money. They volunteer, attend events, participate in your membership programs, advocate for you, and donate their time and skills. Recognizing and celebrating those expressions—all of them!—is absolutely critical to keeping them engaged with you in the long run.

2. Focus on Longevity, Not Gift Size

People don’t generally give at their full capacity right away. Avoid the temptation to use their individual gift sizes as the primary indicator that they’ll be financially generous. Instead, build long-term relationships with your supporters. When you prioritize good engagement, donor retention, and relationship-building, you’ll build a solid base of supporters who will often increase their giving over time.

3. Connect with People Face to Face

Take advantage of in-person interactions with event registrants, volunteers, and peer-to-peer participants. These groups are some of the most engaged people in your community! They give some gifts that are less tangible than cash but no less valuable. They donate the feeling of rising enthusiasm at an event, an extra pair of hands when you need one, or advocacy for your cause to their friends and family… and they’re likely to be willing to give dollars, too.

4. Don’t Be Afraid to Ask

If you ever find yourself questioning whether you should ask different types of supporters to make donations or get involved in other ways, quiet that little voice! 

Generosity comes in many forms. Give people the opportunity to show you how much they care about your cause! If they’re supporting you in one way, they may be likely to support you in another. Just be thoughtful about how you ask.

Closing Thoughts

Let’s be honest: You’re facing some worrisome trends and headlines. It is a very intense time to be a nonprofit.

But people are generous. And those people have historically rallied around their favorite causes and nonprofits even during difficult times.

As you plan how you’ll build a resilient nonprofit that can weather anything that comes your way, start by understanding your everyday donor. Look for ways to connect with them, retain them, and deepen their commitment to your cause.

This isn’t going to be an instant fix. Building a community of supporters takes time, and it takes work. But it’s the best way to ensure your organization can stay active and effective through whatever comes your way.

When you feel overwhelmed, discouraged, or hopeless by trends and headlines, remind yourself that people are generous. They always have been! They’ll be generous to you, too—you just need to give them the chance.

Start Understanding Everyday Donors

Dig into these trends and more (so, so much more) in our newest research! The Generosity Report: Data-Backed Insights for Resilient Fundraising examines important donor trends, patterns, and behaviors, then tells you how you can apply those findings to your own fundraising program. It’s coming out soon—here’s where you can sign up to get your copy!

Sign Up to Get a Copy