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When Do Donors Give Online?
Recently, we kick started a series of posts that took a look at online giving in the 21st century. Following up on our series, today we take a deeper look at when and how often donors give online. A number of patterns run consistent among online givers. Here is what we uncovered:
Online giving flourishes during disaster
A report furnished by Network for Good indicates that online giving increases during disaster. Roughly 30% of overall online giving was in response to natural calamities such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes. The following data reveals insight into online giving trends:
- The normal volume of web traffic and online giving inflated over 10 times after the 2004 Asian tsunami hit Thailand
- Online giving spiked 75 times the normal volume after hurricane Katrina
- Giving online has typically doubled in response to earthquakes worldwide
Online giving is at its peak during weekdays, rather than weekends
Generally donors give online during the week. According to Network for Good’s survey – donors are most charitable Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday – and more likely to donate during the morning between 10 am and 12 pm. Online giving decreases during mid-day, but resumes in the late afternoon and early evening hours. The graph below illustrates the aggregate monetary amount of online donations per day of the week:
Online Giving Per Day Of Week
Giving online fluctuates in annual cycles
Previously we touched on the recession’s impact on online giving. Here we explored giving trends that reoccur throughout the year. Reports indicate that online giving decreases around December, plummeting around February and March, but jumpstarts again after April.
As technology continues to advance, its only a matter of time before more key insights into charity trends and online giving patterns are revealed. As always we love to hear your feedback…
- Do you respond to disaster relief giving?
- Where and to what causes do you give online the most?
- When and how often do you give online?
Tags: giving online
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11 comments to “When Do Donors Give Online?”
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8. July 2009 at 11:45 pm :
This information is really interesting because you can see that people are donating when they have more time. They also seem to be donating when they know the banks etc. are open. As for the natural disasters, I would think by donating online the money would get to the charities faster.
8. July 2009 at 11:55 pm :
This is the neat thing about online donations. You can track what days a week, target your donators.People give for different reasons. I think tax donations would be the least. People give because they can relate to the charity. Maybe they just want to “make difference.” Many people like to be publicly acknowledged for their gifts to charity. Sometimes a simple ” thankyou” is all a person needs. Then people donate because you give them something tangible in return. For example: thank you gift, candy bar, or just their name written somewhere. Other donations are when people donate to be seen with celebrities. As far online,donations,people can relate to the cause. It can be a personal experiance. Most of your donations come from your middle class or poor class. These are people , who can relate to the donation, because they have been there. Maybe, when the person was little, they went to camp. They can think of all the fun they had, so that’s why they donate. People can relate to a sickness, or one of their family members died of that sickness. Some people donate because it just feels good.
9. July 2009 at 12:05 am :
I really believe that many donations are give after a disaster also. Many people go there regular life and don’t think about it until something major happens. This is a wonderful blog and I appreciate all the ideas it gives. Thank you
9. July 2009 at 12:40 am :
It seems they give during working hours. I think they slow down during the lunch time and then in the evenings it picks up when they are at home on line. I think many are away from computer during the weekends doing family things and that would explain the donating being busier during the week days.
9. July 2009 at 1:49 am :
Interesting survey
I think giving online increases in middle of the week, because that the most aprocreate time people at home and work, Tends to find their work load decreased from other days of the week.
Monday the work week begins, and Friday work week ends, the survey clearly show those two days differed from the rest of week days.
9. July 2009 at 1:04 pm :
Thank you for the interesting information/stats re: giving. I did not realize that there is such a defined pattern in the behavior of giving.
The MicroGiving Team never ceases to meet me in their invested energy to this great site. Cheers;)
9. July 2009 at 7:20 pm :
I can’t honestly say I respond to disaster relief giving. I am aware that many programs that receive grants and funding are involved in disaster relief and though homes, cars and furnishings are never of the kind of quality a person had before the disaster often they are helped with basic needs and basic medical care. I help on smaller scale where smaller natural disasters like creek floods, trees falling etc happen to those in areas where less charity, state and federal aid is given. Mostly low income lower populated rural areas.
I give mostly to the causes of disabled adults, elderly, rural families and animal care.
I have a scheduled online giving budget at the 1st of every month. If we are doing well that month we budget out of my partners paycheck around mid month. We tend to give it all at the beginning of the month rather than distribute the funds over the whole month because we know if we don’t give it away right then and there we will find other uses for it at home and we would give less…we don’t want to do that so we are sure to give our budgeted amount right away and according to our budget will give more later.
9. July 2009 at 7:30 pm :
I think this is one thing that drives our whole family. We have not had an easy life. Amy’s was a bit easier than our family but not by a whole lot. We have been through many things and often we were never helped by anyone and wished someone cared enough to help a little. We managed though, my mom was a fighter and survivor and me and my sister learned well, my boys learned from the best
I believe I give more than my mother does, don’t get me wrong now, she is extremely generous, but she tends to watch out more for her own family than others. I tend to be opposite which has always baffled her. I am more willing to go without and give what I can so another family can move ahead than to make sure I’m comfortable first before helping. That is why I would get myself in trouble as a child, my mother taught that charity begins at home and you make sure you take care of your and your own first. I believed in that…but believed also that beginning at home included those around you, in your community, county, state, country…I felt I didn’t have to have every comfort care for first, I could be uncomfortable for a while to make someone else as comfortable as I am in my discomfort. I’m sure that sentence made no sense but the idea is if I was a little uncomfortable, but my gift make the person more comfortable, we were equal. Kind of like slowing down a bit so someone could catch up.
Because I have “been there and done that” I can relate to many things and the one thing that has haunted me my whole life is when I needed a friend none was there and I don’t ever want to near enough to someone to grasp their hand…and not do it. I know too much how it feels.
10. July 2009 at 1:10 am :
I am realy curious to find out the real reason why most people make online donation on Tuesday and Wennesday over other week days. Then followed by Monday that trend illustrated that most people like to go online for a two to three hours period, before taking a break and then return late evening after work when they get home.
Unfortunately i am not in any position to online giving, besause of my present situation.
With that said i would respond and contribute in every way possible to variuos disaster relief foundation.
I would also give to causes like hunger, homeless, urgent medical need, and people serious financial needs.
I would give online as often as possible if necessary.
11. July 2009 at 2:45 am :
Most people will respond to a natural disater. I fell like it is human nature,
people like to help others that are in need of help. but I also fell like peopel are
some time not sure about helping others. if it is not a natural disater
I personally would like to see more people giving to those who have been victimize.
14. July 2009 at 9:38 pm :
* What causes are you most likely to donate to?
I have never really thought about this. I really don’t know for sure how to respond to this question. When I see a need, I don’t actually think about the organization itself, I think more about what do they help with, how many people do they actually help, how much of my donation actually makes a difference? I guess those would be some of the questions that I would ask. I will say I’m more willing to donate if the person receiving that gift receives 100 percent of it.
Do you feel the categories listed above are ranked accordingly? What categorie(s) do you feel deserve more public attention? Again, another tough question. They seemed to be ranked accordingly I guess. I do feel that child charities, disease and health care charities, as well as, elderly help is the top of my list. I also believe natural relief if very important.
* Why do you think online givers are more likely to donate to larger organizations? Don’t they receive enough donations? I’m thinking it’s simply because many of those organizations have received a lot more attention, and have been around longer.