Create experiences and raising funds
The traditional style of donating has not gone away, but the general public wants more than just to part with their money.
Donating in 2018
People want to participate but in a non-committal fashion, not in a volunteer fashion either, they crave experiences and ones where they are documented and captured as having participated in it. For example, in 2015 there was Star Trek: To Boldly Go Omaze Campaign where the donor had the chance to win and be chosen at random to be part of the crew. Omaze has done many other campaigns where donors get the chance to win a spot in movies as an extra or be the first to see the celebrities at convention centres. This is mostly through the platform, www.omaze.com. The platform focuses on offering experiences and raising funds for charities. The fun of doing an activity in the name of charity is big business. Those fun runs with colourful chalk sprayed all over a white t-shirt and Instagram goes hand-in-hand these days.
Subscription starts at $1
Donating through subscription is a classic method; however, a lot of charities still insist on the $30 a month. Whereas modern “creators” on the Internet set their subscriptions as low as $1 and on each tier level they offer even more exclusive interactions. Which is great for low income earners. I believe with the advent of the Internet, there are more ways than one to brand donor names on digital content, especially content made to be consumed on Internet, such as photographs, videos, and electronic game characters. Just have a look at one modern day creator’s page which demonstrates those ideas. Nick has kept the tier levels simple and easy to follow — https://www.patreon.com/trnrtips/memberships. He banked on the people’s sense of value. Quite a powerful move.
Freedom in payment choice
There are a growing number of people who shun credit cards and prefer tokenization payment systems, since credit cards are prone to fraudulent transactions. I would love to find a chart detailing companies leading the way in tokenization payment systems; so far none, but the industry for it is growing fast! Here are a few popular ones.
- PayPal (the original)
- We Chat (reaching number 1 in China and popular amongst tourists in Australia)
- Apple Pay (climbing the ladder and offers ability to pay within web browser on eligible websites)
- Google Pay (climbing the ladder and offers ability to pay within web browser on eligible websites)
- Samsung Pay (big in South Korea and major cities in the USA)
- Fitbit Pay (popular among active people for small purchases)
Generation income disparity
Less and less people are holding down full-time jobs. Incomes have become so unstable; therefore, people are more cautious with their spending. In 2017, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there were 750,000 Australians working second or third jobs, and this is climbing (Patty, 2017). If you ask me, that is relatively high.
Overall, non-profit organisations should re-examine how they source donations, and libraries are no exception. The overall theme is that donors want more for their money. Funding and donations in the digital age is not the same as the 1980s. Times have changed. You need to offer something of value or meaning to draw people in to donate to your project, your cause, and your organisation.
Reference:
Patty, A. (2017, 6 August) Workers juggling two or three jobs to make ends meet, in The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved from https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/workers-juggling-two-or-three-jobs-to-make-ends-meet-20170804-gxpjoa.html
