Dorothy Donor, the traditional charitable donor, is declining as older generations age. Younger generations like Generation X and Y engage differently and prefer digital methods. Charities must understand different age cohorts and meet audiences where they are. New events like outdoor yoga or skinny dipping can create buzz. Innovation is key to engaging digital natives and replacing declining legacy income. The challenge is understanding audiences and delivering the right offerings through the preferred channels of each generation.

1. 2013 Community and Volunteering Conference
How can we cope with the death of
‘Dorothy Donor’
Di Flatt Prof Cert Mgmt (Open), MIoF, FRSA
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Fundraising Director, Epilepsy Action
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Chair, Institute of Fundraising in Yorkshire
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Trustee, Institute of Fundraising, Representing the Nations and Regions
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Member, Fundraising Standards Board Advisory Forum

2. To set the scene - 2012 Survey
‘Managing charities in the new normal – A perfect storm?’
The latest instalment in the series of ‘Managing in a Downturn’ survey reports produced by PwC, Charity
Finance Group and the Institute of Fundraising.
The ‘Managing in a Downturn’ surveys have been undertaken since 2008.
Now in its fifth year, the overwhelming message coming from the latest survey
is that the sector is in the middle of a major re-shaping and that this is really
testing the morale, ambition, energy and competence of trustees and senior
managers.
Fundraising and income generation clearly continues to be challenging.

3. Key findings.
Income is down whilst demand for services continues to grow ....
Charities have experienced a net reduction in income across all income
streams and expect further reductions, particularly in relation to income
from the public sector.
93% of fundraisers say the fundraising climate has got tougher in
the past 12 months, and
94% expect it to get tougher again in the coming 12 months.
63% of charities have been negatively affected by Government spending
policies.
20% of charities are now considering merger – a significant increase from
just 12% in March 2011.

4. Top five experiencing increase in demand for services – by
charity type. %’age of respondents experiencing
increase in demand
Homelessness 85%
Cancer/Hospices 83%
General charitable purposes (grant makers) 75%
Older people 72%
Health 71%
69% of charities delivering services have experienced an increase in
demand for their services in the past 12 months; 70% expect an
increase in the coming year.

5. 80% of respondents reported that they had performed a strategic
review, up from 70% of respondents in the last survey.
66% plan to increase fundraising in current areas of focus.
65% plan to start fundraising in new areas.
One of the points made consistently throughout the
Managing in a Downturn reports is that charities should
invest time in seeking to better understand their risks and
any threats or opportunities for their income streams.

6. Key risk:
Dorothy is dying!
Key challenge:
To understand the age cohorts and
our charities’ audiences better.

7. Behaviours of different age cohorts:
How does this affect engagement and giving?
1901 – 1924
Silent generation
•The heroes of WWII.
•See glossy fundraising
materials as a waste of money.
•Give out of duty.
•May now have already left
their legacy.

8. 1925 - 1945
Senior generation.
This generation often goes
un-noticed.
They are the last of the
‘Dorothy’s’.
•Quiet and industrious they were not the heroes of WWII like the seniors or
extroverts like the post-war baby boomers. Beats rather than hippies they
were rarely leaders but became solid dependable charity supporters,
giving out of duty
•Now largely retired, their legacies are keeping many organisations
artificially afloat; as the following Baby Boomers are more likely to spend or
give their money away before they pass on.

9. 1946 - 1964
Baby Boomers.
Now your target market – but they are
not leaving the big legacies.
•Hold the wealth.
•However, may be paying to care for parents.
•Or may have their older children still at or coming back home.
•Or may be spending money on helping children through university.
•Or may be spending money on helping children purchase a property ?

10. 1965 - 1977
Generation X.
Want to see evidence of our impact.
Only respond to internet and phone
based material !
•No experience of poverty.
•Have material possessions.
•Comfortable with technology.
•Expect good design.
•Will not read heavy text.
•Need convincing of the problem.
•When using social media we need to be
very clear there is a need and that
beneficiaries are deserving.

11. 1978 - 1994
Generation Y.
Do not engage with traditional
fundraising methods !
•100 mobile texts per day •Give online/face to face/QR Codes
•Hive mind (the new bar code recognition)
•FaceBook •Celebrity – created not earned (eg
•You Tube for Baby Boomers generation
•Gap year – third world celebrity HAD to be earned)
experiences •Very educated
•Comfortable with debt •Understands poverty overseas.

12. Other considerations
Changes in the way people engage and donate:
Traditional geography: close to services, close to offices, close to cause.
New geography: Twitter, Facebook,You Tube, Just Giving.
Kiva: empowering people across the world with 25$ loans.
3,310 new lenders joined in one week (30.06.12)
29,792 people made a loan that week (£2,054,825 loaned in the one week!)
8 seconds between loans
98.97% repayment rate.

13. Increased competition:
Increase in social enterprise and new ways of working:
The Pub is the Hub – making pubs the focal point for community
services.

14. Increased competition:
And then there is:
Martha Payne
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuzAPy3Wbwg
Never Seconds – blog about school meals.
Council didn’t like it – tried to close her down
Using her blog to support Mary’s Meals – small charity providing
school meals to a school in Malawi.
Just giving target £7k
Went viral – many fundraisers around the world supporting
To date has raised £129,307.53 - 1847% of target 

15. People are doing it for themselves.
All over the world. 24 hours a day!

16. So we need to be doing it better!
!

17. We need to be where our audiences are:
Delivering things that fit their age group!
Age Cohort: Print: Telephone: Street: Internet (inc: Traditional
iPhone and Mobile:
Android):
Seniors X
Silent X
Baby Boomers X X X
Generation X X X X
Generation Y X X X
Your challenge is to have products that appeal to all the cohorts going forward!

18. Play together!
We need to get out into our different communities.
What are they talking about?
Where are they going?
What do they enjoy?

19. Flirt with people’s
interests – innovate
and have fun!
What are the new event
offerings?
Cycling – popularity on the rise, but we need to make it worth
talking about.
Let’s create great conversational capital - by ensuring people are
talking about what we are doing!

20. Over 200 naked bathers stripped off at sunrise, in a bid to
break the world record for the biggest ever skinny dip –
raising money for mental health charity Mind.

21. Salute to the Sun – a fun and energising yoga event at
sunrise at Rutland Water - raising money for Epilepsy
Action.

22. What next?
Dorothy is leaving us 

23. What next?
The baby boomers are spending and have less for charity !

24. We need to engage with
Generation X and Y – the digital generations!

25. I suggest we throw our some of
the traditional stuff.
Innovate. Ask. Listen. Have fun.
Test . Test. Test!
Be creative. Step out of your
usual toolbox and comfort zone.
Make changes – and create great
conversational capital for your organisation. Create
something the people you want to reach will talk
about.

26. Whatever you deliver - deliver it in the right way for your
audience.
Age Cohort: Print: Telephone: Street: Internet (inc: Traditional
iPhone and Mobile:
Android):
Seniors X
Silent X
Baby Boomers X X X
Generation X X X X
Generation Y X X X
And don’t deliver anything older than your audience!

27. Key risk:
Dorothy is dying! But we will be okay.
Key challenge:
To understand age cohorts
and our charities’ audiences
better. And we can do that!

28. Thank you.
Di Flatt Prof Cert Mgmt (Open), MIoF, FRSA
Director of Fundraising
Epilepsy Action
Email: DiFlatt@me.com
Mobile Tel: 07738 702420
Tel: 0113 210 8826
Twitter: @DiFlatt
Blog: www.diflatt.com
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