Why Do Givers Give?

the short answer?
because they feel.
Flickr user Ally Aubry

they might feel:
empathy.
in one study, when asked to help people
who were considered “responsible” for
their situation, participants were less
likely to donate.
unless
they were asked to recall their own past
immoral behavior, in which case their
likelihood of a donation increased.
Flickr user Sacca

they might feel:
happy.
donors are more likely to give after being
asked to donate time, not because it’s
easier than volunteering, but rather
thinking about the good feelings
associated with helping others reduces
resistance to giving money due to
dwelling on economic utility.
Flickr user Britt Selvitelle

they might feel:
guilty.
when people felt shame
about not helping
an organization in need,
they were more likely
to donate.
Flickr user Evil Erin

they might feel:
love.
people are more likely to donate to
causes that have affected a friend, family
member, or loved one.
Flickr user Luis Alejandro Bernal Romero

they might feel:
nostalgic.
when presented with a charitable appeal,
participants were more likely to give to
an appeal that used the phrase “Those
were the days…” rather than “Now is the
time.”
Flickr user Yohan Creemers

how can you hook these
feelings into your donation
requests?

make it personable and
relatable. don’t just tell
donors about your mission,
feature a success story
about one of your
beneficiaries.

ask for more than just
money. ask for time and
talents.

don’t be afraid to put on a
little pressure. remind
donors of the need or how
much use they receive
from your services.

know thy donor. don’t
waste time asking for the
wrong things from the right
people, or the right things
from the wrong people.

Crowdfunding
Mobile donations
Peer-to-peer fundraising
Online donations
Donor prospecting
Request a demo

References
Saerom Lee, Karen Page Winterich, and William T. Ross Jr. “I'm Moral, but I Won't Help You: The Distinct Roles of
Empathy and Justice in Donations.” Journal of Consumer Research: October 2014. For more information, contact Saerom
Lee (slee.mktg@gmail.com) or visit http://ejcr.org/.
Liu, W., Aaker, J.L. ”The Happiness of Giving: The Time-Ask Effect” Journal of Consumer Research: October 2008.
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/23547473_The_Happiness_of_Giving_The_Time-Ask_Effect
Robert J. Fisher, Mark Vandenbosch, and Kersi D. Antia. An Empathy-Helping Perspective on Consumers' Responses to
Fundraising Appeals. Journal of Consumer Research, October 2008
Small et al. Friends of Victims: Personal Experience and Prosocial Behavior. Journal of Consumer Research, 2007; 0 (0):
071213134416001 DOI: 10.1086/527268
Xinyue Zhou, Tim Wildschut, Constantine Sedikides, Kan Shi, and Cong Feng
Journal of Consumer Research
Vol. 39, No. 1 (June 2012), pp. 39-50

Why Do Givers Give?

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Editor's Notes