June 11, 2009 Admin

According to Giving USA, total giving to US charities declined 5.7% in real terms in 2008 compared to 2007, the first decline in real terms since 1987.

Total giving in 2008 amounted to $307.65 billion, with these components (all declines inflation-adjusted):

Individuals — $229.3 billion, down 6.3%

Foundations — $41.2 billion, down 0.8%

Bequests — $22.7 billion, down 6.4%

Corporations — $14.5 billion, down 8%

Steve MacLaughlin at Blackbaud analyzed this and other data to conclude that online giving rose to a total of $15.4 billion in 2008, an increase of 44% over 2007. That means online gifts accounted for just over 5% of total 2008 giving (or about 6.7% of individual giving).

Further, he reports that, for Blackbaud clients, online giving in Q1 2009 has risen 68% over the same period in 2008.

I guess that’s good news if you’re an online fundraiser (or consultant). But with the total giving pie down, some of the steam is taken out of that good news. For, with a declining total pie, one must conclude that a lot of online fundraising is simply cannibalizing other channels. No?

Tom

P.S. This modeled Giving USA data mirrors findings from a Target Analytics study earlier this year, based on actual file analysis of 75 national nonprofit direct mailers, that found a decline in individual giving of 3.3% (which compares to Giving USA’s non-adjusted-for-inflation decline of 2.7%).