Understanding online fund raising

To the Editor:

A letter from Nick Allen of Donordigital (“A Different Way to Look at Online Giving,” December 13) noted differences in findings between a recent Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University report sponsored by American Express, comparing donors’ online and offline giving, and a report examining gift records in which his organization took part. We helped design the American Express Charitable Gift Study, analyzed the data, and prepared the report, and we feel it is important to rectify a statement made by Mr. Allen.

In his comments, Mr. Allen equated two approaches that do not allow for appropriate comparisons: research done, as the Charitable Gift Study was, with a nationally representative, randomly drawn sample — from which findings can be drawn with statistical significance and measures of accuracy, versus averages calculated based on gifts received by a few dozen charities, which is more akin to a case-study approach.

Based on a random sample of 1,200 households, the Charitable Gift Study found that the average amount given online is not statistically different from the average offline donation. The study has an accuracy level of plus or minus 3 percent, with 95-percent certainty.

We also found that the largest gifts are made offline. When online donations are larger than offline gifts received by a charity, as found by the charities Mr. Allen tracked, it is not likely that the sole reason for the difference is that the gift is being made online; other factors are influencing the gift size, such as donor income (as Mr. Allen notes), whether the gift is by credit card or check (as the Charitable Gift Study shows), and donor characteristics such as age, education level, and more.

Charities that can conduct online campaigns have many good reasons for doing so. The Charitable Gift Study suggested some approaches that might engage more donors in online giving. The key message is that online giving is an option that should be considered, and that convenience and outreach from the charity were the most important factors driving donors to give online.

Patrick M. Rooney
Director of Research
Melissa S. Brown
Assistant Director of Research
Indiana University Center on Philanthropy
Indianapolis