How Digital Communities Are Driving Nonprofit Reach

It seems the world of nonprofit fundraising has become consumed with the idea of community — recognizing its centrality in the work we do while lamenting its breakdown. I count myself among those fixated on understanding the trends and exploring what we can do about it; I shared some thoughts on the topic in these pages a few months ago. What I have come to recognize as a universal truth is that real connection and durable relationships come from community – and community is essential for inspiring meaningful philanthropic action.

Community does not need perfect conditions to form. In fact, people are forging connections in unexpected places. Take Peloton, the pandemic’s at-home fitness sensation (and still my morning workout partner on most days), as a case in point. Peloton introduced hashtags that spawned groups like PeloLawMoms (9157 members), RescueDogs (404 members), and FirstResponderPTSD (26 members) on an otherwise anonymous platform. Even when dragging ourselves on the bike for a grueling ride to nowhere, we want to find a way to express ourselves and find our people.

What does this mean for nonprofits? Nonprofits have databases filled with supporters who have taken action for their cause. Yet all too often, these supporters remain strangers to one another. The potential for fostering deeper engagement through these relationships remains untapped. That undiscovered connection presents an exciting opportunity.

To understand what it could mean, we turned to donors themselves. We commissioned a report to understand how people want to give and published GoFundMe’s Social State of Giving in October. The findings revealed that, while many give to “do the right thing,” younger generations – especially Gen Z – are also driven by a desire to be part of a larger movement. The words there are important: they are not giving to support a larger movement. They want to be part of the movement. And that desire to participate invites creativity on all sorts of interesting ways to allow people to engage. Half of Gen Z, ages 18-27, reported sharing causes or fundraisers to their networks at least once a week. Lest you think this is strictly a Gen Z phenomenon, over half of Millennials say they are doing so at least monthly.

This sharing isn’t arbitrary; it’s purposeful. People are thoughtful about their digital presence, with a quarter of all respondents sharing in order to play a role in community – a number that rises to 37% for Gen Z specifically and 30% for Millennials. Additionally, 25% of Gen Z reported they share causes as a form of self-expression, underscoring the role of digital space in personal and social identity.

Responding to this desire, GoFundMe has introduced our new Profiles feature to allow individuals to showcase the causes that matter most to them, curating a shareable list of fundraisers and nonprofits they support. Underpinning this, users can share campaigns with a unique impact link, enabling them to track and display the full impact of their reach on their profile. Within the first weeks of launch, thousands of GoFundMe Profiles were published, tapping into that desire to self-identify with the causes we support. Couple that with our industry-first Meta integration that equips nonprofits and their supporters with an upgraded sharing experience on Instagram and Facebook, designed to build credibility, trust, and engagement, and the forms of engagement suddenly feel fresh.

These opportunities are profound when we consider the hard work nonprofits put into driving discovery and engagement with their supporters. Generations of people are now actively showing up in digital spaces, ready to voice their support for their causes and bring their networks along without ever needing to be asked to become a formal peer-to-peer fundraiser. We believe the supporter sentiment offered through this research, combined with exciting new technology capabilities, can usher in a new way of thinking about digital community.

Traditionally, nonprofits have had to focus on crafting sophisticated marketing plans to broadcast one message that is responded to via a donation. But today’s landscape invites a new approach- one that empowers people to engage in ways that resonate with them personally. We are looking at a world where audiences can be a more integrated and organic part of the marketing and fundraising ecosystem as donors, supporters, and amplifiers.

This empowerment is fueling the rise of “impact creators” – individuals who use social media to inspire change, spread positivity, and rally support for important causes. And they each do it in a way that is meaningful and authentic to them and their audience.

The Social State of Giving research shows that most people under 42 follow at least one impact creator online. Even more striking is that over half of Gen Z say they would trust impact creators to make donations on their behalf. This isn’t reserved for the generations raised with digital influencers. A full 46% of Millennials would also trust impact creators to make donations under $20 on their behalf, and about ⅓ would trust them to disseminate funds over $20 for them.

Beyond the big names with mainstream influence, millions of everyday voices are now championing causes within their own networks. Why? Because each post contributes to a shared sense of purpose, belonging, and self-identity.

Imagine the impact of truly embracing and tooling our supporters to activate: most nonprofits have a small team, perhaps a few people, or even just a fraction of one person’s time dedicated to building awareness and engagement. What if we could let our supporters truly show up for our causes, connect with each other through these missions, and rally their communities alongside them? This vision extends beyond traditional peer-to-peer fundraising; it envisions an ecosystem of advocates, regardless of their role in setting up a discrete campaign.

The future of nonprofit engagement lies in community ownership. When people are given the opportunity to share, rally, and lead, they bring new life to the causes they care about. The future is a world where donors better understand the fabric of philanthropy they are part of, and we believe it will transform philanthropic participation.