By Neil St. Clair, Co-Founder & COO at B Generous – the first-ever platform allowing nonprofit donors to “Donate Now, Pay Later”
Millennials are coming into their own income-wise. They have a charitable and philanthropic mindset, and yet, many nonprofits say millennials aren’t showing up treasure-wise in the same way as previous generations. According to Nonprofit Pro, “Millennials represent 33 million annual donors, have a $481 annual gift, and contribute to three charities annually.” Still, that’s around 34% less than Generation X and 60% less than Baby Boomers in terms of average annual gift size. It’s not that Millennials want to give less, but they are constrained in ways that previous generations have not been.
Why Do Younger Donors Donate Less?
It’s never been more expensive to be an American, with certain measures of consumer prices having gone up around 400% over the past 40 years, while real wages have increased only 4% during the same inflation-adjusted interval–that’s not to mention the cost of student loans, housing, and other major purchases. 70% of millennials are living paycheck to paycheck, including half of those making MORE THAN $100,000 per year. Those under 45 have faced the changing global dynamics of 9/11, the financial crisis of 2008, and the COVID-19 pandemic–the results of these major events have been felt extremely acutely as these younger Americans entered the workforce, built families, and attempted to build wealth against these headwinds.
We’re still learning about Gen Z, but they are likely to face similar challenges, and, of course, are still coming into their own from a wealth and income perspective. For this younger generation (sub-45 years old), what is the solution that helps ease the financial challenges of giving what you desire for both donors and nonprofits?
We believe that the solution is Donate Now, Pay Later (DNPL). And not just for those facing difficult structural economic realities. Donate Now, Pay Later, or give now, pay later, can be a tool for those with financial independence looking for a free way to give while managing cash flow.
How Does Donate Now, Pay Later Work?
Similar to the increasingly popular idea of Buy Now, Pay Later (28% of consumers have a Buy Now, Pay Later loan, up from 18% in the prior year), Donate Now, Pay Later allows donors to give to their favorite charitable cause over time, while the nonprofit gets all the money upfront right away. Here are a few facts about how B Generous helps advance giving through DNPL:
- Our installment plans are completely free to donors
- Donors can pay over 3,6, or 9 months, but the nonprofit gets the full donation upfront
- We power donations up to $20,000 for a single transaction (or as little as $75)
- The donor gets the full gross tax deduction immediately
- Your nonprofit gets the full amount of the donation right away! But the donor gets the convenience of paying over time when it suits them
Most importantly, donors that use Donate Now, Pay Later are giving significantly more. The average online donation in the U.S. last year was $128 according to Nonprofit Source, but the average Donate Now, Pay Later donation is about $470–almost 300% larger. To put it another way, donors who use Donate Now, Pay Later give roughly more than 3.5X more on average. The ability to give over time frees the ability to give more without burdening your donors’ wallets–just ask our friends at The Green Bronx Machine, who have seen this first hand!
How to Sign Up to Allow Your Donors to Donate Now, Pay Later
It couldn’t be easier! Our clients like PETA, Sean Penn’s CORE, and the Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts have more important problems to focus on than lengthy installs and onboarding processes. B Generous is a no/low code solution and can be installed in less than an hour at any point of donation where you accept charitable gifts (including QR codes for direct mail campaigns, auction items, gala tickets, peer-to-peer giving, and more). Once installed, here is what your donors will experience:
Step 1: A White Labeled Donate Now, Pay Later Landing Page/Lightbox
On your donation landing page, we custom create a configurable lightbox that offers donors a clear path between traditional “Donate Now” and “Donate Now, Pay Later” options.
Step 2: Your Donor Selects Their Donate Now, Pay Later Plan
Once your donor selects to Donate Now, Pay Later, they are provided with clear interest and fee-free plans.
Step 3:Your Donor Fills Out Some Basic Information
No social security numbers or burdensome data, just some standard details to verify their identity like name, phone, and email address.
Step 4: The donor reviews their plan (with nothing due today!)
The donation plan also includes an option for the donor to cover some of the associated transaction costs–more than 80% of donors choose to do so!
Step 5: The donor enters their payment details and voila!
After selecting their preferred way to pay the donation, that’s it! The donor owes nothing today, and your nonprofit gets the full donation right away!
Your nonprofit can track all of your Donate Now, Pay Later donations on your nonprofit dashboard. It’s that easy.
An Opportunity in Recession
If you’ve been watching the financial press lately, America may be heading into a recession some time in 2023. While we hope this doesn’t happen, if it does, according to our friends at Blackbaud (with whom we have a direct partnership), charitable giving will likely flatten. Donate Now, Pay Later is a unique opportunity to allow your mid-level and major gift donors to pay over time while they weather the coming economic storm. Since your nonprofit receives the full donation upfront you’ll have the cashflow necessary to go out and do more good in the world, while ensuring your donors aren’t burdened during these financial times.
We are so confident that we can help you raise in any economic climate, that we offer a unique matching gift program to select nonprofits and the B Generous $10k Guarantee to all our partners. Our guarantee is that you will raise at least $10,000 from your first 100 donations using Donate Now, Pay Later™ or we will donate the difference.
To learn more about how you can help your donors Donate Now, Pay Later, head to our Get Started page today!
About B Generous
B Generous allows donors to give now, pay later. With our technology, nonprofits receive the donation from the donor upfront, but the donor is able to pay over time…without stressing their bank account. The best part is, the donor gets their full tax deduction right away, and pays no fees, interest, or hidden costs.
Join us with Nonprofit Tech for Good on February 7, 2023 for our webinar How to Accept ‘Donate Now, Pay Later’ Donations to Grow Giving in 2023!
