logo
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
    • Collections
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Subscribe
  • Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Complimentary Webinars
    • Premium On-Demand Webinars
  • Membership
  • Submissions

Donors – It’s About Which Relationship?

Ruth McCambridge
December 21, 2010
Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

Ruth McCambridge

I don’t know about you but I have gotten appeals this year from groups that I never saw doing public fundraising before. Everyone and her mother is out trying to end the year somewhere close to the black ink while many of those who more traditionally ask during this season are observing downturns in their own campaigns. I’ve been surprised at which organizations have done well and which seem to be experiencing a bad year.

A question for the season . . . What makes people give?

And what makes them give more over time?


  SUPPORT NPQ | Click Here to make a donation to THE NONPROFIT QUARTERLY >>

Sign up for our free newsletters

Subscribe to NPQ's newsletters to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.


There are a lot of answers to the question of course including the time honored: “people give because of relationships.” We usually understand this to mean that it is the relationship between us – the group, or the fundraiser – and them, that creates the motivation to contribute. And that is, of course, important.

But there is also something in the donor’s relationships with others that affect a gift – and that is what this article, Social Influences on Giving, addresses. Featured in the latest issue of the Nonprofit Quarterly, it discusses the way that a potential donor’s relationships with others who benefit from the nonprofit, and to others who also donate, help to determine the size of the gift.

It may sound arcane to some but I find it fascinating. The article is based on a series of studies about fundraising for public radio. Let us know what you think. How do you think about these relationship issues among those who give, and between those who give and those who benefit?


  SUBSCRIBE | Click Here to subscribe to THE NONPROFIT QUARTERLY for just $49


Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print
About the author
Ruth McCambridge

Ruth is Editor Emerita of the Nonprofit Quarterly. Her background includes forty-five years of experience in nonprofits, primarily in organizations that mix grassroots community work with policy change. Beginning in the mid-1980s, Ruth spent a decade at the Boston Foundation, developing and implementing capacity building programs and advocating for grantmaking attention to constituent involvement.

More about: Editor's NotesOpinionPhilanthropy

Become a member

Support independent journalism and knowledge creation for civil society. Become a member of Nonprofit Quarterly.

Members receive unlimited access to our archived and upcoming digital content. NPQ is the leading journal in the nonprofit sector written by social change experts. Gain access to our exclusive library of online courses led by thought leaders and educators providing contextualized information to help nonprofit practitioners make sense of changing conditions and improve infra-structure in their organizations.

Join Today
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

Spring-2023-sidebar-subscribe
You might also like
The Nonprofit Sector and Social Change: A Conversation between Cyndi Suarez and Claire Dunning
Claire Dunning and Cyndi Suarez
Nonprofits as Battlegrounds for Democracy
Cyndi Suarez
Sankofa Philanthropy: Hip Hop’s Sixth Element
Jason Terrell
Why Social Change Films Matter
Cyndi Suarez and Saphia Suarez
Philanthropy Must Move from Charity to Solidarity
Son Chau
Eliminating Biphobia Through Breath, Brotherhood, and the Arts
H. “Herukhuti” Sharif Williams

NPQ Webinars

April 27th, 2 pm ET

Liberatory Decision-Making

How to Facilitate and Engage in Healthy Decision-making Processes

Register Now
You might also like
The book "Nonprofit Neighborhoods" leaning against a wall
The Nonprofit Sector and Social Change: A Conversation...
Claire Dunning and Cyndi Suarez
Nonprofits as Battlegrounds for Democracy
Cyndi Suarez
An image of four men, from the waist down in athletic wear. The man in the front is wearing red sweatpants and holding a boom box.
Sankofa Philanthropy: Hip Hop’s Sixth Element
Jason Terrell

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

See our newsletters

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

NPQ-Spring-2023-cover

Independent & in your mailbox.

Subscribe today and get a full year of NPQ for just $59.

subscribe
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Copyright
  • Careers

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.