Regular charitable giving update and recommendations: Autumn 2020
Earlier in the year, we reported on the initial impact of the pandemic on regular giving. In March, the first month of lockdown, we saw a high jump in donors cancelling their Direct Debit payments, alongside a drop in new regular giving donation sign-ups. April then saw Direct Debit cancellations drop again to return towards their normal trend line, while new sign-ups remained low with most donor acquisition activity on hold.
Seven months on, we’ve come out of lockdown, only for us to now go back into it this November, with all of its associated challenges.
We have continued our monitoring of charity Direct Debit donation payments throughout and can now share our next update Regular Giving Update & Recommendations: Autumn 2020.
Covering regular giving donation sign-ups and Direct Debit cancellations during the pandemic period of May-September, the report reveals that cancellations were at their lowest ever levels during this time.
And, while new donor sign-ups remained low throughout, we did see a significant rise in regular gifts completed online as the pandemic accelerated digital growth. Online giving data from the wider Access Group for the previous 6 months also reveals a significant rise in the volume of one-off donations.
As we move further into the new lockdown, the steady income regular giving provides will become even more critical to charity survival. But with people’s expectations for charities becoming more sophisticated and their attention and resources under greater pressure than ever, charities will need to ensure they’re doing everything possible to protect their regular giving. With this firmly in mind, our latest update also provides key recommendations for safeguarding it both now and into the future.
Rapidata lead and head of payments for The Access Group Scott Gray comments:
“The continued support for good causes we’ve seen so far is a positive indication that those who can afford it over the next few months will want to give regularly, if asked. However, the innovation and agility charities have shown during the first wave of the pandemic will be more critical than ever in protecting regular giving as we move through this next phase.
“Donors’ attention and resources are likely to be pulled in many different directions over the next few months. Charities must ensure they deliver on all fronts of the supporter journey if they are to retain and protect their regular giving. With this in mind, our autumn update provides plenty of useful advice and guidance to support charities.”
