Perhaps a more fitting name for Millennials would be the Surprisers. Despite commonly held generalizations about the habits of Millennials interacting with social media, recent research on behalf of the ECFA delivers some astonishing results.
Millennials are highly unlikely to give to a ministry and then post on social media about it.
What!?
Lately, it seems like we just can’t get a break from hearing about how Millennials act out their lives through social media. It turns out when it comes to financial giving to ministries, Millennials are three times more likely to hide their light under a bushel than they are to set it on the social media hilltop.
In fact, they are just one-third more likely than older generations like Gen-X, Boomers and Silents to post about giving on social media (26% vs. 18%). Seven out of ten older donors say they wouldn’t post about their ministry giving, while six out of ten Millennials echo their perspective.
Perhaps the most essential take-away from this finding is that ministry donors seem to be following Biblical advice to not let their left hand know what the right hand is doing. They’re apt to stay humble about their giving – despite any peer pressure to the contrary.
Ministries can be sensitive to this leaning among their donors by omitting the button from their giving page that says “tell the world.” Instead, make sure your website and emails encourage donors to “Follow or ‘like’ us on social media, and send the message that your passionate about the work we do.”