Boomers: Boom Or Bust?
I’ve been thinking about this recent post — Boomer life transitions and fundraising — by Jeff Brooks of Future Fundraising Now.
I’ve tended to be a believer in the manna from heaven promised by the fundraising ‘coming of age’ of America’s 76 million boomers.
Huge wealth transfer coming their way. More discretionary income to give away. More time to reflect (and act) upon their personal contribution to making/leaving behind a better world. Yadayada.
And Jeff’s post reflects that optimism.
But I wonder.
Boomers are now pouring into the traditional age 65+ ‘sweet spot’ of giving (about 10,000 will cross that threshold every day for the next 17 years), but giving as a percentage of GDP remains static, and the hard data says both acquisition and retention is falling. Where is the boom?
Instead, Boomers face unexpected financial uncertainty, long-living parents to care for, and struggling offspring to help along (both of the latter consuming that wealth transfer). They’re working as hard as ever, with diminishing progress to show.
They’re getting grumpy, not benevolent.
Reinforcing that, perhaps many are facing the fact that their (our) generation has pretty much mucked everything up (yes, we changed the world all right!) … and are retreating shamefully from the playing field into their (our) caves, hanging on to any leftover marbles. Defeated.
If you were targeting Boomers today (half the Boomer will be age 60+ in two years), would your message be one of hopefulness (“You can still save the world from …!”) or one of guilt (“Don’t leave your grandchildren twisting in the wind!”)?
The question is a bit facetious … but only a bit.
If these folks don’t open their wallets more and soon, a Boomer Bust is on the way.
What do you think?
Tom
P.S. The numbers above are US, but the question applies to all Anglo-Euro societies I believe.
6 responses to “Boomers: Boom Or Bust?”
Behavioral Science Q & A
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I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]
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As a baby boomer myself (from Europe and from the younger half of baby boomers) I agree that most charities are failing to inspire people my generation. First of all, so many are simply duplicating each others’ work and could easily merge in order to share general management and fundraising resources. As a fundraiser I can tell you it really makes your life more difficult if there is no clear USP to the organisation you fundraise for.
Second, NGOs should innovate so as not to repeat the same mistakes over and over again. Education in Africa is a good example of this. Schools are being built, there are definitely more kids attending school and by default attendance rates have become a way to measure success. It helps meet the MDGs…
However no one is really focussing on economic development of local communities and on the need for relevant education so that educated children can find a suitable job or create their own entreprise. We are simply repeating the same mistakes as in the North. Only small forward thinking INGOs like DevEd are really addressing the issue of the lack of relevant education.
And when it comes to vocational training, the lack of imagination is depressing. It’s all about providing women with sewing machines, hair dressing saloons, bakery equipment etc. what about proper ICT skills for a change? or Solar energy training like the Barefoot college, another exciting venture.
Women and young people in Africa deserve better, and one way of inspiring baby boomers would be to come up with real evidence of impact. It does not matter if you are a wealthy major donor or someone giving £10/month you want to know your donation makes a difference.
Opening wallets would be one action that Boomers could take for sustainable change for the common good in our society. I think that our generation could commit to other pursuits as well – shared leadership and collaboration in the organizations they support, a political resolve for access to high quality education and health care, and being thoughtful role models for the other generations in the pipeline.
A fascinating theory, and one that I believe is spot on. Extremely difficult to counter this; eseially in a world with growing distrust of the activities of some non-profits and their agencies.
Lots of research here in the UK, particulalry in relation to Boomers and Legacies/planned giving. Most of it recognises that we are still a very wealthy and powerful generation, but it also talks about being a “squeezed middle” that is finding it’s view of the world (as well as it’s finances) challenged by the macro-economic troubles of the past 5 years.
The great unanswered question for me is that of cohort vs generation. Will Boomers (despite the potent brew of hedonism, altruism and idealism) be inclined to behave as 65 year-olds alwyas have when the time comes and swap the beads and kaftans for pipes and slippers?
Back in 2011, I put together a rather long post on my thoughts on boomers. The thinking (at the time) was they were a potential time bomb.
I suggested that though a smaller percentage of boomers were giving than their forebears when they were the same age, much of the decline could be put down to the reduction in church attendance (in the UK, dropping a few coins in the church collection plate on a Sunday has often been classified as a charitable gift).
In any case, analysis of the data showed that as they aged, increasing numbers of boomers were continuing to enter the ‘donor pool’ – just like their parents.
The key point to me was one of size. There will be many more boomers in their old age than we have seen with previous generations. And though there may be increased demands on them to provide for themselves in old age, we are seeing no indication that they are turning their back on giving.
To me the problem is one of the sector’s approach. Boomers do expect more! An appeal every few months simply doesn’t engage them. The traditional approach of charities to communicating with donors has to change. If we focus on what they need from charities, boomers will respond.
Those organisations that recognise this will reap the benefits. At the end of the day, as in any other sector, it’s the best offer that will win.
If you are interested the blog post is here (don’t forget to take a look at the comments section too).
http://www.queerideas.co.uk/my_weblog/2011/02/so-what-have-fundraisers-been-doing-over-the-last-30-years.html
While we’re talking about generations that should not be ignored, here’s some food for thought re: Millennials:
According to Kelton Research, young people aged 18-34 today (Millenials/Gen Y) will spend more than $200 billion annually starting in 2017, and $10 trillion in their lifetimes. Boomers might be big spenders, but their kids will be the largest consumer generation in history.
Why should we pay attention to them now? Millenials represent the biggest group of consumers to come along since the boomers, and at 71 million, account for 37% of adult consumers today. In the next decade, this group will move through their 20s and 30s, establishing households and building careers. 16.6 million already live in households with income above $100k which will only continue to grow as they mature. They are socially conscious and have a strong desire to help change the world.
Want to talk about retention? They are extremely loyal with 70% saying that they will always come back to a brand they love.
To successfully engage them, reach them from all sides. Don’t assume that since I’m not going to write a check or send back a BRE with my credit card number written in that I won’t give in response to a direct mail piece. Actually, I love getting mail. No one sends me mail anymore. My email inbox is quite clogged however. I’m going to read your letter, then search you online, and probably give through your website a few days later using my PayPal account. You may not be able to measure, track or attribute that donation properly (which is a whole different challenge I hope you’re also trying to tackle) but I’m here and I want to be a part of changing OUR world together.
Millenials may not give a ton of money right away but get them to fall in love with you now, take care of them, deliver quality content, provide opportunities for interesting experiences and you could have a donor and brand ambassador for life. Sounds like a lot of work but might be worth it!