Fundraisers see signs of life for 2011 donations, according to survey

By Joe Boland

The proportion of participants reporting decreased contributions dropped 14 percent, from 51 percent in October 2009 to 37 percent in October 2010.
The percentage who said contributions had increased grew 13 percent, from 23 percent in October 2009 to 36 percent in October 2010.
For the eighth consecutive year, a majority (68 percent) of participants reported increased demand for their organizations' services.
As has been true in previous years, respondents who reported decreased contributions cited "Fewer individuals gave" and "Gifts from individuals were smaller" as the primary reasons for the decline.
Half of the organizations represented in the survey receive the bulk of contributions during the last quarter of the year, the period known as the giving season. Of this number, 36 percent predict that contributions received during the fourth quarter of 2010 will exceed those from the last quarter of 2009, 43 percent expect end-of-year contributions to be about the same as last year, and 22 percent anticipate that end-of-year contributions will be lower.

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