Young Donors and Other Mythical Creatures

To hear some fundraisers talk, you'd think this was a terrible state of affairs. "We've got to get more young donors," they cry, with startling intensity.

I think a lot of fundraisers are focused on young donors for two reasons:

1. They're following the strategies of advertisers. For a lot of advertisers, young people are the holy grail. They spend a lot of money on clothing, entertainment and other profitable things. If you're selling jeans or video games, young people are where it's at. If you want people to hand you money for your cause — nope.