Gender and Crowdfunding: September 2021 by Women’s Philanthropy Institute

What are the key findings from the article?

• Almost one in three women have given to crowdfunding in the past. Female donors tend to be younger, more education, in the Western US compared to nondonors. Other research at the WPI suggests that women tend to give collaboratively. Also, women use the internet differently, which may impact the way they behave with crowdfunding campaigns.
• But men and women are just as likely to give. Slightly less than a third of men and women give to a crowdfunding campaign in a given year. But women are more likely (34%) to give to a social media campaign than men (31.4%).
• Women of Color tended to give to crowdfunding at higher rates than white women. 33.3% of Black women, 31.2% of Hispanic women give to crowdfunding campaigns compared to 30.2% of White women. The report theorizes that it might be that crowdfunding is a blend of formal and informal generosity, which women of Color tend to give in higher rates that women.
• Personal connection to the person behind the crowdfunding campaign is important. Women are more likely to give to family members or close friends. They are less inclined with campaigns associated with celebrities, influencers and for-profit.
• Donors are more comfortable sharing campaigns, rather than asking their connection to give directly.
• 94.6% of former female donors plan on giving the same or more in future campaigns.
• Finally, crowdfunding may be seen as another way to be generous, rather than a replacement of giving. This is different from impact investment, which men are more likely to view as a replacement for crowdfunding, rather than another venue forgiving.

What can I do as a result?

• Don’t ignore crowdfunding for your organization. Fundly estimates that $34.4 billion was raised through crowdfunding in 2020.
• Remember the women prospective donors. As the reported noted, the findings resonate with other studies about women’s behavior when giving. Women tend to want to have a personal connection to the organization before giving. Women also tend to be more uncomfortable directly asking for money.
• It’s critical to make fundraising appeals, whether for a crowdfunding or traditional philanthropy, that is segmented for women. Celebrities and famous people aren’t going to get women to give but their friends and family can.

Additional Resources

• Gender and Crowdfunding | Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy Women’s Philanthropy Institute September 2021
• Women Give 2019: Gender and Giving Across Communities of Color | Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy Women’s Philanthropy Institute 2019