Sixty-two percent of donors surveyed in a Dunham+Company/Campbell Rinker national study said they are now using smartphones, yet only 10 percent have used their smartphone or tablet to make a contribution via a charity’s website.
"More and more people are living their lives on smartphones, and the reason so few have used their smartphones or tablets to make a donation is that charities are behind the curve optimizing their websites and giving forms for mobile," said Rick Dunham, president and CEO of Dunham+Company.
Thirty-two percent of donors indicated that their predominant use of smartphones or tablets was to access Facebook multiple times per day, with 45 percent saying they used their phones to go to Facebook at least daily. The second-highest usage was to access news feeds, with 23 percent saying they did so multiple times per day and 46 percent doing so at least daily.
The two other most popular uses of smartphones and tablets were accessing Twitter and visiting blogs. Fifteen percent said they used their smartphone or tablet to go to Twitter at least daily, and eight percent said they visited blogs at least daily through those devices. In addition, 22 percent said they used their mobile device to visit the website, social media page, or blog of their favorite charity, and 25 percent said they used their device to "like" or recommend a cause.
"With the majority of donors now using their smartphones to access social media and news feeds daily, charities must think mobile-optimization as a part of their social-media engagement strategy," Dunham said.
One in 10 donors surveyed had used their smartphone or tablet to make a contribution to a charity via the charity's website, compared to nine percent who had made a contribution to a charity via text or SMS.
Not surprisingly, the use of mobile devices was more prevalent among the young. Eight-six percent of those under 40 indicated they use smartphones, compared to 53 percent of those 40-59 years old, and 36 percent of those 60 and older.
Only one out of three donors (33 percent) said they have a mobile tablet. However, one out of four donors (25 percent) who are 60 and older say they now use a mobile tablet.
There is also a greater likelihood that higher-income donors will possess these devices compared to the general donor, with 67 percent of those in households earning $75,000 or more owning a smartphone and 40 percent owning a mobile tablet.
The study was part of a Campbell Rinker Donor Confidence Survey conducted March 5-7, 2013 online among 408 adult donors who gave at least $20 in 2012. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.4 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.