Cancer society hopes crowdfunding attracts Millennials
The American Cancer Society is, for the first, time targeting Millennial donors to give to cancer researchers using something increasingly popular with this techsavvy generation: crowdfunding.
The campaign’s initial goal is to raise $200,000 for post-doctoral research grants, collecting the money online through Crowdrise, and will set a higher goal down the road if it works. The group is chasing donors considered by many in the philanthropy world as difficult to attract through traditional channels — and who aren’t particularly wealthy. Although the Case Foundation found 84% of Millennials made a charitable donation in 2014, an earlier report by Blackbaud, a maker of software and services targeting the non-profit industry, found that adults ages 18-32 com- prised only 11% of total giving, the smallest portion of any age group studied.
“Everybody’s plugged in these days, so it just makes sense we target people this way,” said Bill Chambers, senior vice president of extramural research for the cancer society. “We need to fund the next generation of scientists.”
The campaign, which just got underway and has so far raised about $5,000, not only meets young adults where they live technologically, it taps into their tendency to give to people, such as researchers, rather than organizations. And crowdfunding is a way for lots of small donations to add up.
Michael Lewis, a University of Kentucky student who co-founded a small crowdfunding business that raises money for college expenses, said he would consider giving to the cancer society’s campaign. Cancer is personal to Lewis; his mom survived melanoma in the back of her eye. Lewis and his business partner used Kickstarter to raise $16,000 to launch their company, FinanceU.
“There’s so many young people who know people affected by cancer,” said Lewis, 19. “I could see a lot of my peers donating.”
Though the cancer society’s effort is comparatively small, experts say it’s an innovative example for other charities. Crowdfunding is growing, with a report by Massolution, a research and advisory firm specializing in crowdsourcing, saying the $16 billion crowdfunded in 2014 was expected to more than double in 2015.
Group is chasing donors where they live — online