Reaching Gen Z on social media: Expert advice vs. Gen Z opinion
Hi all,
I'm sharing this great resource from Candid. The state League uses Candid (formerly Guidestar) as a fundraising and nonprofit management resource.
Unveiling the secrets to captivating Generation Z, a recent survey challenges popular advice for nonprofits. While experts tout the necessity of trendy slang and memes, Gen Z values trust built on evidence of impact. Instagram, TikTok, text, and email are the favored platforms, emphasizing authenticity, shareable content, and real stories as the key to engaging this demographic.
Excerpt from the article:
Adding Gen Z’s perspective to the picture
To put today’s expert advice to the test, we created a short survey that asked Gen Z about their use of social media as it relates to philanthropy. Questions included how members of this generation find out about new nonprofits, how they know they could trust a nonprofit, and how they prefer to get information from nonprofits.
We received 38 total responses from university students, young professionals, high school seniors, and members of the military, ranging in age from 18 to 25 years old. While this is a small sample size, it was highly targeted to people interested in nonprofits.
The results included a couple of surprises and reinforced some of the expert advice. Here are the top takeaways.
When asked what would inspire trust in a nonprofit, 52% of respondents mentioned “evidence of impact,” and 44% cited “reliable reviews/trusted sources.”
When ranking factors that motivate them to support a nonprofit, 53% indicated “an urgent need related to disaster, crisis, or tragedy” as the most motivating, while 47% ranked “clear evidence of impact” the highest.
When asked about the ways they’re most likely to support a nonprofit, 39% of respondents selected “interact with & share their social media.”
Instagram was the most selected method for nonprofits to contact Gen Z, followed by email and text message.
When asked how they would find a nonprofit to support, 67% said they would “ask friends or family,” and 59% said they’d “search for options on a search engine.”
