Despite a drop in donations in 2024, French people’s confidence in associations and foundations has never been so high, with the 2024 Confidence Barometer revealing that it has reached an all-time high of 64%, while confidence in political institutions continues to decline. This positive dynamic is accompanied by new expectations: greater transparency, rigorous management of donations and commitment to the environment, particularly among the younger generations. What are the donor profiles and motivations? Let’s decipher the trends and the levers to be exploited.Goodplace Foundation and DierenDonatie are the first two organisations to receive the CBF Recognition for Donation Platforms. This world-first recognition has been developed by CBF, Toezicht op Goeddoen, the independent charity monitoring body in the Netherlands, to strengthen transparency, trust and accountability in the growing sector of online fundraising platforms.
Confidence in associations at its highest level since the barometer was created
In the face of growing mistrust of national political institutions (21%, -4 points), associations and foundations stand out. With 64% confidence (+4 points), they far surpass citizens’ optimism for the future of society (22%). Young people (81%), volunteers (78%), university graduates (70%) and supporters of left-wing (83%) and centrist (85%) parties show particularly high levels of confidence. There has also been a notable increase in the confidence of local authorities, which are now trusted by 65% of French people (+2 points).
The areas that inspire the most confidence
The causes that inspire the most confidence in 2024 are helping children (72%, +4) and combating violence against women (68%, +5). Animal protection remains the most popular area (73%, +2). Among the under-35s, priorities such as defending human rights (73%), protecting the environment (72%), and academic success (71%) dominate.
Donor profiles: motivations, profiles and loyalty strategies
8 out of 10 French people are donors, mainly through traditional donations to associations or foundations (73%). Other means, such as solidarity rounding, charity events or online kitchens, mobilize 52% of them. Yet 2024 saw a drop in donations, affecting the amount, frequency and number of gifts. The main reason for this drop in donations was a lack of money (79%).
So what motivates these donors to give in spite of everything? By cross-referencing motives and frequency of giving, five donor archetypes emerge. With the exception of opportunists (6%), who donate infrequently, the other profiles fall into two main families:
– Donors committed to a cause: “Committed to a cause” (41% of donors) faithfully support the same association, while “intermittent activists” (22%) are loyal to the same cause but shift their support from one association to another, or suspend it from time to time.
– Donors motivated by method: “Affinity donors” (20%) are influenced by the approach and bond the association has created with them. “Volatile donors” (11%), much younger, are not regular contributors.
This segmentation shows that loyalty strategies need to be adapted according to profile. Over a third of donors (affinity and volatile) are attracted by an association’s unique vision and identity dimension, making the method and manner used to defend the cause a key lever. For the “committed” and the “intermittent”, traceability and proof of effectiveness are decisive factors.
A growing need for trust and traceability
The main obstacles to donations remain the same: lack of confidence in the use of funds (67%) and lack of money (56%). On the other hand, the main reasons for giving are the cause defended (69%, +4), the traceability of donations (58%, +2), and the effectiveness of actions (53%, +1).
To strengthen confidence in organizations, six criteria stand out: that they account for their actions (67%, +4), that they clearly display their missions (67%, +2), that they rigorously manage donations (66%, +4), their financial transparency (65%, +4), that they are audited (64%, +2), and that they allocate donations to specific actions (63%, +4). Among the under-35s, information available on their website (65%) and that they commit to environmental and social responsibility criteria (55%) are priorities.
The study reveals a growing desire for transparency and traceability among donors, with 87% of regular donors wishing to receive information on how their donation has been used. In this context, obtaining a label of trust is more than ever a major asset for strengthening the bond of trust and meeting donor requirements. The study shows that 69% of French people (+3) feel that the fact that an association or foundation has been awarded a label strengthens their trust in this organization.
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Confidence Barometer conducted online from September 2 to 11, 2024 by the ViaVoice Institute. Among a representative sample of the French population of 2,002 people over the age of 18.
Representativeness based on the quota method applied to the following criteria: gender, age, respondent’s profession, region and urban area.
