The Future of Nonprofits Is In the Hands of Millennials

If the future belongs to the millennial generation, then the future is now.

This may be hard for some of us to believe. It seems like only yesterday most millennials were minors or just starting college. But time flies as you get, ahem, older. Millennials are now between the ages of 16 and 33.

My, they grow up fast. 

A generation to be reckoned with

At 75.4 million, millennials are the nation’s largest living generation; larger than the baby boomer generation, which numbers about 74.9 million. Millennials are a generation to be reckoned with, and nonprofits need to connect with this generation.

Consider: Millennials have spending power. Each year, millennials in the U.S. account for more than $300 billion in discretionary spending. As millennials move up in their careers, their spending potential will certainly grow.

What this means for nonprofit institutions

Some millennials are starting families. Nonprofit institutions like zoos, aquariums and some museums are popular repeat destinations for families; and repeat visitors tend to buy memberships.

But on a whole, millennials aren’t starting families as young as baby boomers did. That doesn’t mean they don’t want kids—they just don’t want them right now. In the near future, there will be a veritable tsunami of families coming down the pike who are eager to join nonprofits.

As millennials come of age, their tastes evolve as well. A night at the theater is preferable to a Justin Bieber concert (hopefully). Since millennials are holding off on starting families, they have more discretionary income, and time. There’s currently a large potential audience of young people who are open to checking out more sophisticated forms of entertainment, such as visits to art museums, live-theater experiences and even a night at the opera.

The operative word, however, is potential.

A 2015 study “found 70% of millennials who recently attended an arts event expressed interest in attending more … The challenge for performing and visual arts organizations is to effectively reach this highly connected, influential generation …”

But if you want to attract as many millennials as possible, you need to know how best to engage them.

Millennial engagement

Millennials are very different from their baby boomer parents. Millennials are interested in causes and they value experiences. Your nonprofit needs to give them experiential outlets, such as events that allow them to do something for your cause.

Events aren’t the only way to get millennials engaged. People love to rise to a challenge. The wildly successful ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in 2014 is a great case in point. It raised a whopping $220 million.

But challenges don’t have to go viral or require a donation (although it’s great if they do). The goal is to get your organization top of mind among millennials. That means leveraging social media, since they spend a large amount of their time connecting through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and more.

If this seems like a lot to swallow, don’t fret. In our How to Get Millennials Involved with Your Nonprofit post, we give more insight into how to engage with millennials.

Tags: aquariums, generation, Justin Bieber, membership, millennial, Museums, nonprofits, opera, zoos