New insights from BBB Give.org’s Donor Trust Report reveal how charity trust levels and giving preferences differ by U.S. region.

How Charity Trust Levels Vary Across U.S. Regions

One of the features in the Donor Trust Report issued by BBB Wise Giving Alliance on November 25th was to compare public trust in charities among four regions of the U.S. (Northeast, South, Midwest and West). The report, a survey of more than 2,200 adults in the United States (and a separate section with more than 1,000 adults in Canada) identified differences in giving attitudes.

All four U.S. regions were very close in terms of the perceived importance (9 or 10 on a ten-point scale) in trusting a charity when making a donation. When asked whether they highly trust charities (9 or 10 on a ten-point scale), however, those in the Northeast gave a significantly higher score (28%) than those in other U.S. regions, particularly when compared to the South (19%).

Trust in Different Charity Types by U.S. Region

Participants from the Northeast were also found to generally be more trusting of different charity categories than other regions, and participants from the South were generally least trusting. Some examples with the widest gap in trust across regions are shown below:

Participants in the Midwest and Northeast were more likely to report giving on a charity’s website, responding to an email appeal, or social media appeal than the other regions. While overall, some of these percentage differences were not dramatically different, they do demonstrate trends that might be worth exploring further to help better understand what fundraising methods work best in certain areas. It might also suggest that donors in certain areas might need additional assurances in charity trust so that they can give confidently. 

Heart of Giving Podcast – Sean Carrol’s Mission with Anera in the Middle East

This week’s Heart of Giving Podcast features a conversation with Sean Carrol, President & CEO, Anera (a BBB Accredited Charity). Sean describes how his organization is delivering aid in the Gaza region.

Explore Three of Our Latest Reports

We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org or local BBBs to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:

• ALSAC St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
• The Hunger Project
• Relief International

Finally, remember to let us know by going to give.org/charity-inquiry if you are interested in seeing a report on a charity not on the list and we will do our best to produce one.