Telephone Appeals
Get smart about charity telemarketing calls. Learn key questions to ask, how to verify legitimacy, and how to opt out of future calls.
Wise Giving Wednesday: How Mental Shortcuts Can Get in the Way of Wise Giving
Our brains are wired to save time—but when it comes to generosity, taking mental shortcuts can lead us to making mistakes in giving.
What Are Mental Shortcuts and Why Do They Matter in Giving?
Have you ever judged a book by its cover? If so, you are not alone. Our brains love a mental shortcut, saving energy by avoiding conscious thought in favor of quick solutions. It’s a natural human tendency.
These shortcuts help us run away from a bright spider, follow a crowd toward an exit, or choose food that looks familiar. They can be useful, and even lifesaving! But they can also lead us astray. Mental shortcuts play a role in why attractive people tend to earn more, why we’re willing to pay extra for certain brands, and in far more nefarious biases.
How Cognitive Biases Can Lead to Mistakes in Giving
When it comes to giving wisely, mental shortcuts can also help or lead to unwanted outcomes.
- On the positive side, when you see the BBB Accredited Charity seal, you can be confident that our team has carefully verified the charity meets all 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.
- Other brain biases can be trickier, and push us to feel confident when we shouldn’t, or make rushed decisions to give.
Taking some mental shortcuts can result in our charitable gifts going to untrustworthy actors. So try to keep your mind in check when it comes to giving.
Spot These Common Mental Shortcuts Before You Give
Here are four common brain biases that can influence your giving—plus how to overcome them:
1. Familiarity Bias – “That Name Sounds Familiar”
Familiar names feel safer. If your mom’s name is Jane, you may instinctively feel more comfortable with a new coworker named Jane. In the same way, knowing that many cancer charities do excellent work can make a new cancer-related solicitation seem automatically trustworthy.
Be cautious of appeals that use names very similar to well-known charities. Bad actors can rely on donors’ familiarity and goodwill, counting on people who do not pause and verify before giving.
2. Urgency Effect – “There Is No Time to Pause”
We can be overly influenced by an exaggerated sense of urgency. Appeals that strongly tug at your heartstrings, without offering clear, specific, or verifiable details, could be a sign of a scam.
Even during times of humanitarian crises or natural disasters, when needs are genuinely urgent, be cautious of pressure to click links or scan QR codes on the spot. Trustworthy charities welcome verification and follow-up questions; and they are willing to take the time to build a relationship with you.
3. Bandwagon Effect – “Everyone Is Doing It”
In this day and age, viral moments can bring us together. Joining the “Holy Airball” trend on TikTok can be fun; coming together to support a trustworthy charity in response to a disaster can be powerful. But just because everyone is doing something doesn’t make it a reliable signal of trust.
If you’re joining the masses for a good cause or responding to a celebrity appeal, take a moment to do so thoughtfully and responsibly. When using crowdfunding platforms, the safest approach is to donate to campaigns for people you personally know or to support established charities you trust.
4. Size Bias – “Bigger is Better”
Unconsciously, we tend to assume that high-priced items are better, attractive people are smarter, and bananas in a museum are art. (Art critics may disagree.) Some donors may similarly assume that charities claiming 100% of donations go to programs are better stewards of their money.
There is a lot to unpack in such claims, but, in short, bigger is not always better. When you see statements like “100% of your donations will be spent on programs,” this should raise a red flag. All legitimate charities have administrative and fundraising expenses… these costs do not simply disappear. In the worst-case scenario, you are being misled. In the best-case scenario, those costs are covered by other funding sources, such as wealthy donors, board members, or corporate sponsors, but they still exist.
Well-run charities need reasonable administrative and fundraising expenses to operate effectively. Pressuring organizations to maintain unrealistically high program-spending ratios can actually be harmful. When you see such claims, ask follow-up questions. Don’t let 100% claims be the deciding factor in your giving decisions. Instead, focus on the charity’s overall effectiveness, transparency, and accountability.
Give.org Helps You Cut Through the Noise
A short pause can go a long way. Before you donate, always take a moment to visit Give.org to verify the charity’s trustworthiness. Your brain (and your generosity) will thank you.
Recent Reports
We are always working with charities to publish or update reports for donors. Visit Give.org to check out any charity before giving. Our recently evaluated charities include:
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.
