As a member of Gen Z, I know that I think about things such as philanthropy and volunteering differently than even my parents’ generation. My parents, and even grandparents, most often gave to trusted, long standing organizations, without necessarily needing to know what was done because of their donation, other than good. Whether that was giving at church or giving through a workplace campaign, their number one concern when giving was that it was an organization with a long track record of doing good.

Unfortunately, that isn’t how I, or my generation, think. For the most part, Gen Z and Millennials don’t care how long you’ve been in the community or the fact that United Way has a long track record of responsibly distributing contributions. The younger generations’ number one concern is your answer to one question, “Why do you exist?”

Younger donors want to know what your “Why” is and what you are going to do to create impact. They want to support an organization that is making impact on a social issue that they are passionate about and can become involved with, not just donating to the idea of general good.

So, if your United Way wants to start attracting younger donors, you need to be able to express a clear reason why you exist.

If your United Way focuses on education, income, and health (or some variety thereof), try selecting one issue within those categories that you can rally younger donors around. For example, you could create a Young Leaders Society focused on third-grade reading. You could communicate the importance of this issue and offer volunteering opportunities such as reading to classrooms of children or becoming a reading tutor. This will give younger donors a clear idea of what their contribution and volunteering are doing in the community.

The other thing you can do is select a single issue for your whole United Way. Many United Ways have decided that the reason their United Way exists is to impact a pressing social issue in their community. When a United Way becomes issue focused, their marketing and call to actions become much clearer to you donors, specifically younger donors. By selecting a single issue for your whole United Way, younger donors will be able to tell what the “Why” is without having to go searching for it, because everything your United Way does is focused on impacting and communicating that issue.

Answering the question of why your United Way exists isn’t an easy task. But it is one that is important to tackle as it will not only help you attract younger donors, it will help set the direction of your United Way for years to come.