What Women Want

Still, one variable has not changed: involvement.

“Women donors to UCLA tend to make a gift and then want to become systematically involved with the area they supported,” Christensen explains.

And when UCLA goes out on a solicitation or cultivation call, its approach might be different for a woman than for a man. According to Christensen, the call might be more about how that woman’s gift will make an impact on other women. But she stresses that each solicitation is tailored to the individual.

Gifts for social change
More wealthy female donors feel a responsibility to repay organizations that have had an influence in their lives than do affluent men, says a 2001 study commissioned by wealth marketing solutions provider HNW Digital. According to the study, “HNW Digital Wealth Pulse Survey of Wealth and Women,” women are more likely to help groups concerned with enacting social change in areas regarding health, the homeless and the elderly, etc.

“Because women are different than men in a number of ways in terms of giving — including who they give to — one of the key differences is building sustained relationships with women over time,” Hall says. “The women I have worked with tend to want to be very involved with the organization that they are supporting financially.”

While women might be more inclined to use their gifts as instruments for social change, Hall says rarely do you find a woman who says, “Let me give you the money and you do with it what you will.”