A new report suggests that nonprofits should focus fundraising budgets on better-performing channels such as direct mail. The report, Heart of the Donor, Insights into Donor Motivation and Behavior for the 21^st Century, found that the number of donors in the 18 to 24 age group, which tends to be more active in social media, is comparable with the number of 70-plus donors. However, older donors give three times as much as younger donors. "Does that mean nonprofits should turn a blind eye to the younger segments?" asked Lisa McIntyre, SVP strategy development at Russ Reid, in a statement. "Of course not. Their value will likely increase as they age. But fundraising expenditures must be weighted according to a strategy that maximizes those who are giving now." Russ Reid conducted the study along with Grey Matter Research. This means focusing fundraising efforts on seniors and boomers, for whom the preferred channel for making donations is mail, according to the report. Even donors in the 25 to 54 age group, who like the convenience of being able to do things like make donations online, still use mail regularly. "One thing we find interesting is this nexus in the 25-54 year old group," said McIntyre, in the statement. "The donors who will be most important to us in the coming decade seem equally facile with both mail and online." The report also focused on the impact of the disaster in Haiti on nonprofit fundraising. Haiti donations saw massive channel donation differences, with 32% of donors saying they gave to nonprofits working in Haiti through places of worship, another 22% gave online and 19% gave through texting. Questioned if the limits on text donations resulted in lower donations, 90% of text donors claim they would have donated through another channel had texting not been provided. More than 2,000 respondents participated in the study.