How Nonprofits Can Encourage Donors to Give More

My co-authors and I then did a similar experiment requesting online donations to the American Red Cross. Some people were asked for contributions directly, while others were asked to donate by voting for whether they liked chocolate or vanilla best. Again, people might have found this odd or even frivolous for a charity focused on providing relief in dire circumstances. But the strategy worked: People given a choice donated 28% more than those who weren’t.

Similar results have been found in a host of domains. Asking people “to be a voter ” instead of asking them “to vote” significantly increased turnout. Students told “please don’t be a cheater” rather than “please don’t cheat” were half as likely to engage in unethical behavior.