Generation Alpha and School Fundraising 5 Things Fundraiser Organizers Should Know!

You've Heard of Millennials and Gen Z... but What About the New Generation Alpha?

Every generation gets a title and now it's time to turn our attention to the new kids in town (literally) with Generation Alpha! As Millennials become moms and dads, Gen Z graduates high school, and a new wave of kids enter elementary school - it's important for educators, parents, and administrators to get a good idea of what make this Gen A Tik(Tok).

Fast Facts - Who is Generation Alpha?

• Born in or after 2010 (same age as the iPad!)
• Elementary - Middle School Age (around 7-12)
• By 2025, this generation will number more than two billion—the largest generation in history!

"Generation Alpha may simultaneously be growing up faster—or “upaging”—because of their heightened awareness of the world around them, but they’ve also been cut off from critical in-person social interaction. This has increased their dependence on the technology that has replaced it." - Dayna Winter, The Kids Are Alright: How Gen Alpha is Shaping the Future of Everything

Gen Alpha + Fundraising: What You Need to Know

Generation Alpha is still growing up and their defining characteristics are forming and taking new shapes as they are impacted by societal events (COVID, the rise of TikTok, the new normalcy of work from home careers). But that doesn't mean we're completely in the dark about this new generation. There are a handful of trends researchers, parents, and teachers have noted in their experience with Gen Alpha. In this blog we will break down a few of them and explain why these make a difference for school event planning and fundraising!

1. Gen Alpha AKA The YouTube Generation

There's no secret that kids love YouTube. Most parents restrict their children from having social media accounts, but YouTube seems to be a different story. Not only are kids consuming tons of video content, but they are also creating videos! On the platform, Gen Alpha video creators make kid-focused videos that cover everything from playing make believe to gaming to unboxing new purchases (in fact, more than 50% of kids in this age group report wanting to buy a product if they see their favorite YouTube influencer using it! (Forbes, 2022)).

This shift from cable television with slick, professional cartoons to amateur videos produced by people their own age, means Gen Alpha expects and loves homemade video content. What does this mean for your fundraiser? It means video is key to opening the door to high student participation and engagement! There are several ways to incorporate video into your next event:

• Create a kick-off video for your fundraiser with your team, teachers, and/or administrators. Play it at your assembly or during morning announcements! (Don't want to make your own video? At Get Movin' we offer Custom Kick-Off Videos professionally made with all of your event info. Check out an example!)
• Use video throughout your donation period to encourage important actions you want parents and donors to take - registering for your event, making an online donation to meet your goals, attending your event or volunteering. (We offer a Promotional Power Pack of 3 professional videos, 30-40 seconds, you can post on social, email, or in the morning announcements!).
• Kids want to be in front of the camera so give them the opportunity! When you team up with Get Movin' you can have student videos embedded right into the Student Fundraising Webpage so donors can press play and watch from their computer or any mobile device.

2. Digital Natives With Tech-Savvy Parents

Gen Alpha has pretty much grown up with screen technology integrated into almost every aspect of life. TV, iPad, Phones, Digital Billboards, Laptops, Digital Whiteboards, and the list goes on. And it didn't start with them, in fact their Millennial moms, dads, aunts, uncles, and teachers are no strangers to the world of technology. Millennials, also brought up in a digital age, see the value technology brings. This is very important for your fundraising efforts!

Parents crave the ease, immediacy, and accessibility they are used to from technology. If your fundraiser is stuck in the age of catalog sales and pizza kits, then you're missing out on the fundamental value of having a technology-driven fundraiser. What does this look like?

• A digital fundraising platform - a place parents and donors can access from their phone or computer to engage with your event.
• Student Fundraising Webpages - safe, secure, personalized pages where family and friends can support individual students and help them meet their donation goals (which all add up to your overall school goal!).
• Online Share Tools - It's imperative that you take advantage of social media and make it easy for parents and teachers to share your event with their network on social media, email, and through text (we make it super easy with one click of a button!).

"Generation Alpha are using video games from a young age and it impacts their mindset in terms of being active participants to solutions." - Ashley Fell, social researcher and author, Generation Alpha

4. Gen Alpha is One-of-a-Kind, and They Want You to Know It

The integration of technology has also come with the idea of "profiles", and Gen A is no exception to this new expectation. Gen Alpha desires and expects to have personalized experiences. They are already accustomed to making avatars, creating game characters, and establishing online personas. Kids want customization and the ability to shape their experience to fit their unique personalities.

This is where the importance of something like Student Fundraising Webpages comes back into play. These are custom and secure webpages that can be shared via text, social media, or email to gather online donations from family & friends. How do students and parents use them?

• Check on their fundraising progress (online donations are tracked in real-time and visually displayed using the donation meter!)
• Add a message, picture, and/or video of requesting donations
• Thank donors via an email from the family
• More than one Gen Alpha in the family? We also have family sharing and family donation features!

5. Virtual Playgrounds for a Digital Generation

We've already established that Gen Alpha is comfortable with technology. But it goes a step further than just passively observing something on a screen. From Roblox to Minecraft to TikTok, there are entire virtual worlds and communities in which Gen Alpha resides.

"They are expressing themselves with online avatars that can be customized with digital wardrobes that are purchased using online currencies. In short, they are totally at home in the virtual world." - Elad Natanson, Forbes Consumer Tech

What does this mean for your fundraiser? Is it pointing to a purely virtual world where we only host online events and lose the in-person Fun Runs, Dance-Athons, and Read-Athons? We don't think so. Rather, the importance of virtual goes back to the idea that your event depends on having a digital community of donors, parents, teacher and students who all come together in your online platform to reach your fundraising goals. FundHub is the digital fundraising platform that has helped schools raise OVER 100 million since 2007! We would love to show you how it works and how you can combine it with your traditional in-person event.