If you are a part of a non-profit organization then you are already familiar with the fact that building a successful fundraising campaign is not as easy as it sounds, especially in 2024. If you do not manage to create a fundraiser that will have success, then you won’t be able to support the members of your organizations and you won’t be able to acquire enough amount of money for the charity.
However, you shouldn’t let the pressure of failing get to you because you have a lot more important stuff to deal with. You will have to focus on hundreds of different details regarding the campaign to ensure that enough people and donors will be present at your event.
If you haven’t had any experience in running a successful fundraiser, here are some tips you can use as a guide.
Consider a soft launch
Many non-profit organizations that have managed to lead very successful fundraisers believe that doing a soft launch before a release to the general public is a much better strategy. A soft launch is a release of a new service or product (in your case, a fundraiser) to a controlled audience before doing a full launch for the public.
This is done to build a bit of momentum to make your cause a bit more appealing. When people see that you already have raised a certain amount of money, the chances of donating is much higher. It is basically a snowball effect. The more money you raise, the more people will decide to donate to your cause.
You could also consider the soft launch as a testing period. It is a way to ensure that your website servers will be able to handle multiple users, whether everything will work properly and a bunch of other problems that might pop out which you can iron out on time.
After you finish the soft launch you can contact your audience and ask them for feedback. Ask them whether they would change anything regarding your campaign, whether it was interesting and other questions that would give you a bit of insight on the quality of your fundraiser.
Now, when the time for a full launch comes, you will be ready to handle anything.
Think of a unique idea
The idea of a fundraising event is to create something that will attract people’s attention and give them a reason why they should donate. Work hard on thinking of something that will be interesting to people passing by the event.
Our favorite option is always brick fundraising. It is one of the most effective ways of raising money for schools, churches or social clubs and it is quite simple to understand. Basically, a donor pays for a brick that will later be used for building a certain project. It could be a pathway, a classroom in a school or a decorative wall outside.
Naturally, it is not just about buying the brick. The brick is actually engraved with the name of the donor which is why it is such an appealing idea to people. It is a way for a person to have their name be put in history. For exploring more about brick fundraising, especially for schools, learning more about the fundraising ideas for high school and other school fundraising click here. You can also visit Soapbox Engage for more virtual fundraising ideas that you can try.
Also, check out Donorbox’s in-depth list of virtual fundraising ideas.
Branding
Even though your team comes from a non-profitable organization and the fact that you are raising money for charity does not mean that you should avoid spreading your brand. Do not think that spreading your brand name, logo and colors is selfish just because you are doing a non-profit event. In fact, it is much better to use your brand name when hosting the event.
Why you might think? Well, it is quite simple. People do not want to give out their money to just anyone. They want to be sure in their money spending decision and the way to achieve them is to make them trust. How can they trust your actions if you do not show who you and your team are? This is why it is so important to showcase your brand name, logo, and colors. You can find more tips and information here.
Ensure that your brand shows up in all of your emails, on social media and at the event itself. It is vital that potential donors can see just exactly which organization they give money to.
Create a plan
You probably already know that when it comes to events as complicated as these, you can’t just go head first into it and expect that everything will go according to plan. You need to realize that to host a successful fundraising campaign you will need to set a few goals for yourself and your team. What will the funds be used for, how much of those will go to charity and how much to fuel your next project?
Whatever your ideas or sense of goals are, you should never make all of the decisions by yourself. Have a group of people that you can trust with the organization’s future and pitch your ideas.
This group of people can help you develop a written plan which can give you an insight on how much you will need to raise, who is going to be your target audience and other important bits of information that will push the fundraiser to its success.
Keep in mind, after you create this plan, you do not have to follow it strictly step-by-step. It is common and normal that unforeseen obstacles might show up on the way to your goal which is why you will need to deviate from your original plan. Revise it as you move forward if need be.
It is also important that you set a timeline for realizing this plan. A deadline is an effective way to push yourself and your employees to work as fast and as hard as possible to achieve your goals. The pressure of time is what makes everyone do their best even at the worst possible times.
