Successful Fundraising Essentials

It’s 2012 - a new year with new goals and new fundraising efforts on the horizon. Yet as you move onto bigger, better, and larger levels of achievement, don’t forget the tried & true basics of fundraising success.

Tell Your Story:

Offer people an understanding of why you’re doing what you’re doing, and give them a reason to give.

Why are you fundraising?
Why is the cause important to you?
What impact will each donation have? (Ex - $25 buys a new backpack with school supplies for a child).

Set a Fundraising Goal:

Donors want to see fundraising success; and they want to participate in that success. Some people will even donate again if they see the goal number is within reach.

Set a fundraising goal on your Fundraise.com page
Raise your goal once you reach it and be sure to let everyone know you did (it’s a great way to thank people who have helped and motivate people who haven’t yet had a chance to participate in the success)

Add Imagery:

Add photos that speak to your potential donors – images that create a personal connection and are aimed to affect people emotionally.
Embed a video directly onto your Fundraise.com page.

Embed a Widget/Send a Link:

Embed a personalized donation form directly onto your Facebook page to accept donations from friends.
Put your goal bar or your donation form onto existing blogs and websites.

Spread the Word:

Share your Fundraise.com page with family, friends, colleagues, or anyone you may have vested interest in yourself or your cause.
Email contacts directly through Fundraise.com or use your email client of choice and include your customized fundraising link.

Keep Sharing: It’s important tosend updates on your fundraising progress. Communicating both challenges and milestones makes donors feel they’re a part of your fundraising efforts.

Post daily updates to Facebook
Try to tweet at least a few times a day
Re-email everyone who has not yet donated right before your event as a reminder or directly after your fundraiser has ended.

Be Persistent:

Don’t forget to ask people to donate
Don’t get discouraged – not everyone is going to say “yes,” but if enough people say “yes” for you to reach your goal, your fundraiser was still a success.

Say “Thanks”: Never underestimate the power of two monosyllabic words - “thank you.” Looking for some suggestions on how to thank donors better? Check out this post.

Write a Better Online Fundraising Email

Soliciting friends, family, neighbors, colleagues, and businesses for monetary donations is not always an easy job; especially when the economy is suffering and donation dollars are tight. Before you hit the send button in your email box, take time to write an effective fundraising letter that can speak properly to potential donors on your behalf and help get you one step closer to securing your ticket sale or donation.

Make it personal. Tell the recipient why you care, why you’re spending your own time and energy working on this cause and what their donation would mean to you, personally. At the end of the day it’s more about the messenger than the message, itself, so focus on being your best you.

Keep it simple. Today people are inundated with more information than ever before thanks to improved technology and constant access to it. That said, the person you will be contacting will most likely be busy so a few short paragraphs that get right to the point should do the trick.

Use details. No one wants to throw money at an endless problem with no short-term solutions in sight. Associate people’s ticket price or donation amount with tangible items or actions that give donors hope. Examples include food or supplies that can be purchased, renovations that can be made, treatments that can be paid for or people/animals that can be saved.

In the first paragraph, briefly outline a few facts about the organization that will be benefiting from the fundraiser but make sure to explain how it relates to you.

In the second paragraph, talk about the type of event (bacon and beer, casino night, 5K run, speedo run, etc) the date, the time, and how much fun the event, itself, will be.

In the third paragraph tell the donor about where their money will go and that their donation will be tax deductible, including your organization’s federal tax id number if possible.

Finally, thank the person for taking the time to read your email and for their potential support. Include a link to your Fundraise.com page and let them know you’re available to field any questions they may have.

Fundraise.com Featured in The Chronicle of Philanthropy

New Fund-Raising Site Makes Quick Mark in Online Giving

Started just five months ago by a 19-year-old Bostonian, Fundraise.com has quickly established a place in the highly competitive online-giving market, according to Bloomberg.

The site’s founder, Nate Drouin, who postponed college to start the for-profit firm with $250,000 from relatives and friends, said Fundraise.com already has 500 nonprofit clients and expects to earn more than $2-million in revenue this year.

Mr. Drouin’s supporters as well as rivals who have met him note that charities can easily grab Fundraise.com code and paste it on their own sites as a widget. They also like the analytics that the company provides to charity.

“We think there’s a massive opportunity,” Dustin Dolginow, a technology analyst at the venture capital firm Atlas Ventures, in Cambridge, Mass., told the news service. Mr. Dolginow said he expects to arrange $1.2-million in new financing for the company soon.

Read the original post here: http://philanthropy.com/blogs/philanthropytoday/new-fund-raising-site-makes-quick-mark-in-online-giving/37514

Highlighted Cause: Help Sweetwater Ranch Save a Mother & Foal

Charm & Paddy, a mother and foal in dire need of foot care, vet care, and lots of food to get them back in good health, were rescued by Monica Whitmer of Sweetwater Ranch on Friday, June 3rd.

Because Monica took on the financial responsibility of rescuing Charm & Paddy without hesitation, her very caring friend, Charlene, has set up a Fundraise.com page to help defray the costs of services, supplies, and nutrition.

A donation of any amount towards the care and feed of this darling duo would be greatly appreciated.

To give you an idea of how much some of these things cost (approximately):

$10 would provide wormer for one horse

$15 would provide one bale of hay (the duo will likely go through two bales every week)

$50 would provide one of the horses with a hoof trimming  $100 would cover the cost of one vet visit per horse.

$250 for momma Charm to have her teeth done.

Charlene’s $2000 goal is based on approximately how much it would cost to care for Charm & Paddy during their first six months at Sweetwater Ranch.

Let’s help Charlene reach her goal so Monica can properly care for Charm & Paddy.

Visit their page: https://www.fundraise.com/charm-paddy-care-and-feed/charm-paddy-care-and-feed to donate today.

Fundraise.com Featured in Thought Leadership Series on Bostinnovation

Nate was asked by Bostinnovation to share with their readership what Fundraise.com can do for nonprofits. Check out the article here:

http://bostinnovation.com/2011/06/08/fundraise-com-making-it-easy-for-nonprofits-to-be-social-savvy/