Below are some things to consider when developing your fundraising strategy.
Making your appeal for donations
When you begin to think about fundraising methods for your organisation you need to consider why people give to charity. People give because of an emotional connection. You therefore need to make your appeal for donations personal by communicating what you do, why you need the money and how you spend your money. Ask friends and family, share your page, say thank you and ask for GIFT AID worth an extra 25p per £1.
Fundraising appeal pages are best used for those supporters who wish to undertake a sponsored event a bike ride, a marathon or perhaps a sponsored silence - be creative it doesn’t have to be a sports themed event. The appeal page will be shared amongst family, friends and colleagues and should include if possible a personalised appeal message and make use of photographs, links to social media accounts and video footage to enhance the story telling. A personalised thank you message on receipt of the donation and a follow up email after the event can also help to keep donors engaged.
See the Fundraising pages we created with particpants on Community Reporter training
There are lots of providers most of whom only work with fully fledged UK charities.
- Watch out for monthly subscription fees which can be costly.
- Charges for debit and credit card services can vary dependent on how the donor wishes to pay.
- You may also want to consider whether the provider is a not for profit organisation themselves.
- Are their fees going outside the charity sector?
Donate Now button
A Donate Now button does not tell a story but links straight to a payment gateway. You should try to publicise your Donate Now facility on all of your marketing material, newsletters, email footers and social media accounts to help raise the profile of your organisation. Can the donate now provider recover gift aid on the donation? Both of these donation facilities are a quick and easy way for people to give to your cause and with the Donate Now facility supporters have the option of making a regular donation which can be a valuable regular income stream for your good cause.
Text giving is an easy way for people to give but will need to be marketed well. If you are a small organisation how will you promote it?