What is online fundraising?
Online fundraising is a way to raise money using the internet. Donations can be collected without having to host in-person events, going door-to-door, or physically collecting cash. All you need is a laptop and an internet connection.
Here are a few reasons why you should consider online fundraising:
- Online fundraising is extremely cost-effective
- 55% of donors would rather go online to make a donation
- It is one of the most profitable ways to raise money.
- Online fundraising expands the reach of your campaign
- Due to the pandemic; it has become one of the safest ways of raising funds
Here are ten highly successful online fundraising techniques that you can implement to increase the rate of your donations:
1. Matching Gifts Campaigns:
Matching gift programs are a great way to encourage donors to give more and to multiply the donations you are already receiving.
Many for-profit organizations implement philanthropic programs that permit their employee to give back to causes they care deeply about. Through these programs, these organizations agree to match employees’ gifts to nonprofits, most commonly dollar-for-dollar.
These matching gift programs are offered by 65% of Fortune 500 companies.
Be aware that in order to qualify for this you need to achieve certain eligibility requirements that these organizations set.
2. Peer-To-Peer Fundraising:
Peer-to-peer fundraising is an online fundraising technique that enables individuals to raise money for a nonprofit organization by asking their friends and family to donate online. This can be done by encouraging volunteers to create their own fundraising pages.
Peer-to-peer fundraising accounts for a third of all online donations.
This method of online fundraising builds credibility, allowing you to be human-centered. The results of this is that 1 in 4 solicitation emails from peer-to-peer fundraisers results in donations, compared with 1 in 1250 emails from a nonprofit.
3. Online Auctions:
Auction fundraising is a great way to engage your donors while providing something enjoyable and valuable in return. Auction a group of items or experiences off to your supporters. Your donors take home an incredible prize while your nonprofit reap the funds.
In order to implement this effectively, think about using auction software with both app-based and web-based bidding tools. This makes things convenient and comfortable.
4. Virtual Events:
Online events can be used to raise money for a specific cause, campaign, or project. Due to the pandemic, it has been rising in popularity.
Virtual events are often a lot easier and cheaper to plan than traditional ones; no need to worry about renting a venue, or hiring caterers. This decreased cost means more funds to pump into your mission.
5. Text-To-Donate Campaigns:
Text-to-Donate campaigns make it easy for your supporters to donate directly from their smartphones. All they need to do is text a key phrase to a preset phone number, and through a series of prompts will be led to an online giving form. It is important that these forms are mobile-optimized.
With over 5 billion people owning a mobile device, this type of online fundraising can be extremely effective at generating large amounts of funds.
6. Crowdfunding Campaigns:
Crowdfunding is a way to raise money online by getting people to donate small amounts of money.
Design your crowdfunding page online and encourage your supporters to spread the word.
7. In-Kind Wishlist Drives:
Not every need within a nonprofit is monetary-based, those needs can be met by using In-kind wishlist drives. You can create a wishlist on Amazon or another website and let people know about it. They can then purchase items for you.
8. Email Blasts:
Email blasts are a great way to reach a large audience; they can be used to reach new donors or to thank donors for their support.
9. Online Raffles:
Raffles are a quick and easy way to raise a lot of money; you simply need a grand prize and a group of supporters willing to participate. In order to have the greatest impact with this method of online fundraising, you need to advertise it well and have an enticing prize.
To conduct a virtual raffle, equate certain amounts of donation to one ticket. The more a donor gifts, the more tickets they buy, and the bigger the chance they win the prize.
10. Google Ad Grants:
Google Ad Grants is a free program that helps nonprofits raise money online by letting them use Google ads. The program also empowers nonprofits to raise awareness. Through the program, nonprofits can get up to $10 000 in ad credits per month. This gives nonprofits the opportunity to be placed at the top of results pages for keywords.
If you decide to utilize this program, make sure to use compelling language and images to get people to click on your ad and go to your website.
Found this article useful, but need help that’s a bit more tailored to your nonprofit specifically? Feel free to reach out to Support Black Charities and we’ll help your organization reach new heights.