As a nonprofit organization, you rely on fundraising to fulfill your mission. But how can you fundraise to ensure you boost fundraising sales and reach your fundraising goal?
A good fundraiser is more than just raising sales and bringing in the most money. You must carefully plan a fundraiser to ensure its success.
However, a few tricks up your sleeve will always be helpful. Below, we have put together a list of our top fundraising sales tips to help you get the most out of your event. Our helpful tips and tactics are sufficient for long-term and short-term fundraising.
Here are seven tips to help you boost your fundraising sales.
Volunteers and donors offer their time and money to support your cause. That is why maintaining a good relationship with them should be one of the main focuses of your initiative.
Volunteers are more likely to donate than non-volunteers because of the relationships you build with them. Engaging with them by making them feel welcomed and excited by your campaign makes them feel involved.
Fundraisers are not just about the money raised. It is a place for people to connect and feel that they belong to a community.
It is your job, as the organization, to build good relationships and ensure loyalty with your donors and volunteers. Without them, you will struggle to reach your fundraising goals.
Frequently promoting your fundraising event before and during the event is one of the most effective ways to boost sales.
The most effective way to promote is through social media advertising. When you use platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, you can reach up to 75% of the United States population.
When advertising fundraising events through social media, keep things short and meaningful so that it’s easier for people to remember. Your theme of the event should also be clear.
During the promotion, you must include the reason behind your initiative. It will attract people with similar morals to support your cause.
Remember to include links to your website in your promotion campaign so people can get to know what your cause is all about.
Donor recognition is vital and will allow you to carry your campaign through multiple fundraisers.
It gives them a sense of helping, and they’re more likely to offer continuous support because their efforts are appreciated.
Prizes are one way to achieve this or you can recognize donors on your website.
Different levels of prizes can be an effective way to set a goal for each level of donor. Whether the donation is small or big, it allows everyone supporting your cause to have a chance at gaining a prize for contributing to your cause.
You can also send personalized acknowledgment letters to each donor to show that you appreciate all the support they provide.
Spreading the meaning of your initiative means sharing the purpose of your organization. Your fundraising staff plays a crucial role in this.
If they are passionate about your campaign’s mission and vision, it makes spreading your initiative easier.
Your fundraising staff is the people that set out plans to attract donors and volunteers. They need to spread your initiative and goals through interactive and worthwhile engagements.
Your initiative must have a concise and relatable message. You should also not stray from your mission.
When you successfully communicate your initiative, you gain many donors and volunteers who will eventually start sharing your message, as well.
An exciting and engaging first pitch ensures your fundraising event starts on the right note. Your potential volunteers and donors must be captivated and motivated by that first pitch.
The more excited people are, the more likely they are to participate.
Start with an immersive story about how your cause came to be. Put your audience in your shoes and state why they need to support your cause.
You can also use testimonies or a visual presentation to draw people into your campaign.
Engaging people with a heartfelt message about your goals and vision will let them see what your campaign is working towards.
Choosing the right time to promote or run your initiative is extremely important. Creating timelines for longer-running fundraisers can help people visualize the goals.
Timing for a fundraiser is crucial to ensure you can bring in the most money at certain times.
People often have different budgets at different times of the month, depending on when they get paid. Most donations will come in at the beginning and the end of the month because of this reason.
That is why you should try to run your fundraiser over several weeks. If you run a fundraiser for one day, it may not reach your desired goal.
To maintain a relationship of trust with donors, keep your fundraiser as transparent as possible. People are more likely to donate when they know where that donation is going.
You must also communicate the legal requirements between your organization and your volunteers and donors.
Financial transparency is also another crucial aspect of your fundraiser to be transparent about, especially for an online fundraising platform.
Make sure you have links for security validation so that donors know their transaction is secure and protected. BiddingOwl uses these features for bids, which is why it's a chosen fundraising platform for many nonprofits and charity organizations.
When you are transparent about what is happening in your organization, your donors and volunteers feel confident in your organization.
A lot goes into establishing loyal volunteers and donors, who are the key to boosting your fundraising sales. Fundraising can be difficult without them because they help promote your event.
You also need to ensure that you are being open and transparent every step of the way. People want to know what is happening to their donations.
That is why we established this guide of tips and tactics to aid you with enhancing your fundraising sales. We know this will help!