Start Off Strong

A lot of a fundraiser’s success is determined during the planning phase. Without a solid foundation, it’s likely that you won’t raise the funds that your nonprofit organization requires. So, how do you make sure that you get off to a good start? Well, there are three really important factors to take care of before you ever start asking for money. First, you have to know what your goal is and you have to have the capability to stay focused on achieving that goal. There’s no room for indecisiveness or a halfway thought out goal. The second pre-fundraising essential is to simply have a good plan. Every moment of the fundraiser has to planned out and any potential obstacles have to be prepared for. For instance, fundraisers that are started online tend to have a slow period during the middle of the campaign. A proper plan will account for this and prepare an advertising boost for when the slow period hits. Lastly, you need help. While your organization probably has staff members that are willing to work their hardest to see the fundraiser succeed, it’s unlikely that you can do it all by yourselves. Reach out to local organizations and public figures that might be willing to do a little of the ground work for you by spreading the word.

Putting The Plan Into Action

Once everything is planned out, it’s time to actually set up whatever way you decided to gather funds and execute the plan effectively. There are a lot of ways to make this phase a lot more successful (e.g. Giving Tuesday), but we’ll go over three in this article. First, the most important step to securing donors and keeping them is to build a trusting relationship with them. You can do this by always remaining transparent with your campaigns and what your organization does. People are more likely to donate to a group that they know they can trust. Also, offer the peace of mind that comes through secure donation methods. This is especially true with internet based donations. Let people know that their transactions with you are protected. Another good idea is to make your nonprofit accessible and understandable. Make it easy for donors to donate to you. People are more likely to donate when they have the donation option simplified and easily accessible. Also, don’t use technical wording. Most people won’t understand technical jargon and they won’t clearly understand your message.

Donors like to know that they’ve made a difference for your organization and they like to know what their donation has done for you. Communicate with them. If possible, have them sign up for a monthly, email-based, newsletter. It’s usually free to do and you can send them engaging photographs of your organization’s work, reports about your organization’s accomplishments, and most importantly, the occasional thank you letter. Set up a get together for your donors. You can offer inexpensive snacks and beverages while also giving donors the opportunity to network. This leads to your donors feeling as if they are truly a meaningful part of your mission and they can be more prone to donating more to your cause.