As part of empowerment week at GiveForward, we will be providing our best fundraising tips to you!  After creating a GiveForward Fundraising page, here are the next three things you should do. 

A little extra elbow grease can really make your fundraising page shine.  Here are the first 3 things you should do to get your page ready to share & spread the word.

1)    Share a photo of your beneficiary.

Big, sunny, smiling photos are the best & feel free to share many of them! Proving a photo shows the world who will be benefitting from the fundraiser & can entice more people to share.  Choose photos that cover all aspects of life.  Share pictures of the family, pets, work environment, or a hobby that the beneficiary loves to do.  The friends of Linda shared old and new photos to creating a touching portrait of her family though the years. http://www.giveforward.com/heartofgold

2)    Link your page.    

Your beneficiary many be part of one of the many web communities that provide support and medical advice. Provide a link to your GiveForward fundraiser on these personal pages.  Websites like CaringBridge or LotsaHelpingHands can allow for great patient blogs and linking them to the GiveForward page creates a richer experience for supporters. Also, make sure to provide links to Facebook pages, hospital websites or pages with more information about their diagnosis.

3)    Write a letter (or email).

Share your GiveForward fundraising page with close family & friends first via email.  Write a personal email introducing your fundraiser & explaining why you started it. Emailing close family & friends can increase donations & get the ball rolling.

Where did you find the best photos to use for your online fundraiser? Did you find that writing a personal letter to increased donations? We would love to hear your thoughts!