GiveForward

A 24-hour Facebook awareness campaign is when you ask all your friends to “donate” their Facebook status message for 24 hours to help spread awareness about your fundraiser. One of our users did this a little while back and raised over $1000 in a 24-hour period.

Here’s how you do it.

• Step one: Set up a Facebook group or event  (either one will work). You’ll want to set this group or event up 7-10 days before you plan on having the 24-hour campaign so as to give your friends enough time to know about it and invite others to join.

• Step two: Invite all your friends to the group or event, asking them to donate their Facebook status message for 24 hours.  For example, let’s say you are raising money for your friend Jim who is battling cancer.  You might want to write something like:

“As many of you know, our good friend Jim Smith was recently diagnosed with cancer, and we need YOUR help!  We have set up a fundraiser page on GiveForward.org to raise money to cover his medical bills.  On May 17 we are holding “HELP JIM DAY” on Facebook to raise money and awareness for Jim.  Starting at 1:00 PM on May 17 and lasting until 1:00 PM on May 18 we’re asking everyone to update their status message to ‘HELP JIM @ www.giveforward.org/JimSmith’.  IMPORTANT!! We need as many people updating their status message  as possible to make this work, so PLEASE invite your friends to join this group.  Even if your friends might not know Jim personally, please encourage them to ‘donate’ their status message for 24 hours.  Thanks in advance.  This will make a HUGE difference for Jim.” read more…

When it comes to online fundraising there are two types of donors — those who donate because they care about you and those who donate because they care about your cause.  The great majority of people with GiveForward personal fundraising pages will reach out to friends and family and then stop there, which is fine in most cases.  But if you’re looking to kick some real fundraising butt, this post will show you how to get donations from people who don’t know you personally but care about your cause.

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Fundraising Tip of the Week #13: If your fundraising goal is relatively small (<$500) bump it up to $500 to help capture larger donations.

I am riding in an upcoming bike-a-thon to help Chicago public schools go green.  The fundraising requirement for the ride is only $200.

However, to make sure I make the requirement, I’m setting my goal to $500.

Here’s why…

Most people typically make contributions that are anywhere from 1% to 10% of your total fundraising goal.

So if I were to send an email out to friends telling them I had a fundraising goal to $200, I would likely receive a bunch of $10 and $20 donations.    With such a small goal, no one is going to donate $50 or $100 because it would seem like too big of a contribution.

However, if I bump my goal up to $500, I’m now way more likely to get some of those $50 and $100  donations.  So now instead of having to get 20 people to donate $10 to help me reach my $200 requirement, I can have four people donate $50 and I’ll have met my requirment for the ride.  Easy peazy…

Here’s an easy tip to help connect with your donors –  tell them how their donation is going to be used.  For example, if you are fundraising for a non-profit that deals with AIDS  in Africa, let them know that a $25 donation will purchase medicine for a child for three months,  a $100 donation will purchase medicine for a year and a $250 donation will purchase medicine for a child for two-and-a-half years.

Letting your donors know that their donations are going to a specific purchase, will make them feel more connected to your fundraiser because it more tangible and will make them want to give more generously. It will also help establish a suggested donation amount so they know the minimum amount they should be donating..

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If you set a high fundraising goal for yourself, ($3500+) you are likely going to have to get some donations from people outside your immediate circle of friends and family.  The way to do this is to be extraordinary.

Why be extraordinary?  Well, because being ordinary just isn’t going to cut it these days. Sure, Grandma and Grandpa may donate to your campaign simply because they like you, but let’s face it, friends of friends, and strangers are only going to donate if you can knock their socks off by showing them how dedicated you are to your fundraising effort.

So what makes someone extraordinary?  Well, being extraordinary can mean anything. It can mean participating in a physical challenge like running a marathon, or rowing across Atlantic. Or it could mean creating a heartwarming video or great description for your fundraising page.  It could even mean doing something goofy like growing a mustache or shaving your head for charity.  Whatever you decide to do, the key is showing your donors that you are passionate about what you are doing and you are willing to do whatever it takes to raise money for your cause. read more…

One good way to boost your fundraising totals is to get your story into the press.

Here’s how:

Prepare a short email with background information on why you are fundraising and make sure to include the link to your GiveForward personal fundraising page, as well as your contact information.

Once you’ve prepared the email, call up your local newspaper, radio or TV station and tell them you are fundraising for a good cause and that you would appreciate if they could help you out.

Tell them your story on the phone and then ask if you can send them a little more info in an email so they can pass it along to the appropriate editors.  

Usually, this is all it takes.  If you ask nicely, most local newspapers will do a story on your fundraising efforts. read more…

Here’s a quick and easy way to create a little extra awareness for your fundraising campaign.

Add a link to your personal fundraiser page to your email signature.  You never know who is going to see it and decide to donate.

To add a signature in Gmail, click on the “Settings” link.

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When you are fundraising, the great majority of your donations come from family, friends and friends of friends so it’s up to you to promote the heck out of your project.  Mostly you’re going to promote your fundraising page through emails, a Facebook group if you’ve created one and perhaps even the good old fashion way of face to face interaction.

But what do you do in those rare moments when you are not emailing/calling/facebooking the world to let them know about your awesome fundraising efforts?  Well, you should keep the fact that you are fundraising for a good cause at the forefront of your friends’ minds by adding your fundraising page’s link to your Facebook, Gchat, or AIM status message.

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Fundraising Tip of the Week #7

You can add a lot of dimension to your personal fundraising page and raise more money by adding a YouTube video.   If you are a little hesitant about writing producing and starring in your own video, trust me, you don’t have to be Steven Spielberg to do this.  It’s pretty simple. Here’s how to do it in three easy steps.

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Each year thousands of people either shave their heads or donate their hair to support cancer research and provide wigs for children battling cancer or alopecia.  The most well-known, of course, is Locks of Love. A new group called Buzzing4Change is taking up this mission, as well, encouraging college students (who rarely cut their hair anyway to join the effort in one-day buzz-athons on campuses around the country.

Drastically changing your appearance for a good cause is without a doubt a great gift.  It can take months of growing your hair to the required 10 inches, and often means foregoing harsh chemical treatments (although Locks of Love does accept permed and color-treated hair). Then, with one trip to the salon, it’s all over.

Usually, hair donors get praise and support from their friends and family who admire their generosity and devotion to a wonderful cause.  Who doesn’t care about children with cancer?! But rarely do donors attempt to fundraise for the organization whose work is just beginning when they receive a hair donation.

Did you know that is costs Locks of Love over $1,000 to create the wig and hair prosthetic for a child?  read more…