Three Tips To Get More Fundraisers

Stephanie Thomas 2

We talk a lot about this “If I build it, they will come” mentality that is associated with peer-to-peer fundraising. While I have debunked that myth for years, today I am sharing a few tips to help you get over the hurdle and get your prospective fundraisers actually fundraising.

Personal Fundraising Pages on JustGiving are used by individuals who volunteer their time, talents, community and treasure to bring awareness and raise money for your cause. These advocates and allies are incredible amplifiers for your mission.

An Introduction to Supporter Fundraising Pages

Now that you know a little more about these pages, let’s take a look at how you can get more fundraisers supporting your programs.

Make Data-driven Decisions

A lot of organizations will send out an email appeal or social media post about their campaign with a call to action to fundraise. While that is a great starting point, the stronger approach is to leverage the data you have at your fingertips and make thoughtful recruiting decisions. Let’s break this down:

If this is your first P2P campaign:

• Prompt your monthly donors and active volunteers to create personal fundraising pages. Their recurring support and enthusiasm is a natural fit for this type of advocacy.

• Contact your board members to create personal fundraising pages as a part of their regular commitments.

• Depending on the type of organization you are, your staff or program recipients may make for great fundraisers. For example, a zoo could have Polly the Penguin’s fundraising page. A theater can feature one of the ballerinas as a fundraiser. A school can recruit teachers and mentors to fundraise. Think about who is associated with delivering your mission and if they would make a strong candidate to fundraise, even if it is only as represented (since Polly the Penguin cannot actually type).

If you have held P2P fundraising initiatives in the past:

• Review your top performers/fundraisers. See how they first got involved with your organization, what their interests are, and what made them successful. Understanding their connection to your organization can help you cater the messaging to attract more successful fundraisers.

• Identify who failed to meet their fundraising goals. What happened? Should they be suppressed from future outreach or would a personal phone call inviting them to fundraise again be a better fit? Can you offer coaching and support if you ask them to fundraise again?

• Personalize your invitations based on their previous performance. Based on your data, you may be able to add context to your email thanking them for the X number of years they have supported your organization or for raising $Y last year.

Soft Launch your Event

Notice the tip jar is never actually empty? The same principle applies to peer-to-peer fundraising. By seeding your campaign with a few pre-arranged fundraisers and a handful of donations before the official launch, you can stimulate the early page visitors to do the same once you are promoting the event.

Interest breeds interest.

Furthermore, a soft launch will help you test out the donor and fundraiser experience, mitigate any bugs or confusion, and get familiar with what your visitors are going to engage with.

Coach your Fundraisers

We all need a little support and encouragement now and then. Motivations rise and fall, life gets busy, and distractions come and go. Staying close to your fundraisers like your high school coach was to the team is the number one way to ensure results. This not only helps you acquire fundraisers (they will want to participate because they feel supported) but it will help you keep them year after year (according to the P2P Benchmark Report).

Here are some handy ways to stay connected and keep them motivated:

• Turn on the automatic coaching emails

• Create a Facebook group for all your fundraisers to share ideas or push out announcements

• Feature effective fundraisers or tips from experienced individuals in emails, social posts, digital communities or groups, etc

• Provide sample email copy, social media posts, and thank you notes for fundraisers to re-purpose. Check out our free customizable toolkits.

• Host a competition to boost results (the most money raised today, the highest count of gifts received, fastest to reach goal). Conduct a few competitions for your fundraisers throughout the entirety of the event.

• Build a fundraising prize ladder; giveaway swag based on the amount raised. For example, a t-shirt with first donation, a hat with $50 raised, a video from the Executive Director once $250 raised, a coffee cup if they self-donate.

• Send a yard sign or printable poster to fundraisers. Bonus: Add the fundraiser’s personal page QR code so neighbors can give easily.

• Leverage teams to build community and competition.

Getting started is always the hard part, but we think once you put these tips to work, you will be able to build stronger relationships and raise more money through peer-to-peer fundraising. Now, share in the comments below- what is something you are looking forward to implementing or maybe something you already do that could help others who are just getting started?