Top tips for digital fundraising

As our not for profit expert, Shaf Mansour, states:

“It’s not about convincing people to go digital anymore. It’s about showing people how much they can do with digital. There is so much innovation at the moment. It’s an exciting space to be in.”

This guide therefore provides top tips to help you transform a make-shift digital transformation into a solid, reliable and sustainable income stream.

The topics covered include:

• What is meant by ‘digital fundraising’
• Popular digital fundraising ideas
• Implementing digital fundraising best practices

 

What is digital fundraising?

Digital fundraising is a catch-all term to describe fundraising tools and techniques that happen in the digital world. The term goes beyond your website and social media channels, as it can involve ideas and trends that range from text donations to crowdfunding, for example. Put simply, digital fundraising is constantly evolving – with new ideas, tools and techniques always emerging.

 

How to kick-start your digital fundraising

In your not for profit organisation, it is essential that you adopt an approach that builds a relationship with your potential donors. Before you even think about planning a digitally groundbreaking campaign, you must have the strong foundations of the necessities nailed down first.

Our list of digital fundraising best practices provide you with a solid starting point of what you should consider.

 

Implement a digital fundraising platform

Before you consider anything else, digital fundraising requires a quality, user-friendly donation platform. Even in this advanced digital age, it may surprise you how many not for profit organisations make the donation process more complicated than it needs to be. Do not fall into this trap. Ensure that your donation pages are:

• Simple to navigate around and provide clear options to donate
• Optimised for mobile donations
• Capable of taking a donation while asking for a minimal amount of information
• Able to save a donor’s contact information

In addition, you should also provide the option to make recurring donations either weekly, monthly or annually. This builds a relationship with your donor, making it more likely that they’ll continue to engage with your causes over the long term.

 

Ensure a simple donation process

As with visiting any page on a website, if it is a complicated process, the user will simply leave the page. Donation pages are no exception. You only have seconds to make a good first impression, so take the required steps to ensure that the donation process is as simple as possible. You should:

• Ensure a visually appealing balance of text, image and white space
• Limit the amount of donation options
• Keep the form clear and simple to read

Remember, the more times the donor has to click, the less likely it is they will donate.

 

Offer multiple payment options

As a caveat to the previous point, providing donors with several payment options is more likely to increase their chances of donating. Although you shouldn’t overwhelm the potential donor with information, it is practical to offer multiple options of payment including credit/debit card, PayPal, ACH and Google.

It’s worth being mindful that some people don’t like to use their credit/debit card to make ad hoc payments and would prefer to use PayPal instead. The more payment options you provide, the more likely you are to find a method that the donor is comfortable using.

Find out more about not for profit direct debit payment processing

 

Launch a crowdfunding campaign

With a crowdfunding campaign, you are able to fundraise specific programs that can attract donors who care deeply about these projects. As these are more personalised, donors are more likely to feel that their donation has made a difference as features such as social media posts, marketing emails and ‘goal meters’ provide updates relating to a campaign’s progress and how close it is to achieving the overall donation goal.

How is this different from a standard donation page? A crowdfunding campaign has its own unique benefits including:

• Not requiring an application process
• Ability to share your fundraiser with friends and family via social media
• Makes it easier to reach people outside of your network
• Avoids long waiting periods to receive funds

 

Bring your stories to life

Images and videos are great media to implement into your donation pages, social media accounts and email campaigns to really bring your stories to life. By adopting this approach, donors will be able to physically see the people who will benefit from their donations, providing a personal touch that creates an emotional attachment and encourages the donor to donate to future causes.

According to HubSpot, more people are watching videos online than ever before – so much in fact that the amount of video watched has almost doubled since 2018. With consumers clearly actively seeking this type of media, it’s imperative that you keep up with the trend and provide your donors with the content they want. [1]

In addition, this content can be shared easily via social media…

 

Embrace social media

Social media accounts such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube have proven to be excellent channels for popular digital fundraising campaigns (remember the #icebucketchallenge, anyone?). These accounts allow you to create a sense of community around your campaign(s) by providing updates with their progress.

A social media strategy also ties in effectively to campaigns as simple link sharing capability introduces a golden opportunity to re-direct potential donors to key content, including those all-important donation pages.

Remember, the more people that engage with your social media posts, the likelier they are to be shared. This can only be beneficial where donations are concerned.

Discover the benefits of social media for charities.

 

Embed donor walls

Donors will be more likely to donate if they can see that others have also donated to your charitable cause. This is especially the case if you are a small charity, as providing proof that you have received donations will serve as an effective trust signal to other potential donors. You can achieve this via customer testimonials and case studies involving real-person interviews.

Another common but effective approach is to embed a donor wall on your fundraising page, which can include the donor’s name, the amount they donated and a message if they choose to leave one. Not only does this provide a trust signal, but it also acknowledges your donor’s good intentions, which leads us on to our next point…

 

Thank your donors

Although it is standard practice to acknowledge your donor’s donation within 48 hours, with digital fundraising you can go above and beyond. The benchmark you should aim for is to send a ‘thank you’ email immediately after the donation has been made. This can be made possible by donation receipts being automatically added to a not for profit’s online donation platform.

Better still, why not provide a more personal touch with a thank you letter posted to your donors? Depending on timescales, this could even be hand-written!

Acknowledging your donors is a great way of striking up a relationship that can potentially influence their decision to donate again in the future. Remember to make your message sound sincere and maybe even provide an option to subscribe to your newsletter.

If you wish to take a digital approach, find out more about how a CRM system can benefit your organisation.

 

Measure campaign performance

You will only experience successful campaigns and retain donors if you iron out any obstacles that could potentially lead to you not reaching your donation targets. The most effective method of doing this is through measuring the performance of your campaigns. By doing this correctly, you should be able to map out a visual representation of your campaigns via key analytical data including:

• Total visits
• Bounce rates
• Click through rates (CTR)
• Conversion rates
• Session duration

Top tip: although the analytics within your CMS is a good start, you can drill down deeper by using web analytics platforms such as Google Analytics, Google Search Console and Data Studio.

 

Examples of digital fundraising put into practice

As technology continues to develop, sectors across the board are enjoying the exciting possibilities that it brings. The not-for-profit sector is no exception. Below, we outline several of our favourite digital implementations, along with relevant digital fundraising ideas that have been inspired by the innovation of the digital age.

 

Contactless donations

The clue is in the title: contactless donations involve making payment without physically handing over money or entering a pin code. Quick, convenient, and with GoodBox reporting ROI’s up to 1,384% this is one trend that’s here to stay. [2]

Cambridge City Council

Cambridge City Council set up the ‘Street Aid Fund’ to fight against homelessness and to help people on the streets improve their quality of life. The Council therefore had to attract donor funding for this to be possible. They achieved this by partnering with various local Co-Ops to have their contactless devices within shop windows. As a result, donors were able to make £3 donations at times that were most convenient to them.

 

Gaming

Charity gaming involves engaging with influencers and streamers to take part in a charity gaming campaign, with their followers encouraged to donate. This most commonly takes place via streaming services such as Twitch and Discord. With the global gaming market  valued at $167.9 billion, [3] we love how charities across the UK are ‘game-raising’ their way to success.

Jingle Jam

Jingle Jam is the world’s biggest games charity event which first launched in 2011. In 2020, the event saw streamers worldwide raise funds for 12 charitable projects in both the UK and globally. Donors could donate £25 to one of the charities via Tiltify to access the ‘Jingle Jam 2020 Games Bundle’ of 35+ PC games and add-on content from games including ‘Among Us’ and ‘Call of Duty’. Since the initial launch in 2011, it has raised over $25m and sold 500,000 bundles. [4]

 

QR codes

A machine-readable code created through a matrix of black and white squares, QR codes (aka quick response codes) make it quick and easy to access information and take people straight to your online donation page. Most commonly, this can be achieved via phone cameras, as most modern phones can scan these codes. Simply position the camera so that the full QR code is visible for two to three seconds and your phone should ask if you wish to be re-directed online.

Macmillan Cancer Support

Macmillan Cancer Support use QR codes in several ways. However, one of their most effective implementations is using QR stickers in their ‘World’s Biggest Coffee Morning’ packs. These codes effectively make donating as accessible as possible by linking users to their own Coffee Morning fundraising page. In addition, posters of this QR code can be printed out to encourage others to donate to this page.

 

Virtual reality

Virtual reality is a simulated 3D environment that allows participants to use their senses to explore and interact with a virtual surrounding that emulates reality. More than just a novel experience, research [5] suggests that content viewed on a virtual platform can increase empathy, a sense of responsibility, AND inspire people to donate. Find out more about charities bringing virtual reality to life.

WaterAid

WaterAid made effective use of VR with their ‘Aftershock’ charity campaign. This was a virtual reality documentary that put viewers in the centre of Nepal to hear the story of Krishna Sunuwar, a 58-year-old plumber working to repair the community’s water system. Due to the area having suffered from a devastating earthquake, this experience made the participant feel as though they were experiencing this disaster which made it more likely for them to feel more emotionally attached and donate.

 

Top tips for digital fundraising campaigns

Now that you have an idea of how digital fundraising works and the potential approaches to take, it’s important to consider certain steps to make the most of your fundraising campaigns. When Covid initially hit, charities had no choice but to dive in at the deep end. Now, however, you can take a step back and adopt a more measured, methodical approach in optimising your digital fundraising strategy.

Here, we share several of our top tips with you.

 

Tip #1: Build on what works

Before you go forward, you need to look back at your digital fundraising innovations, understand what the numbers are telling you, and build this into a wider process of reflection and learning. This is how you grow. Take every success and failure and learn from it, using each as a steppingstone to guide your digital future and eventually contribute towards designing a digital fundraising strategy.

 

Tip #2: Develop a digital fundraising strategy that’s right for YOU

With so many opportunities out there, it can be tempting to try and do it all. This can be counterproductive – especially if you’ve got a small team and limited resources. Use them wisely and focus on the technology and ideas your data and experience support. For example, if running a virtual reality campaign is above your budget or areas of expertise, why not focus on something you are more confident with instead?

Moral of the story: play to your strengths.

 

Tip #3: Remember to create great content

You can have the best technology in the world, but if your content is underwhelming, the message will fall flat. Ideas are everywhere. The key is to find (and use) the ones that work for your audience, and to keep your content:

Fresh: Don’t just recycle the same tired case study. Sure, you need to get as much value as you can from each piece, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be on the lookout for new stories and content ideas.

Authentic: Research shows that consumers find user-generated content almost 10 times more impactful than influencer content. [6] That’s great news for charities, who have no shortage of service users, supporters and staff to inspire great fundraising campaign ideas.

Relevant: If you want the reach, you need to tap into local, national and international news. Keep an eye out for the stories that work for you, and don’t be afraid to join the conversation.

 

Tip #4: Invest in your digital fundraising team

Don’t get so distracted by the wonders of digital that you forget to invest in the people that deliver it. While it is important to have a clear idea of your digital campaigns, equally so is to ensure that either you or your colleagues have the ‘digital skills’ to break through the barrier to deliver fundraising success.

Providing digital fundraising training is therefore paramount. With a host of online resources and professional development opportunities to choose from, investing in your team is a move that will always bring great returns.

 

Tip #5: Research sector trends

No charity is an island, and it is important that you understand the trends that shape your sector. If you’re a regular reader, you will know that cashless donations, social media, hybrid events, QR codes and artificial intelligence are five of the top trends to look out for in 2022. Simply put, you should design your fundraising strategy with a knowledge of broader fundraising trends in mind.

TOP TIP: If you can, why not take some time out to talk to other charities? Fundraising is a community, and if we work with rather than against each other, we can break the window of opportunity wide open.

 

Tip #6: Set SMART objectives

You’ve set your vision, you know your baseline and you understand the external environment. The time has come to use this information to set objectives and prioritise actions. There can be a lot of moving parts to consider, so we recommend working through each income stream and setting SMART objectives for each one.

 

Tip #7: Always look to the future

Digital fundraising is never done. There will always be new innovations and trends to look out for. Don’t wait for them to happen. Put some time aside every week to scan the landscape and keep an eye-out for new ideas to test. Seek out these concepts and get ahead of the game. Create tests and pilots, monitor your progress and build on what works. It’s okay to make mistakes - the important part is to remember what is possible.

 

Next steps

One of the truly wonderful things about digital is that there are just so many opportunities; for training and fundraising. Don’t limit yourself to the ideas in this blog. Do your research, get out there and find the tools that work for your audience and the support you need to bring them to life.

Discover more about digital fundraising with our additional resources below.

 

REFERENCES & CITATIONS

[1] HubSpot (2022). What Video Marketers Should Know in 2022

[2] GoodBox (2019). Contactless technology: Worth the investment?

[3] Globe NewsWrite (2021). Global Gaming Market (2021 to 2026) - Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecasts

[4] Jingle Jam (2021). Jingle Jam - The official website

[5] ScienceDirect (2018). The effects of Virtual Reality (VR) on charitable giving: The role of empathy, guilt, responsibility, and social exclusion - ScienceDirect

[6] Stackla (2021). Bridging the Gap: Consumer & Marketing Perspectives on Content in the Digital Age - Nosto

 

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