What are the challenges of fundraising online? Maintaining cash flow at your nonprofit is one of the biggest hurdles you will face as a charity. With more people staying at home and sponsorships moving to a digital model, additional issues arise.
According to the Blackbaud Institute Index, charitable giving increased 25.3% in the past year. For several years, digital donations have increased steadily. Online fundraising seems to be a long-term trend, so figuring out how it works best for your organization helps with cash flow.
The many advantages of online fundraising include lower advertising costs and an instant cash inflow. However, all nonprofit organizations face some difficulties when raising money online. Here are the most common ones and how to solve them for your charity.
1. Know your audience
Before you market your nonprofit online, you must understand your target audience. You can waste a lot of money targeting people who don’t match your typical donor profile.
Take the time to create a buyer persona, so you understand the type of person you give to your organization. Where they live? How old are you? Once you’ve established all the demographics, take a look at the psychographics. What drives your donors to donate to a team like yours?
2. Generate enthusiasm from donors
Online giving can have the added difficulty of getting donors excited about giving. When you host an in-person event, you can invite speakers, those who have received help from your organization, and add some bells and whistles to encourage people to write a check.
It’s a bit more difficult to tap into the peer pressure mentality present at many fundraising dinners and auctions. People lose the opportunity to socialize with other followers. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to build excitement.
you might wonder How can you keep donors engaged? online. Get an influencer to speak virtually, offer chat rooms and breakout sessions, follow up via email. Think about the types of activities you have at in-person events and translate them into virtual models.
3. Determine payment methods
When you host in-person events, you are likely to collect checks and cash. Online fundraising is a bit different. People are much more likely to pay through a third-party provider or with a credit card. Some will use ACH withdrawal from their checking accounts.
Keep your life simple and take advantage of third-party integrations through Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Stripe. Consider whether accepting cyber currency might give you an added advantage. Pay special attention to the fees associated with any payment services you use.
Most third-party providers allow donors to set up recurring payments, so you should encourage monthly subscriptions. You should also share an address for those who prefer to stay old school and mail a check.
4. Create an attractive website
Your website can make or break your fundraising efforts. Look at the page through the eyes of potential donors. Why should they part with their money? What would make you want to give?
Share stories about people or causes you have helped in the local community. Add videos where you highlight significant projects you’ve been involved with. Use headings to summarize what the goal of each page on your site is. For example, if the user lands on a page set up to collect donations for a local family, highlight the family and explain where the money is going.
Don’t forget to add a call-to-action (CTA) button. People need to know what the next step is to move into the donation funnel. Make it clear where they go next.
5. Take advantage of social networks
The Global Trends in Giving report indicates about 37% of contributors target social media as inspiring them to give. About 36% say it will most likely convince them to sign up for repeat donations.
However, figuring out how to get the word out on social media isn’t easy. Your best bet is to involve people who already believe in your cause. Share content on your website and then post it on your page. Ask your followers to share with others, comment, like, etc.
6. Team up with a corporation
If your giving has decreased, one thing you can do is partner with a local business. Find someone who shares your passion. An example might be a chain of garden stores that partners with a charity that works to improve the local environment or plant trees.
Most corporations have a team of marketing professionals. Try to work with them and come up with a concept. Using the same example above, garden centers could offer one planted tree for every five trees a customer purchases.
In addition to a concept, ask if they will send a note to their employees and customers about your organization. Let people know they can help by sending a tax-deductible donation. Remember, people can only deduct a portion of their charitable contributions now.
If you choose the right company to work for, they may even have a spokesperson who can reach out to their fan base and share what they do. The more people you reach, the better chance you have of attracting donations.
Smaller donations but more of them
It is unusual for people to make large donations online. The amounts tend to be smaller. However, they are also more likely to book for repeat amounts, which helps your cash flow month after month. You have to build the relationship somewhere.
Start online and then take advantage of a one-on-one relationship with those who are your most avid supporters. They may later give you larger donations or leave part of their estate to the cause.
