Social media is not just a powerful tool in fundraising, but one that cannot be missed. A few important statistics that show just how important social media can be in successful fundraising include:
· 29% of online donors say that social media is the main tool that inspires them to donate.
· 87% of donors who first donate via social media referral will make their second donation through a social referral source as well.
· 71% of nonprofits agree that social media is effective for successful online fundraising.
· Social media helps to drive around 57% of traffic to fundraising campaigns.
With the power of social media in successful fundraising on display, it shows just how important it is to come up with social media fundraiser ideas to drive your efforts to success. There are proven strategies that work in social media fundraising, and having your own creative take on these takes tried and true methods and spices them up with your own unique flair.
For many, the use of social media for fundraising can come with some apprehension. Namely, not wanting to “bother” friends or family with fundraising efforts.
However according to Opportunity Village’s Communications Manager, Nikki Emord, “Oftentimes, there can be a hesitation to use social media for fundraising because of an apprehension to ask friends and family for money, but because of the wider audience that social media provides, it can be one of the easiest ways to get the word out to those who would be able and willing to participate.”
“When it comes to promoting a fundraiser, utilizing your own connections can be incredibly advantageous and social media makes it even easier to do so.” The foundation of your success begins with your connections, and it’s from there you’ll be able to branch out into further reach.
Promoting Your Social Media Fundraiser
There is a vast array of different ideas you can use to promote your social media fundraiser. Some of these include:
Challenges
Challenges are fun, and audiences on social media truly love an opportunity to engage. You can offer fun challenges like scavenger hunts, photo competitions, or essay contests to get your audience engaged and interested with your fundraising. Additionally, challenges can be presented to all those participating in a particular fundraiser to see who can get the greatest reach and who can gather the most donations.
Get influencers on board
Influencers do just that – they influence! Having well-known faces who already have a background in social media savvy to participate with your fundraiser can help you to reach audiences beyond your wildest dreams. You have your audiences, their audiences, and those who recognize a familiar name now interested in your fundraising efforts. Find influencers that are local to your cause or have personal ties to your organization or the cause at hand.
Teams
Getting your participants together in teams to compete against one another is a great way to build camaraderie, put the “fun” in fundraising, and encourage creative inspiration amongst your fundraiser participants. When grouped together in a team, brainstorming sessions can come up with social media fundraiser ideas that truly come from outside of the box.
Gifting
Incentive is motivating, and whether you’re offering gifts to donors or gifts to participants in the fundraiser, a little something extra can really go a long way. When it comes to gifts for donors, encouraging donors to share, refer, and promote your fundraiser for the chance to win a gift is an excellent way to expand your reach in a fun way.
What Should My Social Media Content Be?
It’s not all about promotion when it comes to social media fundraiser ideas, the content you create needs to be the kind of content worthy of being promoted. You’ll want to consider the content you’re creating, the platforms you’re sharing this content to, what visuals you’re using, and how you’re using this content to engage.
First and foremost, the type of content you might create for a platform like Instagram will likely be different from what you create for YouTube, or for X, or for Facebook. Consider your platform first when creating a post you’d like to share. Instagram is excellent for photo content, Facebook is great for sharing articles, X is perfect for short and sweet posts, and YouTube is a great space to share stories and footage from events.
Actionable CTAs, or calls to action, complete with links are enticing and encouraging to followers. They give direction and they tell your followers exactly how they can meaningfully engage with your post. They can “get involved”, “take action”, or “donate here” for example, and they let audiences know exactly how they can proceed.
You can also use social media to track your donations and see how your efforts are furthering your goals of success. These tracking analytics give you insight into what types of content are working and which may need to be switched up a bit to improve success.
Fundraising Item Ideas
Social media fundraiser ideas will really revolve around what you’re selling, first and foremost. Some ideas for fundraising items include:
Cookie dough
Cookie dough is a popular fundraising item for a few reasons. First, just about everyone loves a great cookie, and second, they make excellent gifts as well as treats for donors to enjoy themselves. Dessie’s Table offers fundraiser cookie dough that empowers people with disabilities while furthering your own fundraising goals.
Auctions
Auctions with donated products from participants in the fundraiser or local businesses can help to drum up excitement and fundraise quickly. These events can be held on social media platforms or held in person and promoted using social media.
Local business gift cards
Local businesses may donate gift cards in exchange for advertising for their businesses, which can then be used for fundraising. This benefits your fundraising goals while businesses can be positively associated with local causes and activities.
Pre-made food items
Bake sales, sandwiches, and other pre-made food item sales are a classic way to fundraise. With social media, you may promote physical “in person” sales going on throughout the community on certain dates, or you can accept orders to be delivered at a later date while you do your fundraising online.
Fundraising For Any Cause
With social media, fundraising opportunities are limitless. Opportunity Village’s Dessie’s Table empowers those within the Las Vegas community with disabilities while furthering your fundraising goals at the same time. Every fundraiser package purchase helps fund Opportunity Village’s mission of empowering, employing, and serving people with disabilities in Las Vegas.
If you’re local to Las Vegas, begin your fundraising efforts, you can order cookie dough tubs through Dessie’s Table.
