After the advent of the Internet, there has been no looking back – whether it is streaming live music, playing video games, shopping, or transacting business over video calls. Organizations around the world are increasingly implementing digital strategies, both to formulate working plans as well as to optimize their marketing efforts.An idea of the growth of this phenomenon can be gauged from the statistic that online revenue of the non-profit sector alone grew by a whopping 32 percent in 2020. It is, therefore, not surprising that there is an increasing dependency on online fundraising ideas to raise money for charities or any other purpose.
Even though people are confident about generating fundraising ideas, it is not easy to know whether they will be successful in giving the desired effect. But once you implement the required digital donor engagement tools, the working of fundraising ideas online is automatically taken care of. Software with cutting-edge technologies ensures that your fundraising ideas are optimally given shape, regardless of whether they are virtual events or charity auctions.
Here is a list of online fundraising ideas that give assured results and are easy to set into motion.
Organizing a sale
As more and more people buyonline, the attraction of organizing a “sale” gets increasingly stronger. There are almost unlimited options in this regard. For example, host a garage sale of items that you do not want anymore and want to get them off your hands at the earliest. To make the “sale” more extensive, convince your friends on social media platforms to part with the items that they want to dispose of just like you do. The advantage of putting such an event together as a part of online fundraising ideas is that you do not have to cart all the items to a fixed location. All that you have to do is take the photos of the items for sale and display them on the appropriate site or platform to spread the word.
Once you have the stack of photos with you circulate them over email or on your social media profiles along with the expected prices. After the items are selected by the potential buyers, inform them of the modalities of payment. It then becomes your responsibility to arrange for delivery and shipping from the places where the items are.
Organizing an online auction
One of the most effective online fundraising ideas is to organize an online auction. Generally, people love going to auctions but the Covid-19 pandemic and the resultant lockdowns and social distancing norms around the world have largely dampened their enthusiasm for the traditional auctions. Hence, people have taken to online auctions and this has become one of the most popular online fundraising ideas to be taken up in a big way, primarily by charitable institutions.
Organizing an online auction is not very difficult if you go about it systematically. Select a website that specializes in this field and entrust the conduct of the auction to it. From displaying photographs of the items on the site, providing payment gateways, evaluating the bids, to declaring the winners, the smallest administrative aspects are taken care of by these sites.
Before holding an online auction as a part of your several fundraising ideas, know what sells best in these auctions as distinct from the brick-and-mortar traditional auctions. Focus on services that are much-in-demand but do not come cheap – fitness and cooking classes, discounts at local restaurants, rebates on Internet packages, and more. Get in touch with the respective establishments and convince them to donate to your cause. These sell fast because people always look for a bargain. Even if these are sold below the actual price you do not lose anything as theitems have been donated to you.
Organizing virtual events
You do not have to bother to step out of your house while attending online virtual events. Donors can be a part of virtual events from the comfort of their homes and you can interact with them on a very personalized level. Make the program very appealing and focus on subjects that are generally dear to the heart. Some of the possibilities are live sharing of success stories, broadcasting motivational podcasts, and things similar. Energize your audience and bring events right into the homes that otherwise would require a lot of money to attend.
How can this be one of your online fundraising ideas? Have the attendees register for an event but keep the fees in proportion to the number of people you believe would join in. The rates should be low and attractive if you expect a large audience. Your aim should be to have as many people as possible on board and not financial gains only.
Organizing a periodic giving program for donor retention
Once donors to your projects do not necessarily mean that they become donors for life. Most of them will enthusiastically donate this year and forget about it next year. It is up to you to keep the funds flowing in from them. Studies have shown that about six in ten donors will stop funding your cause or projects next year. So how do you make sure that this does not happen? Start a recurring giving program and enroll all your donors in it. Every month or year, as per the donors’ preferences, the amount will be automatically debited from their account. Most donors will prefer paying incremental amounts periodically to be closely involved with your mission.
These are some of the online fundraising ideas that will be very successful but only if you can organize them right.
