17 May 6 Nonprofit Fundraising Strategies That Work

Donations are the lifeblood of nonprofits. Without consistent funding, you can’t carry out your mission. But as you also know, fundraisers take time and resources, and not every campaign will be a smashing success.

That’s why it’s important to think strategically and choose tactics that are right for your nonprofit. Here are six of the best nonprofit fundraiser tactics.

Get Wowed by Text-to-Give

Having trouble connecting with your audience? Are your email campaigns failing to produce high open rates and conversions? You’re not alone. The average open rate for emails is roughly 10-20% (and that’s if you’re doing really well!). This means that even if you’re crushing your email fundraiser campaigns, you’re still missing out on potential donations. Simply put, the majority of people leave their emails unread.

That’s where text solutions come into play. Open rates are roughly 98% for text messages. With text-to-give and text-to-reach, you can not only effectively communicate with your donors on their mobile phones, but they in turn can donate quickly and easily by responding via text.

With ReachNow and GiveNow from mobileAxept, you can keep your supporters up-to-date on your nonprofit’s work as well as give them a tool to donate easily whenever they choose. Donor retention rates go up, your workload goes down. It’s the best of both worlds!

Add/Optimize a Donation Portal on Your Website

Offering an online donation portal or page on your website is a must if your nonprofit doesn’t have one yet. They are an easy integration and require little work on your end. If you do have a website-based webpage already, make sure to check it fairly often to ensure it’s working. If you don’t have one yet, get started on it ASAP. Convenience and ease-of-use should be the main focus when creating your online donation tool.

For inspiration, take a look at these 15 donation page examples!

Overhaul Your Website

Perhaps your website could use a major refresh. New websites can be expensive, but it’s worth reaching out to local web designers or marketing agencies to see if they’re willing to work pro bono or for a discount. If a new site isn’t in the cards for your nonprofit at the moment, you can still make some quick and simple changes on your own that can improve your donations.

For example, is the content on your website SEO-friendly so that people can find your site easily? Are the images updated so that it looks fresh and current? Do you have a thorough “About” page so that people who come across your site know exactly what you do and the causes you’re fighting for? Addressing these questions is a great start to creating a website that brings in more people, increases your donations online, and helps you reach your fundraiser goals.

Try Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Events

Many nonprofits use a peer-to-peer donations strategy in one way or another. That’s because there is power in numbers, and by inviting your supporters to reach out to their personal networks, you can greatly expand your reach. Perhaps the best part about peer-to-peer fundraisers is that there are many different types to choose from. Here are just a few examples:

Walk-a-thons and Color Runs

Bike-a-thons & Spin-a-thons

Community Serve-a-thons

Polar Plunges

Whatever type of peer-to-peer fundraiser you choose, make sure you market it well in advance so all your supporters can save the date on their calendars and sign up!

Focus on Year-End Giving

A year-end push is a great way to improve your donations efforts before the year ends. Giving Tuesday—the Tuesday after Thanksgiving—is when you should be especially assertive with your reach-out campaigns. Whether you’re using a text-to-reach solution or being particularly active on social media—or preferably both—nonprofits should communicate often and compellingly in November and December.

Honor Donors Through Donor Recognition Campaigns

One way to entice people to donate to your nonprofit is to honor them through gifts for their donations. You’ve seen bricks and plaques bearing donors’ names in parks and community spaces. People like being recognized. Offering branded merchandise like quality t-shirts in exchange for donations is another great way to get more people to give. Many organizations use some sort of donor recognition campaign as a way of saying thank you. By showing your appreciation to individual donors, you can turn one-time givers into repeat donors and, eventually, loyal supporters.

For more information or to get started, contact sales.