Charity fundraising is complicated for a number of reasons, include taxes, risk of fraud, and generating interest. Some aspects of this type of fundraising should be left to professionals if the project is large, but one aspect of fundraising that can be improved by anyone is the way in which possible donors are encouraged to give money. Tips for charity fundraising of this type rely on creativity and an understanding of sales, although having a great charity to begin with can be helpful. Although it may be tempting to run a highly complex, expensive fundraiser, it is important to keep in mind that the point of the event is to generate money that can be used for a cause, so keeping expenses low is key. Tips for charity fundraising are also often specific to the type of charity, so looking at other successful campaigns can be helpful.
When trying to generate interest in donating to a charity, a person must rely on a number of different techniques. One strategy that commonly improves the amount of donations is recognizing the donors at various levels. Donors are often willing to spend a little more money in order to achieve a certain level of recognition, and making the rewards public and attractive can influence decisions about how much to give. Great ways to recognize donors include personalized bricks and donor walls.
For lesser-known charities, even coming up with a small number of donors can be difficult. To make initial contact with potential donors, many fundraisers resort to tactics similar to telemarketing or door-to-door sales. This can be successful, as people are often willing to entertain charitable intrusions, but a better way to make contact with donors is to rely on more successful advertising techniques. Viral marketing, for example, can be a low-cost way to reach a large number of donors for charity fundraising, particularly if a person is good at web design.
Many charity fundraising efforts center on a big fundraising event like an auction, golf tournament, or carnival. Advertising these events is crucial to success, but minimizing spending is very important as well. In order to maximize the amount of money that can be used for the charity in question, a fundraising event should rely primarily on donations and volunteers.
Creativity can turn a predictable charity fundraising event into a blowout success, but too much creativity may scare off donors. Looking at other fundraisers for similar causes can help shine light on what donors expect from this type of event. One way to encourage donations is to play on the human tendency to overspend and gamble. Researching sales techniques and using volunteers who are truly passionate about the cause in question can be an excellent way to maximize the results of the fundraiser.
