121 Fundraising Tips to win with your
crowdfunding campaign on Impact Guru

Plan your fundraiser

No fundraiser is an overnight success. Crowdfunding involves careful planning on when to make your fundraiser live, how to take it to the right people and how to get those right people to donate and share. Our fundraising experience tell us that there is no one formulae that works for all, but we've seen some common patterns to assemble some of our most profiting advice. Pick and choose to create your plan!

1. Fundraiser Story: Tell people why you want to raise the money. This is VERY important. Believe us, the donors want to know what they are donating for - even if they know you in person.
2. Images/Videos: Would you rather buy a dress you can see or a dress that is only described to you? Images put a face to your fundraiser, they make donors care about you and your cause a lot more. (5 times more to be exact!)
3. Rewards: We all feel motivated when given something in return. Though most donors donate out of kindness, rewards like a simple thank you note or a small merchandize can urge the donor to support your campaign further.
4. Fundraiser Title: People may not judge the book by its cover but they certainly judge it by the title. Titles are one line stories. They are what gets the donor to click on your campaign amongst all the others.
5. Goal Amount: We understand that you may sometimes need a huge amount, but start humble. Put in an achievable target and then get it increased once you reach there.
6. Base Amount: Everyone gets scared of a zero. So, does you donor. Make sure you add some base amount to your fundraiser (be your first donor) or urge a close friend or relative to make a contribution so that the donor can give with more confidence.
7. Create a support group: Before you begin, enroll some friends and family who will dedicate time regularly to share and talk about your fundraiser within their network. Make sure your fundraiser is shared far and wide by these supporters.

1. Pick out your core donors:Create a support group that will help you throughout the campaign. Think of friends, family, co-workers, ex-colleagues, college batch mates, club members, pen friends, anybody and everybody who can help you by making a contribution or reaching out to others. These are people who will absolutely not say NO to you and will definitely share the fundraiser within their networks. Keep them informed that you will be launching a fundraiser soon and prepare them on how to share once your fundraiser is live. Almost 25 - 30% of the funds should come from this group
2. Create email templates: Emails are proven to be more effective than even social media. A study by convinceandconvert.com states that 44% email recipients have made purchases based on promotional emails. Another report by Mckinsey and Company states that email conversion rates are 40 times more than Facebook or Twitter. Keep email drafts for the following ready so you can simply hit send:
   • Introductory email, telling people about your fundraiser (Please donate to my fundraiser)
   • Thank you email for donors (Thank you for your donation)
   • Asking people to share your fundraiser (Please share my fundraiser)
   Use MailChimp or Campaign Monitor to create great email templates.
3. Team Up!: Build a dedicated team of people who can not only promote your fundraiser but also help you create it (like click good pictures, write regular updates) etc. Each new member doubles your outreach.
4. Donor Analysis:Analyse the target population to know what interests them, causes that are close to their heart, and the most effective way to persuade them to donate.
5. Device a communication strategy: Select the perfect combinations of communication platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp) that best suit your cause and your audience. Figure out where you can tell your story well and where you will find the most donors. A simple way to understand that is by asking yourself: which platform are most of my friends on? What do I use most frequently to communicate? Try to group your donors according to where they are the most responsive and plan how and when you are going to send your message
   IG TIP

   Facebook and Whatspp are proven to be the most powerful tools next to sending direct emails.

6. Join Facebook Groups: Join Facebook groups that match your profession or interests and spread the word amongst that community. Eg. If you are teacher, you can join Teachers In Mumbai and post your fundraiser to get help from the teaching community.
7. ...And Twitter influencers: Find influencers on Twitter (ones who have more than 5 or 10k followers and tweet to them for an RT.

Eg. Here's how we tweeted to Hip Hop International to help raise funds for a team of young hip hoppers who wanted to participate in the championship.

1. Social Media Blast: Let the world know on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn and Instagram that your campaign is live and is accepting donations. Make sure your first post (asking for contributions) is interesting and energetic. Give a social media shout-out to your first donor and ask your influencer group to start spreading the word too. Use social media management tools like Hootsuite, Buffer etc. to schedule your posts. Here's how to tackle the main platforms: Facebook: Keep the post description short (not more than 2 lines) and use the best pictures you have. In fact, it wouldn't be a bad idea to click fresh pictures of your NGO program, product, or social enterprise project to post. Posting once or twice a day is good enough. Twitter: Follow trending hashtags for a day and try to incorporate them into your campaign tweets. With Twitter, one tends to often cross the line. Don't post about everything and anything; instead stick to your campaign and the topic it revolves around. Should tweet at least 3 times/day. WhatsApp: Broadcast messages to all your WhatsApp groups and contacts. Be careful to not bombard them with messages daily, rather send a first message with a link to your campaign and send them little reminders at intervals (weekly ones would be the best).

   Best time to share your fundraiser

   
2. Send Emails:Send an email to all your contacts and ask them to contribute or share. Use can put a contribute/donate button directly on your emailer by creating it on MailChimp or Campaign Monitor
3. Send your story to the press: Getting media coverage for your campaign can not only make it popular in your city/community but also bring in a lot of donors! Use your contacts or reach out to media publications and pitch your story to them. A media outreach list of essential publications (local publications are way more effective in spreading the word) bloggers, media websites etc. can help you target the best publications. Get it out there as much as possible. Here's some coverage on our previous campaigns http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/pledgeabowl-mumbai-group-starts-initiative-to-serve-water-to-strays-1690640
4. Enroll people to share: One of the most successful fundraisers on our platform that raised nearly Rs. 25 lakhs in 10 days, used a unique way to promote. They created a group of supporters who dedicated 10 minutes each day to talk about the fundraiser and share it in their network and in various groups. This strategy helped them bring in foreign funds from USA, Australia and Dubai too!
5. Conduct an offline event: While you are focusing hard on maintaining your online presence, don't forget the power of meeting people offline and spreading the word through one-on-one conversations. Organise a dinner (like the one we did at Impact Guru – Dine. (Feel) Fine) a local gathering, a volunteering trip, a preview of your product or a marathon. Get people together, create a buzz and watch them spread the word for you and come forward to donate.
6. Ask us for our help! Impact Guru's large community of donors and social media following can help you reach out to an entirely new audience. We help campaigners with social media sharing, blogs, PR articles etc. To get to know how we can help you promote your fundraiser better, call your Relationship Manager or send us an email at helpmeout@impactguru.com

Design your fundraiser

Presentation is everything. A fundraiser that is complete with proper pictures and a convincing story is bound to get more donations; it's quite obvious. Any potential donor who lands on your fundraiser would like to know the full extent of your condition, why your cause needs his support, if you have been effective in driving change in the past and how urgent is your request. A well thought out fundraiser page, makes up the donors mind faster and urges them to make their donation.

Why are rewards important?

Imagine your friend really needs 100 rupees and approaches you for help. You give him the money with kindness but he doesn't even say a thank you back. Are you likely to give him money the next time he asks?

Appreciating a donor's effort through rewards is a great way to not only genuinely thank them for their help but also keep them coming back and referring your fundraiser to other donors. Although one can go to any innovative level to offer rewards, they don't always have to be fancy. A simple thank you note done right can make the donor very happy!

Here are some interesting rewards you can offer:

1. A personalised thank you note: When a donor or a volunteer contributes to your cause even in the smallest way, you need to make sure he/she knows how much his/her help is appreciated. A personalized thank you note or a small token of appreciation can never hurt.
2. Invites to an event: Especially if there is an offline activity involved - a film, music, or any other creative campaign, you can always offer free tickets and invites to events such as a launch, a private screening, a seminar, or an exhibition. An offer that is exclusive is all the more incentivizing.
3. Brand merchandize/ Supporter T-shirts:For startups, social enterprises and nonprofits, offering free brand merchandize is not only a reward for the donor, but also a great advertising opportunity for your cause. Brand merchandize can be in the form of clothing, stationary, or handicrafts with the campaign or NGO's logo on it.
4. Free samples:If you are a social enterprise or a start-up, you can offer free samples and trials. This is not only a great way to get more donors but will also help you market the product. You can also test the potential demand for the product and feedback.

   Best Rewards Given on Impact Guru

   
5. Tax exemptions: Most NGOs and crowdfunding platforms offer their donors a chance to avail a tax exemption with an 80G certificate. Impact Guru takes it a step further by allowing Indian NGOs to give tax benefits to their UK and US donors! Read here on how.
6. Social media shout-out: Millennials have a slightly different relationship with social good. Nonprofits should encourage an environment that motivates millennials to donate. A great takeaway for the millennial population would be recognition for their philanthropy; something like a shoutout on social media. This gives them a great ego boost and is a feel-good factor.
7. Meet-and-greet: Many NGOs are associated with celebrities who support their cause. When celebrities with a huge fan following champion a good cause, it spreads the message to millions of those fans. When those fans get converted to donors for your campaign, you can always offer them exclusive meet-and-greet sessions with the celebrity, as a massive reward for their help. If not a celebrity, you can also conduct a meet and greet with a resource person who can share knowledge. Like a CEO or a Design expert could offer some tips and ideas to donors who would like to learn.

Promote your fundraiser

You've planned your fundraiser, designed it well and now it's time to take it to the crowd. The internet is a labyrinth and it takes strategy and effort to bring the right audience (potential donors and empathizers) to your fundraiser. A good promotion strategy would mean maximum visibility in the right networks which would most definitely bring in more donations.

1. Facebook:Facebook should be a part of all social media plans. Not only does it have the largest audience but also provides great networking opportunities! Here are some quick tips for best use of Facebook:
   • Create a fundraiser specific Facebook page
   • Craft effective posts
   • Search for the best times to post on Facebook
   • Find and join Facebook groups for your cause or for crowdfunding in general
   • Take advantage of the audio-visual-text combination
   • Use Facebook Insights to gauge your outreach
   • Engage with your audience. Ask for ideas and feedback.
   • Use Facebook Ads and post boosts for greater coverage
2. Twitter: While Facebook is where you can bring in the numbers, Twitter is where you can engage them. It is the voice of the people.
   • Limiting words in 280 characters helps keep people's attention
   • Start conversations
   • Use a hashtag for your fundraiser
   • Ask for ideas and feedback
   • Reach out to influential celebrities and ask for their support
   • Use twitter shoutouts to express gratitude to donors
   • Ask for retweets
3. Instagram & Snapchat: These mediums are all about good visuals! If you are an organisation, it is essential you show your impact on instagram. Post pictures of your programs, your volunteers, your beneficiaries to let people know that you are onto something! For individuals, we suggest you take a call on whether instagram is suited for you or not. A creative cause or a personal project fundraiser should definitely use this channel, however it might not be very appropriate for a medical fundraiser. Here's how to make the most of instagram:
   • Click good pictures - start with a photobank that you can use
   • Ensure all your images have your logo or hashtag on it so the users can recognize you.
   • Use enticing captions to evoke emotions
   • Use a campaign specific hashtag amongst others that are popular
   • Post short videos if possible to engage better
   • Share stories from the field to let donors know about the impact you created with the funds raised
   • Share testimonials (either in image form or video form) of the people who will benefit by the funds
   • You can even add your fundraiser link in your Bio so everyone visiting your page can see it.

   How to Frame the Perfect Social Media Post

   
4. LinkedIn: LinkedIn is for networking for your fundraiser. It's all about your connections and targeting the right professionals. The best time to post on LinkedIn is usually Mondays and Wednesdays.
   • Connect with professionals with huge networks
   • Post content that is heavy on information, facts and statistics
   • Look for organisations involved in CSR and tell them about your cause
   • Join relevant LinkedIn groups and start a discussion about your cause and urge the members to support you (be cautious to not put your fundraiser directly or repeatedly ask for contributions, start a conversation and then lead the members subtly to your fundraiser page)
   • Use LinkedIn Status updates to give new information about your fundraiser - like the amount raised so far, the condition of the patient, the on-ground activities of your NGO etc.
   • Send direct message to your close group. Find old friends, classmates, neighbours, colleagues, travel partners and more on LinkedIn and send them a direct message about your fundraiser and how they can help
5. Blog: Blogging is only recommended for campaigners who have a lot of information to share. It is usually adopted by nonprofit organisations or campaigners who run the fundraiser as a team. Blogs can only be helpful, if you have the time to dedicate to it and if your cause has scope to start discussions or give information. Eg- A non-profit that helps educate children can write about why certain children drop out of school? What are the government policies on education etc. Blogs essentially are to tell your donor about your cause. It's for the more informed donor - the one who wants to know in-depth about what's happening with the cause. You can use WordPress or the more user-friendly Medium to start your blog.
   • Rename an existing blog or start a new blog
   • Post consistently about updates/ ideas related to your cause
   • Talk to other bloggers by commenting on their articles of sharing their articles
   • Post your blogs on social media to help it get more audience
   • Explain your initiative in detail
   • Use testimonials of the people who've impacted so far, volunteers etc to show your impact.
6. Whatsapp: Whatsapp is the most undervalued platform to raise funds. Imagine the number of contacts you currently have and multiply them by 10 (considering that it's easy to convince at least 10 friends to share the fundraiser with their contacts). That's how many people you can reach in one go!
   Here's how to write the perfect Whatsapp message:
   • Keep it short. Not more than 2 lines./li>
   • Add a quick link to your fundraiser
   • Put a call to action to donate or share
   • Add images/video with the message
   • Keep it personal (Remember these are people you know personally in one way or another and write the message accordingly.)

1. Create a campaign specific Facebook page: Keep supporters updated about what's going on - send an invite to all your contacts to like the page and urge your friends to invite their contacts too.
2. Craft effective posts: Facebook gives you the liberty to customise you complete post - from the headline to the image. Make sure you create interesting posts with catchy headlines and great pictures. Keep the message clear and add a call to action (Eg. click to donate or click to help).
   • 
   • 

   Here are a few example for making posts:

3. Update your cover image: Put an attractive creative about your campaign ( you can create a cover image in 10 minutes on Canva or Fotor.). Urge your employee/friends/volunteers/team to update their cover image with the same creative
4. Join Facebook groups: Find ones about your profession or your cause or about crowdfunding in general and post your campaigns there. (Don't post very often - in fact you should post your campaign once in 15 days on groups.)
5. Post videos: Share short videos about your cause or the patient to grab attention faster.
6. Use Facebook insights: Gauge your outreach for each page Facebook provides certain data about post reach, likes etc. You can use this insight to make better posts.
7. Create an event: Facebook sends reminders for people who are a part of an event (basically doing the work for you). Create an event for donation to the fundraiser and invite people to attend. Schedule it for the weekend so people will more likely be free to take the action
8. Keep track of timings: Ideally, you should make about 1 post everyday and 3 on weekends. Here are best times to put on Facebook according to Sprout Social:
   • Thursday to be the most recommended day to post
   • 1 p.m. on Thursday to be the most active time
   • Relatively safe to post any day between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
   • Add images/video with the message
   • Early mornings and late nights are the least optimal posting times
   • Wednesday through Sunday are the strongest days to post
   Additionally, this blog helps you decide a good time based on your own insights.
9. Engage with your audience: and involve them in your campaign. One-way communication is boring. Ask questions, start discussions, show gratitude.
10. Use Facebook Ads and post boosts: Boost your best performing or most important post or schedule an ad on Facebook. An ad for a day can cost you as low as Rs. 40 and a post boost can cost you a minimum of Rs. 70 (price varies according to the reach and engagement you demand).
11. Facebook re-targeting: Have you ever looked at a dress at an e-commerce website and found that dress pop up on your Facebook feed. That is remarketing, it targets all the users who have visited or interacted with your fundraiser in some way and urges them to come back to your fundraiser to donate.

1. Change your twitter handle: Most people create a new handle for their fundraiser, but the easy thing would do is turn your existing handle or a team member's handle into the fundraiser handle and use it till your fundraiser is running (this way you can retain your followers; acquiring followers on Twitter is a long and hard process).
2. Create a hashtag: Create a unique hashtag for your fundraiser (Eg. #SaveRohan or #PledgeABowl) and use it while tweeting. Urge your friends, followers, volunteers and supporters to use it too. The more frequently you use it the more popular it will get.
3. Use trending hashtags: Everyday, some hashtags are trending on Twitter, use those to reach out to more people (make sure your tweet related to the hashtag you are using, if a trending hashtag doesn't match your cause or fundraiser, don't use it).
4. Assign an official tweeter or schedule your tweets: It's impossible to be on Twitter throughout the day. Appoint a friend or a team member as the official Tweeter or use Tweet Deck or Buffer to schedule your tweets.
5. Start a discussion: Contrary to popular opinion, twitter is not a tool for broadcast. Instead it is a space to start conversations with your community and with others. Start a conversation or debate or discussion about your cause and enroll more donors. Eg. If your fundraiser supports education of street children, tweet to people who are passionate about education
6. Tweet to influencers: Twitter is all about connecting with the right people. Find influencers for your cause and tweet to them asking to spread the word. If you know celebrities who support your cause, tweet to them too. Basically, get other people involved and let them know that you are raising funds.
   IG TIP

   Emails do great at workplaces. Send an email to your office colleagues and contact your HR to help you email it to all the other teams/departments/functions etc.

   Eg. We tweeted to Hip hop international for a fundraiser that was raising money to send a dance troop for the Hip Hop International finale in Phoenix. HHI immediately retweeted us!
7. Give social media shout outs to donors: Thank donors by tweeting about their contributions. This will not only make them feel good but also persuade others to donate too!
8. Tweet at key timings: With Twitter, timing is extremely important. Out of the millions of tweets that come up on people's screens everyday, yours need to be unique and stand out. Find out the best twitter timings to post with tools like Tweeroid and Tweetwhen.

   Here are some good tweets to get inspired from:

   • 
   • 
   

1. Craft a subject line that people can't resist: A Hubspot blog states that about 33% of people click on the email only based on the subject line. However, we believe and know that the number is much higher. In everyone's busy schedule the value of your email can only be gauged by the subject line. Keep the subject personal, non-spammy and interesting. Here are some examples:
   • What would you do if you could not afford your child's treatment?
   • Dear xxx, where would you be today if you had to drop out of school?
   • Here are some other fun email subject lines by CauseVox.
   Here are some other fun email subject lines by CauseVox.
2. Keep it short and impactful: Long emails are tedious to read and most people will stop midway. An ideal donor email should not be more than 200 words long. Be brief and crisp about the purpose of the email. Keep your tone personal and conversational and ask questions.
   Instead of adding chunks of texts in paragraphs, use bucket brigades. Find out what Bucket brigades are and how you can use them along with other copywriting tips, here.
3. Send it from an ID donors would recognize: We recommend you send the email from your personal email ID, as your contact list is more likely to recognize it. Though this is not possible for organizations, individuals can definitely use it. Ask your friends to forward the email to their network from their ID. You are more likely to open an email from a person you know.
4. Good storytelling: It all boils down to how well you explain your cause. Explain your initiative in the most creative way. Make the donor the hero of your story. Tell him/her directly how they can make an impact. Eg. More than 2000 children drop out of school each day due to lack of financial support. With a quick donation, you can make sure at least 1 of those 2000 go back to getting an education.
5. Put a call to action (preferably thrice): Once you are done explaining your cause, get to the point. Tell them how to contribute/share your fundraiser and what their contribution can do for your cause (i.e. state the impact. Rs. 500 can help us get books for 2 children). An ideal donor email should have a Contribute Now button that directly links to your fundraiser. Thrice in one mail should be enough.
6. Design a good template with images: Images make donor emailers 3 times more attractive. Use tools like MailChimp or Campaign Monitor to create colourful and attractive emailers.
7. Don't be too frequent. Don't be too absent: You should know how many is too much and how many is too little. Don't bombard the donor but don't let them forget you and your cause either. One emailer a week should suffice.

Here are three must-send emailers:

• Introductory email: Inform the donor about the fundraiser and say hi
• Thank you for your donation: This is a must! Thank the donors personally for contributing
• Update: Send the donor updates on how their contributions created an impact

Other optional ones:

• Don't forget to donate: A reminder for them to donate or share your fundraiser
• Milestones: Send them an email for every time your fundraiser crosses the 25%, 50%, 75% mark
• Fundraiser has reached its goal: Let the donor know that the fundraiser has reached its goal and thank them for their contribution
• Cause updates: Send them updates about your cause, any policy changes, and great impact etc.