Are you looking for new fundraising ideas to help your non-profit raise more money than ever before?
Whether you are new to fundraising or have been in the ring for years, at Charity Fundraising we share 37 ideas to increase your funds for your non-profit:
Invest in your People:
Your biggest competitive advantage is the people involved with your non-profit: donors, staff, and connections. We spend money on things we depend on daily. What do we depend on more than the people who make up our organizations? People keep your organizations running, day in and day out.
- Invest in Your Team first
When it comes to in-house spending, it should always be a first priority to invest extravagantly in employees, board members, and volunteers. - Invest in your Staff’s Development
As an organization, participate in conferences, educational events, online training. Encourage sand train your own board in fundraising and outreach. - Reject Self-Sacrifice
Work effectively and efficiently. It’s better to take longer lunch breaks, work shorter hours, and work efficiently than to work long and hard but burn out you and your staff. - Upgrade Your Tools You Use Often
You complete tasks faster when you use the right tools. You can’t run key programs on a 10 year old computer that keeps breaking down. - Get a Great Donor Database
Donor databases pay for themselves by keeping your work and relationships organized, compiled, and centralized. Reduced headaches while you increase your donor cultivation. - Hire at Market-Rate Salaries
Invest in your staff financially. - Give More Autonomy
Giving your employees a greater sense of autonomy and importance is it’s own sort of reward. You want a staff that takes satisfaction and ownership of their work. - Hire a Development Director
Invest in a qualified staff. - Thank your Donors
they are the bread and butter of non-profit organizations. Make sure you cultivate a true relationship with your donors and thank them for their contribution. - Work as a Team with your Staff on Financial Issues
One person should not handle all the finances. It is critical that the entire staff understands the importance of your organization’s finances and their individual role they have in securing it.
Online Fundraising:
Online fundraising efforts are useful for increasing funding for your non-profit organization. It is key that your organization has an online presence in this day and age
- Go Mobile, Now!
Research shows that mobile usage will surpass desktop usage by 2015. That’s right! Are you ready? Take mobile capabilities to your events and silent auctions. Technology is more powerful than ever before when it comes to running an efficient charity auction. - Use Social Media
Social media is a powerful (and free!) tool to help you engage with your donors through more than just a website and blog. - Give a Call to Action
Your main call to action on your website should be to “Donate Now.” Make it easy for your visitors to accept that call to action by giving them a button to click on the homepage. - Use Compelling Imagery
People are visual beings. We like to “see” what organizations are about. Don’t underestimate the significance of good images on your online website, social media, and print media. - Simplify your Donation Form
Websites should have background information, promotions for programs and events, and blog posts. But they all shouldn’t be on the donation form. - Reduce the information needed on the donation form
Make it easy for people to donate to your organization. No one likes to give away a lot of personal information and spend a lot of time filling out long forms.
- Suggest Giving Levels
Instead of asking people to quantify how much they would like to give, suggest a handful of amounts. Start with as low as $5 and go as high as $1000. - Encourage People to Give Monthly
Receiving a monthly recurring gift, even a small amount, improves the odds that you’ll retain that donor over a longer period of time as well.
- Encourage People to Stay in Touch
Make it easy for people to opt-in to staying in touch through email newsletters when they donate by checking one simple box during their online donation. - Put Security First
Let your online donors know you put their security first. Be sure to recognize the security protection you use to safeguard your donors financial transactions with your organization. - Be Transparent
Donors want to know where their money is being used and what impact they are having in furthering the cause they support. Be transparent as possible. Give your donors the option of knowing as information as possible. - Start a Blog
This long term investment will help you reap long term benefits that can only grow over time.
Put On Events And Expand Your Programs:
There are a myriad amount of options and ideas for fundraisers for your non-profit. Here are some ideas to get you brainstorming:
- Make children part of your Target.
Do not ignore children. They have power to influence parents and donors. - Host a street carnival
Have fun activities and games for a small fee. You can get many charities in your community to participate with different booths for symbiotic donor sharing. - Organize a Competition
Have an eating, dressing or fashion competition to get your donors and guests participating in the event! - Raffles
Use old tricks: Sell raffles for surprise prizes - Center Events Around Holidays
Christmas, especially, is a time when people have the spirit of giving back. - Organize a Dance-a-thon
Get couples and friends to dance until they wear out. It’s fun for the participators and watchers! - Striking Gold – “Treasure Chest”
Organize for members of a community to donate old items for cash to have a rummage sale of “old treasures”. - Organize Karaoke Competition or a Sporting Event
Get talented (and not-so-talented) people to participate in a karaoke show or sport event - Work with Local Restaurants
Organize with a restaurant to donate a fixed amount of money for every patron on a certain period of time or certain menu item. This will promote the restaurant wildly as you create a buzz around the cause. - Organize a Cooking Face Off
Allow people to show off their skills by paying to participate in a cooking competition. You can have both amateur and professional categories, so everyone can compete. Allow the public to participate by paying a small fee then tasting and voting, or have them vote with cash, and the cook with the most money at the end wins! - “Give it up” Campaigns
Encourage people to sacrifice certain activities – something that relates to your cause. They can ask for pledges for the fundraising. - Don’t Underestimate the Power of Crowdfunding
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge going viral helped us remember the power of social media. Don’t forget to promote your events and campaigns on Facebook and twitter. One big mistake people make is to ignore the power of social media. - Pledging Kids Grades
Families want to inspire their children to study. Children want to have a tangible goal to reach. On achieving the grade pledged, the donor must give a fixed amount of money. - “Go casual” Campaign
Ask top management of organizations and institutions to allow a casual dress code if the employees or students reach a certain target of donations - Careful! Too Many Programs Can Drain Your Organization.
Having many fundraising ideas is necessary to brainstorm with your team. Not every program or event is beneficial for every non-profit. Be careful not to fill your organizations plate too high. Understanding your non-profits capabilities and capacity is just as important as picking out the right event idea.
