It's Easy to Raise Money for a Favorite Cause - So How Do You Tell Your Supporters?

Submitted by Annaliese on Tue, 04/15/2008 - 9:48am.

I came across a blog post today that made me smile (and not just because of thejustgiving.comjustgiving.com great vocabulary used across the Pond). It's a simple and straight-forward example of how easy it is for someone to use free, fast, online tools to raise money for his or her favorite cause. Here's an excerpt:

"I've just had a rather intense week of trying to use social media to raise funds and by and large succeeding. Inevitably this story involves blogging and tweeting and people I don't know very well being incredibly generous...."

David Harte, Digital Central project manager at Birmingham City University and contributor to the Birmingham Post's Business Blog, decided to try a spur-of-the-moment fundraising campaign one week before he ran in the London Marathon. He didn't have to raise money for a charity, but he decided he wanted to try to help his favorite, St. Mary's Hospice. His goal was £495, and he ended up raising over £300 (and he's still raising money for his cause online).

He used Twitter, Facebook, and blogs -- and friends who also used those tools to spread the word -- and collected money online via Justgiving, an online fundraising website in the UK (which has a sister service in the US, Firstgiving).

What is my point here, you ask? Well, the thing is, you and your organization probably have a lot of supporters -- and not just the kind who have donated to your cause in the past. Your members, constituents, volunteers, staff, and donors are all potential fundraisers for your cause. The tools are there; the will is probably there; so where are you? Are you helping your supporters help you?

Of course, as "easy" as it is for your supporters to use some of the free online tools available, you know that it's a completely different matter for the organization that wants to benefit from these tools. Planning, communications, implementation, tracking, analysis, oh my.

Here are some NTEN resources on the tools, trends, and considerations for taking your campaigns viral:

Articles:

Webinars:

| the blog

thank YOU, Dave
Submitted by Annaliese on Wed, 04/16/2008 - 10:18am.

Thank you for blogging about your experience. It was inspiring and informative. And congratulations on the marathon!

This is how I'd do it
Submitted by Andrew Badera (not verified) on Wed, 04/16/2008 - 9:51am.

http://www.changeroundup.com/

thanks
Submitted by Dave Harte (not verified) on Wed, 04/16/2008 - 5:33am.

Thanks for picking this up and linking to it.

It was an interesting experience using Twitter and blogs to spur on fundraisers. I really enjoyed giving Twitter updates especially. Running the race knowing I had so much real and virtual support was pretty special.

Cheers,

Dave