How to host an online fundraising event

Are you considering hosting an online event to raise money for your nonprofit organization, school, or charitable cause? Virtual fundraising offers many benefits, such as increased accessibility, faster results, less time required for planning and execution and lower costs.

Whether you’re hosting your first online event or have already made them an essential part of your fundraising strategy, you’ll want to find ways to maximize the results. Implementing the following tips for online fundraisers can increase your success:

• Highlight your mission: Prospective donors want to know why they should donate their hard-earned money to your nonprofit. Your website’s homepage should prominently feature your organization’s mission statement, as well as how your online fundraising event aligns with that mission.
• Make it mobile-friendly: Many individuals — especially those under the age of 60 — will be accessing your event via their smartphones or tablets. Make sure you optimize your site’s pages for mobile device compatibility so that donors have the optimal mobile bidding experience. In particular, check that the font on your donation page is easy to read and navigate on a smaller screen. Offering a text-to-donate option offers donors an easy way to make an immediate donation from anywhere, any time.
• Make it competitive: Injecting some friendly competition into your event is a fun way to enhance virtual fundraising results. Integrating gamification elements — such as points, badges, wine pulls, raffles, levels, and challenges — can increase engagement and motivate donors to give a little more.
• Integrate social media: Remember the Ice Bucket Challenge that ultimately raised more than $100 million to help fight ALS? This is an excellent example of how nonprofits can use a social media campaign to inject some fun into the event. The challenge went viral and drove a large volume of viewers and participants to the organization’s website to donate. The Soaring Owls Foundation did a stellar job embracing social media with its online virtual fundraiser, they shared their story of recent success with us here (episode 3).
• Establish incremental giving levels: Creating buttons featuring different donation options ($10, $25, $50, etc.) along with a brief explanation of the impact of the dollar amount (helps a little, helps more, helps a lot) gives donors a clearer understanding of the true value of their contributions to your cause. If possible, consider offering small gifts that become more enticing at higher levels. Also, give donors the option to make the amount they’ve chosen a recurring donation (monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, etc.).
• Provide testimonials: Include video testimonials delivered by individuals who have had their lives improved with the help of your organization. Doing so is another effective way to enhance a virtual fundraising event. Donors will feel better about giving, as they’ll know that their money is going to a worthy cause.