What you should know about school fundraising software

Schools depend on successful fundraising to enhance the lives of their students and families. Fundraising supports co-curricular activities such as sports. the arts, or classroom necessities. Unique fundraising ideas are crucial to attracting attention and raising funds for your K-12 charity event. With creative activities, comes the need for software with flexible capabilities. Charity events bring communities together while instilling a sense of pride and school spirit in its participants. From walk-a-thons and peer-to-peer fundraising to charity galas or auctions, your school fundraising software should be able to handle it.  

With fundraising being of such importance to K-12 schools, it is crucial administrators are aware of the challenges and shortfalls which can occur during a fundraiser. Many fundraisers fall victim to complicated registration, lack of live reporting, and trouble creating a mobile-friendly interface. Beyond finding the right software, there is the issue of finding volunteers and the time consumption of a successful fundraising event. As with any event, challenges are bound to arise – why not be sure your technology is one less thing to worry about? 

Here’s what you should look out for in your school fundraising software to ensure your fundraising event runs smoothly: 

Signing up simply
Both parents and school faculty have a limited amount of time to spend on administrative tasks around fundraising events, so finding software which creates a simple sign up process can help relieve the pressures around event planning. Simplicity in sign up can be as easy as having your guests sign up with their payment information just once in a confidential and trusted platform. Depending on the variables of your event, you should be able to manage your guest list, seating, and sponsorships all from one dashboard. This smooth check–in process will keep your attendees happy and your stress levels low.  

Payment platforms you can trust 
One of the most important factors when it comes to donating is feeling safe and secure in your payment platform. Including trusted and certified badges for safe payment can calm any anxiety a potential donor may have. Also, be sure to save yourself time by utilizing software which allows your donors to receive an automatic receipt and customizable thank you letter after making payment.  

Online 
Having an online fundraising site is fundamental to receiving all donations possible and with a mobile-friendly interface, platforms that are the most effective are easy to customize to match your school’s color, theme, and mascot.  

Text-to-give
With the busy schedule of parents, having the option to give anywhere with any device increases participation and allows freedom to both attendees and those who couldn’t make it out to your event but would like to support your cause. Recent studies show an average increase of 30% in funds raised at events that used mobile giving rather than traditional methods. Using your GiveSmart site with a dedicated keyword per campaign in combination with your social media can also produce a good deal of growth and improve the promotion of the event.  

Reporting at your fingertips 
Never miss an opportunity to pivot during an event with live, intuitive reporting. Software to be on the lookout for should have a dashboard-style reporting tool that you can use onsite to guide decisions in the moment.  

Volunteers
When looking for volunteers in the K-12 sector, safety is always the number one concern. When working with children, find software which has background check capabilities to ensure you have only the best at your event. In addition to being able to conduct background checks, try to find software which tracks your volunteers as well. Have volunteer contact information readily available so you can reach out post-event for thank you letters and hopefully encourage returners.  

Explore GiveSmart’s school fundraising software further here!