Thinking Differently About How to Increase Event Donations

For some organizations, event fundraising is a primary source of revenue throughout the year. If this is true for you, GiveSmart can help you maximize every gathering you host through our pledging strategies.

5 Tips for Enhancing Event Fundraising

At GiveSmart, we have experience with the inner workings of fundraising and what it takes for guests to donate. We have compiled a list of helpful tips to encourage donors to engage more before or during your next event.

1. Empower individuals with peer-to-peer fundraising pages

Peer-to-peer event fundraising is a social-based campaign. The goal is to partner a host nonprofit with several other individual participants. The participants will then share the donation page with their followers and email newsletter recipients, spreading the word and promoting the cause.

This strategy can generate excitement about the cause in the days and weeks leading up to the event. As a result, your organization can raise more funds outside of the event attendees.

2. Strengthen relationships with your donors

While galas can reach a larger number of attendees, it can be challenging to create a unique and memorable experience for everyone. Through smaller events, you can form a closer, more personable bond with your donors.

Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with sponsors and donors by showing appreciation and keeping them informed about the impact of their contributions. When donors know where their money is going and who they are helping, they are more likely to contribute more — especially once an emotional connection is established. In other words, personalized communication and recognition can encourage repeat donations and sponsorships.

3. Use mobile to boost event participation

Mobile is an excellent method to increase event donations. Rather than filling out donation cards, attendees can donate directly from their smartphones in a matter of minutes.

Use a mobile platform that lets you implement online ticket sales, manage mobile bidding for auctions, and create easy check-in at the event. 

Another bonus of mobile is the ability to utilize social media. You can gather followers to promote your event or even livestream it to reach a broader audience and encourage more contributions.

4. Motivate with interactive activities

One way to keep your event attendees engaged and motivated is through interactive activities. Instead of hosting the same event every year, incorporate games, live auctions, raffles, or donation challenges. When attendees have an active, hands-on role, they are likely to contribute more to the cause.

For example, a visual fundraising thermometer can increase participation by showing progress toward a goal. Displaying donors’ pledges on the screen in real time can encourage others to give more. These strategies could be particularly effective for running or cycling events where participants are more likely to be competitive.

5. Tell a compelling story

No matter the size of the event, it’s important to tell a compelling story, weaving it into your event. Clearly articulate your mission, goals, and the impact of the fundraising event. Storytelling creates emotional connections, causing participants to remember the message and engage.

Manage Fundraising and Donations with GiveSmart

If you’re looking for a new fundraising platform, GiveSmart is here to provide the solutions you need. You can trust us because:

• We’re leaders in event fundraising. GiveSmart offers great value to the fundraising industry, providing all-in-one services — from running an auction, gala, online fundraiser, or donation page to facilitating mobile giving and donor management. We have a large geographic reach and run more than 7,000 events annually. 
• We stay up to date on technology. We invest in innovation and customer research to ensure our platform delivers quality results. We consider customer feedback as we update and enhance our features every two weeks.
• We’ve designed our platform for customization. It provides easy access to adjust event details according to your organization’s needs. We are also here if you need us, offering 24/7 custom event support.
• We let the data speak for itself. We serve more than 7,000 organizations daily and have honed our expertise through more than 31,000 events. Using our innovative platform, you can even see your specific event analytics.

Request a Demo Today

GiveSmart’s mission is to empower your purpose-driven organization to achieve bigger and better things. Put our mobile platform to the test and request a demo today! We look forward to having your organization join our family.