Virtual fundraisers have grown in popularity over the last few years for both nonprofits and donors alike. These low-cost fundraisers save you money, increase your ROI, and expand your donor base. Your supporters will be excited for more opportunities to participate in events and contribute to your cause. 

Whether you’re hosting a virtual or hybrid event, online-friendly fundraisers are a lucrative, creative way to raise more for your organization. Here are a few fundraising ideas to get you started: 

1. Read-a-Thon 
2. Peer-to-Peer Fundraising 
3. Social Media Challenges
4. Matching Gifts 
5. Text-to-Give 

Before embarking on an extensive online fundraising campaign, set goals for your nonprofit. Consider what your target fundraising amount is, what your audience will learn about your organization through the campaign, and how you can create a positive, memorable experience. Let’s dive into five online fundraisers for your nonprofit!

1. Read-a-Thon 

Read-a-thons are an excellent avenue for an online educational fundraiser. If your organization is education based or partners with a school, a read-a-thon can help increase literacy among your students while also raising money for your cause. 

Read-a-thons are fully online, and raise funds by having students reach out to friends and family for a flat-rate donation. Then, students will read as much as they can over a specific period of time. 

To take your read-a-thon online, you can use an online platform, such as Read-a-thons web-based software, to help students, parents, and teachers stay organized. Students will use the platform to log their reading time after every, so family and friends can see updates on their progress, which can inspire secondary donations. 

Students, parents, teachers, or supervisors can all access Read-a-thon’s school fundraising software to update student reading times, making this online fundraiser suitable for all ages of students. 

To encourage students to participate, you can also offer select prizes based on how much students read or raised. Select the top readers and top fundraisers from each class for special prizes, and offer something smaller for other students to encourage full participation. 

2. Peer-to-Peer Fundraising 

Peer-to-peer fundraising, also referred to as P2P fundraising by industry experts, is a classic way to encourage your supporters to help with fundraising and expand your reach to new donors. Get in touch with your supporters and offer them the opportunity to raise money for your nonprofit as volunteer fundraisers. 

Your ideal volunteers are heavily engaged supporters who would be excited to share their involvement with your nonprofit online and can easily speak to the strengths of your organization. Once you’ve recruited your volunteers, host training sessions to support your volunteers with talking points about your peer-to-peer fundraising goal, mission, and campaign message. 

Help your volunteers create their own fundraising pages to share with their friends, family, and personal networks. Encourage them to set a personal fundraising goal for themselves and to reach out to their networks for donations. Some peer-to-peer campaigns even set deadlines for when funds have to be collected to inspire potential donors to act quickly to join the cause.

Here are some channels your volunteers can use to share their fundraising pages: 

• Social media 
• Email
• Personal Text Messages
• Personal blogs

Your supporters are foundational to your nonprofit, so peer-to-peer fundraising is the perfect way to use their personal experiences to help inform and inspire new donors. 

3. Social Media Challenges 

Social media challenges are a simple way to get a variety of donors involved in your fundraising, spread your message widely, and build your organization’s community. Everyone knows the viral ALS ice bucket challenge because it was memorable and raised awareness for the cause for everyone who completed or watched someone else complete the challenge. 

Take to your nonprofit’s social media profiles and encourage your supporters to create videos, images, and messages about your challenge to share with their networks. Here are some details to include in your social media challenges: 

• Your organization’s mission 
• Your goal for the fundraiser 
• How the challenge works 
• How to donate 

After posting your social media challenges, be sure to ask your staff, board members, volunteers, and followers to engage with the post and complete the challenge to help start building momentum. Use the challenge as an opportunity to build a stronger community by inspiring your followers to participate. 

4. Matching Gifts

A matching gifts campaign can help supplement other fundraisers and provide continued support long after its initial launch. With a matching gifts campaign, you can increase the revenue from donations already being made without asking your donors to give more! 

Many companies offer matching gifts opportunities for their employees. If their employees make a charitable contribution to a registered nonprofit, and submits an application to the company, the company may match a certain percentage of the gift made. Some companies match up to 100% or even double the amount of an employee’s donation. 

Encourage your donors to check their matching gift eligibility on your website’s donation page. You can also promote your matching gifts campaign through social media and newsletters to inspire donors to check their eligibility and company policies. Some companies will match a gift months to a year after it’s been made, meaning if you start promoting now, you might start earning extra donations immediately. 

5. Text-to-Give 

Text-to-give fundraisers utilizes one of the best ways to reach donors on-the-go, mobile messaging. Like other online fundraisers, you can promote it on your social media pages, website, and newsletter to get supporters excited about your cause. 

For a smooth campaign, you can use a text-to-give software that allows you to customize your campaign. Snowball’s text-to-give fundraising guide outlines how to optimize the experience for your nonprofit and your supporters: 

• Use memorable keywords. Have donors text a short keyword related to your mission to your organization’s number. Long keywords are easy to misenter and can be difficult to remember. For example, READ is far easier to type than, SUPPORTOURSCHOOLREADATHON.
• Use a peer-to-peer campaign. As part of your peer-to-peer campaign, have your volunteers share your donation number with their friends and family to give them another way to donate and spread the reach of your campaign. 
• Use simple messaging. People who prefer texts likely also prefer brevity when it comes to messages. Be clear and concise in your text message response and on your donation page. 

Texting is a way to casually connect with donors who may be overwhelmed by your volunteer programs or website. Start a text-to-give campaign to offer donors a simple way to contribute to your cause. 

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Fundraising is all about earning the revenue you need to keep your cause going while spreading the word about your organization, your mission, and your ongoing work. Whether it’s online or in-person, fundraisers are an opportunity to educate your supporters and inspire them to join your cause. Use your branding, powerful language, and online marketing materials to ensure your online fundraising success.

About the Author

Howard Gottlieb

Howard Gottlieb has been a serial entrepreneur for more than 35 years. His latest venture, Read-a-thon, is a novel school fundraising concept that truly shifts the paradigm when it matters most. Read-a-thon replaces in-person bake sales, magazine drives and the like with a contactless method of raising much needed cash, one that can be used both in real classrooms and virtual learning spaces. The real bonus? It promotes literacy and gets kids excited about picking up a book.

The funny thing about trends is that they can take quite a long time to become boring and traditional. If you are living through a major trend – the way we are living through the birth and widespread adoption of cryptocurrency – it can begin to look tawdry.

It’s as if we went from a neon-lit, live music infused dive bar blowout and instead of letting sleeping dogs happily lie, we went back in the bright light of the afternoon to witness just how grimy and gross that dive bar really is.

Cryptocurrency had its debut glamour party – but has hung around and tried to keep up the hype, leaving many people like me feeling ambivalent about it.

That is, until Aspire Research Group researcher and writer extraordinaire, Elisa Shoenberger, pointed me to the Harvard Business Review (HBR) article, What Skeptics Get Wrong About Crypto’s Volatility.

Elisa has been known to quote John Taylor, a fundraising operations consultant, who can talk about how he had to coax reluctant nonprofits that credit cards were safe and that they really needed to accept credit card donations. Now we are coaxing reluctant nonprofits to accept cryptocurrency. Given the volatility, is that wise?

The HBR article talks about how cryptocurrency is a young industry and how its liquidity and transparency act as bright sunlight does in that dark and grimy dive bar. It also describes investor mentality in startup ventures. Most early investors recognize that usually a small percentage of those startup investments will yield a return, although hopefully there will be at least one with a BIG return.

When we begin to view cryptocurrency through the lens of a startup investor, all that volatility and wild west behavior begins to feel less chaotic and more like a toddler tantrum. It’s unpleasant and can cause some damage but is easy to put into a box (or a playpen) to control the damage.

As Elisa likes to say, don’t invest more than you can afford to lose. (It’s gambling folks!)

And don’t forget why and how the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was created. There was a time when the industry of publicly company trading had extreme volatility and fraud. The SEC was created to regulate and protect the public.

Public company trading is definitely boring and traditional compared to cryptocurrency!

Is Cryptocurrency property, a security, or a commodity?

Will there be a new agency created to regulate cryptocurrency and protect the public? I doubt it. The scuffle for regulatory control is likely to happen between the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has already ruled that it considers cryptocurrency to be property. This matters when a cryptocurrency is gifted, for example.

But what about whether it is a security or a commodity?

A security produces a return from an entity or company. A commodity is a “basic good” that you can buy, trade, or exchange – like food or electricity.

People have certainly been trading cryptocurrency for return, but is it really a security? Currency might be considered a commodity, but does cryptocurrency qualify as a “basic good”?

The scuffle has indeed begun! And that’s just part and parcel of a young industry.

This constant tussling over definitions, uses, and abuses is also what makes it difficult to keep up with what is trending in cryptocurrency and philanthropy.

Lucky for you, Elisa Shoenberger has compiled and kept current a well-curated list of resources related to cryptocurrency and fundraising!

Bookmark the webpage and you instantly have a library of relevant cryptocurrency resources at your mouse click:

https://www.protopage.com/prospectresearch#Cryptocurrencies

Find out if the “crypto winter” forecasts the end of cryptocurrency for philanthropy.

When you think of branding, you might envision corporations branding their products with a logo or a catchy slogan at the end of a commercial. Yes, these are all examples of branding, but they’re only half of the picture. The concept of brand recognition isn’t exclusive to for-profit entities. In fact, your nonprofit should have its own brand identity that shapes your community-building interactions. 

If you’re new to branding, you might have some questions about how to go through the process, from shaping your story to personalizing your social media profiles. Don’t worry, this is a good thing! Here are some questions to ask and answer throughout the nonprofit branding process so you can ensure you have all your bases covered. Let’s get started!

1. What is nonprofit branding?

Nonprofit branding is what distinctly sets you apart from other nonprofits in the space, attracting supporters that resonate with your specific identity. The branding process entails creating a strong public-facing persona for your nonprofit through design and messaging. It’s far more than just your website design or your marketing materials. Essentially, it’s the who, what, and why your nonprofit presents to your community. 

2. What’s our current branding strategy?

Every rebranding strategy needs a baseline to build off of. Take some time to assess your current nonprofit branding strategy, focusing on elements such as your mission statement, messaging, online presence, and visual elements (logo, colors, and font). Then, decide which elements you want to keep and which ones aren’t working as well for your organization so you know where to begin. 

3. Why are we rebranding?

Once you’ve thoroughly analyzed your current brand status, it’s time to tackle a different question: why will a rebrand benefit our organization? Here are some common reasons nonprofits decide to rebrand that might resonate with your organization:

• To add cohesion to your identity
• To appeal to a new audience
• To level up to industry standards
• To compete with the opposition
• To accommodate new products or mission
• To make your brand complement your advertising or outreach strategy

Your rebranding is a large undertaking, so understanding exactly what your goals are is essential for staying focused.

4. What’s our new brand vision?

If you don’t know exactly what you want your new brand to look like, never fear! There are many ways to be inspired by the world around you. Here are some ways to come up with a few ideas:

• Take inspiration from many organizations in the space, both for- and nonprofit. 
• Ask your nonprofit colleagues for advice.
• Consider which tactics have worked for you in the past that you want to keep.
• Ask your current supporters and board members what they’d like to see change.

The sheer amount of branding possibilities can make the process feel daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Use the resources around you to jumpstart your creative process!

5. When do we want our rollout finished?

Once you set your goals based on who you’re trying to reach with your brand, you should pick a target completion date for your rebrand. Setting a completion date for your rebrand from the very beginning is crucial to prioritize only your most important updates. Be sure to set reasonable goals based on your timeframe. For example, a simple logo rebrand won’t take as long as a comprehensive website rebrand. 

Your timeframe also determines the scope of your campaign. If you only have a month, it probably isn’t feasible to undertake a holistic campaign that would normally take six months to execute. Understand that a comprehensive, high-quality strategy can’t be rolled out overnight, so you should prioritize the work that needs to be done.

6. How does my story fit in?

You can shape your brand identity in many ways, but the most important is by strategically telling your story. 

Every nonprofit is built on a good story. If you present yours compellingly, people will naturally gravitate toward you to learn more about it. So, figuring out your storytelling strategy is a crucial part of your branding process. Keep in mind are Getting Attention’s elements to consider while crafting your story:

• Understand your audience. The very first step might seem obvious to you, but its importance can’t be overstated. Start your storytelling process off on the right foot by firmly grasping your audience’s characteristics and what they respond best to. For example, if your supporters are mostly older, saturating your story with new slang that they don’t know isn’t the best idea. To learn more about your unique audience members, examine your performance analytics, such as content performance and engagement by demographic, and adapt your ideas from there. 
• Activate empathy in your audience. Humans are emotional beings! You should leverage this trait by including emotionally compelling media in your story. For instance, if you’re creating a tab on your website dedicated to storytelling, include photos and videos. This media transcends language, conveying emotion to an even broader audience than your written segments can. 
• Highlight specific goals. Broadly, you should show a connection between your mission statement, vision statement, and your story. You can also use your story to emphasize a wide range of performance indicators, such as money raised or membership growth rate. 

At the end of the day, you know your story better than anyone else, so brainstorm with your team to determine the most effective storytelling method. It’ll introduce you to many new audiences that care about your mission.

7. How will we plan our rebranding campaign?

You should spend ample time preparing in advance so that your rebranding journey is as smooth as possible. Moreover, you should use several materials to center your thinking, such as:

• A brand style guide. This is where you can let your creativity take control to determine your artistic branding. Include your logo, colors, and fonts for all of your materials. Be as detailed as possible by including your brand color hex codes and examples of your graphics. Keep it consistent across all of your platforms and deliverables so your viewers correctly associate you with your brand.
• A digital strategy plan. The new normal for making your organization visible is by promoting it over the internet. So, if you haven’t invested in your digital presence yet, it’s time to get started! In this guide, you’ll lay out your trajectory for all things digital outreach. For example, you might discuss redesigning your website or launching new social media profiles to reach new audiences. 
• A language and tone guide. Your language choices and tone throughout your written materials should be consistent. Your tone determines the feeling you want your audience to associate with your brand. To help define your tone and brand personality, brainstorm a list of tone adjectives to characterize your organization and brand.  
• A data collection method. As with any significant change, you want to monitor your progress over time so you know what you need to change. You should plan how you’ll measure success throughout the rebranding process. How will your key performance indicators (KPIs) change with your new brand? You might keep track of metrics such as your social media engagement and share of voice, blog post engagement, and other awareness-related KPIs to monitor the response to your rebrand. 
• A call-to-action plan. Throughout your written materials, you should include calls-to-action (CTAs) to prompt your audience to complete certain activities. These should be structured around achieving your predetermined goals. For example, you might include specific guidelines for your website call-to-action buttons or how you’ll draw email recipients to your website using CTAs. 

Keeping organized is the key to a successful rebranding campaign, so stay on top of the planning process!

8. Who will help us with our nonprofit rebrand?

There’s no doubt that refreshing your brand can be a daunting task. If you want further support, consider working with a nonprofit branding agency. According to Fifty & Fifty, they’ll provide numerous services such as: 

• Graphic design
• Web design
• Online ad campaign design
• Social media content production
• Search engine optimization

Experts in branding know what makes donors tick and new visitors click. They’ll be able to guide you and transform your brand into one that donors and prospects love. Plus, they provide in-depth KPI analysis and insights so you know what’s working and what should change. Working with a nonprofit branding agency is a great way to kick off your rebranding efforts to impress your community.

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Keeping your brand up to date is a large undertaking, but is incredibly important for your nonprofit to appear fresh and in touch with your community. You don’t have to go through it alone, either; nonprofit branding agencies and your connections in the field will help motivate you throughout the process. Ultimately, your prospective supporters might know who you are, but your new branding will center your why for all to see.

About the Author

Javan Van Gronigen
Creative Director | Founder

As Founder and Creative Director of Fifty & Fifty, Javan is the tip of the proverbial spear. Javan started his digital design career 20 years ago as Art Director for what is now one of the world’s largest digital agencies (Mirum, a JWT Company). He then moved on to Invisible Children where he was responsible for managing the team and all digital assets through the entire historic Kony 2012 campaign. At Fifty & Fifty, Javan has participated in and led every project, including 300+ websites, campaigns, and brands.

By Elisa Shoenberger

What is this report?

The World Wealth Report is an annual report about the wealth of high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) and the economic conditions in the Wealth Management industry. This year’s report is based on responses from over 2,973 HNWIs in 24 wealth markets, administered in January 2022.

Capgemini defines HNWI as those who have “investable assets of US$1 million or more, excluding primary residence, collectibles, consumables, and consumer durables.”

What are key findings from the article?

• Wealth increased with a rise in global High Net Worth Individuals (HNWI) of 7.8% and global wealth totals of 8.0%.

• Following the trend in 2020, North America leads the world on HNWI individuals with 13.2% growth and 13.8% wealth in 2021. Europe comes second, then Asia-Pacific. The report credits the strong performance of the technology sector, specifically Microsoft, Alphabet, Apple, Tesla and Nvidia. US real estate also grew 11%.

• However, with rising inflation and interest rate hikes, Capgemini estimates that global HNWI wealth declined by 4% from 12/31/2021 to 4/30/2022. North America would be the most impacted followed by Europe.

• Globally, 55% of HNWI want to make more investments with ESGs (environmental, social, and government). Interestingly, HNWIs in Asia-Pacific (except Japan), Latin America and Europe are most interested in sustainable investments, followed by North America. But millennials are the most interested age group in these types of investments.

• Cryptocurrencies and other digital assets are still popular. The report noted: “71% of HNWIs globally have invested in digital assets and 91% of HNWIs younger than 40 have investments in digital assets.” Cryptocurrency is their first digital asset, then exchanged-traded funds and the metaverse are next. Morgan Stanley has three funds that allow investors with at least $2M into bitcoin. (Of course, the report was written before the recent extreme volatility of cryptocurrencies and NFTs).

• Family offices are popular for HNWI. The 10,000 or so family offices manage 8% of the global HNWI wealth, which is about $7 trillion. That is up from $5.9 trillion with 7,300 family offices in the prior year. Even more striking is that HNWIs prefer them to large banks or wealth management firms – by 63%! They prefer them due to “one-stop-shop convenience and personalized services” as well as “reduced service costs.” Emotional connection is also key, something hard to build with banks and wealth management firms.

• Demographics keep changing. Women, millennials, tech-wealth HNWIs are emerging. The reported noted, “Women across all wealth brackets will inherit 70% of global wealth over the next two generations and will likely manage two-thirds of household wealth by 2030.” But there’s a disconnect with women and wealth management firms.

What can I do as a result?

• Pay attention to prospects who have family offices or participate in multi-family offices. Family offices are a huge wealth indicator. Family offices deliver investment and wealth management for the family, generally where the family has over $100 million in investable assets. Families with $25M+ in assets are more likely to participate in multi-family offices.

• Keep in mind rising demographics of wealth. The report noted: ““Women want firms to earn their trust and confidence and support their unique needs,” including returns on their investments and purpose.” The same could be said about women and philanthropy. Women may not want to have transactional relationship with a nonprofit.

• With the rise in popularity of ESGs, people may see impact investing as a means of giving back. For some prospects, your organization may have to approach them with the general framework of ESGs to “meet them where they are.”

• Cryptocurrency has had some rough months but there may still be opportunity for philanthropy. Fidelity Charitable reported that in 2021, $331 million in cryptocurrencies was donated to donor advised funds. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next few months. As with stock gifts, it is prudent to convert cryptocurrencies into cash as well as be more mindful of what donations your organization will take. Also, it may be worth looking at other digital assets including digital currencies, exchanged-traded funds and the metaverse.

Additional Resources

• World Wealth Report l Capgemini 2022
• The Cryptocurrency Merry-Go-Round: Are you on? l Aspire Research Group 2021
• Women’s Hack Guide To Prospect Research l Jen Filla Blog 2018

To build a volunteer program that supporters want to get involved with, you need to focus on each part of the program, from your recruitment strategy to your branding approach. 

Looking for tips on how to make your program as effective as possible? Good news: There are tried-and-true best practices you can follow. Let’s take a look at what to do and what not to do when creating your nonprofit’s volunteer program. 

Do: Create a targeted recruitment strategy. 

A targeted recruitment strategy increases your marketing team’s return on investment (ROI) because you’ll connect with audience members who are most likely to be interested in your volunteer program rather than casting a wide net and hoping to engage one or two volunteers. 

Reach out to people who have already expressed interest in your organization and may be the right fit for your volunteer program. These individuals may include: 

• Lapsed volunteers
• Social media followers
• Email subscribers
• Past event attendees
• Donors

After you identify these individuals, send them messages that resonate with their interests. For instance, you might send your lapsed volunteers a message saying “We miss you! Want to get involved in the work we’re doing today? Here are a few upcoming activities that we think are the right fit for you.” You can also create social media posts highlighting your program’s opportunities and benefits to give followers a sense of how they can and why they should participate. 

Finding new volunteers is similar to reaching out to new donors. Both processes require connecting with your prospective supporters and highlighting the aspects of your organization that will appeal to them the most. 

You can even use the same tools, such as your donor management software, to engage volunteers. Your donor management software or donor database should contain information about not only your donors, but also your past event attendees, lapsed volunteers, and other individuals who have engaged with your nonprofit over the years. This tool will help you collect contact information for prospective volunteers and create communication strategies to reach out to them. 

Don’t: Neglect volunteer safety. 

Safety should be your number one priority when planning your volunteer opportunities. Consider things like this when choosing how your volunteers can help you carry out your mission: 

• Physical safety: Although it may seem obvious, it’s worth the reminder: The activities you plan should be safe to do. If there is a risk of injury—like when building a house for a family in need—provide a thorough training process so all volunteers feel comfortable using your equipment or carrying out specific responsibilities. You should also have them read, agree to, and sign waivers to highlight the potential risks of volunteer activities and protect your organization from liability. 
• Cybersecurity: If you offer online registration tools and/or virtual volunteer opportunities, keep volunteers’ personal information safe through airtight cybersecurity practices. These practices include requiring complex passwords for your online registration system, such as using a mix of character types and requiring that the password have a minimum number of characters. If you accept credit card information from volunteers, your payment system should be PCI compliant. That means it should align with established security standards. 

Poor security practices, whether in-person or virtual, can leave a lasting negative impression on your volunteers and expose them to unnecessary risk. On the other hand, emphasizing safety measures will provide volunteers with an experience that builds their trust in your nonprofit. 

Do: Consider volunteers’ interests and preferences.

Your volunteers likely have a wide range of life experiences and skills. That’s why you should offer a variety of volunteer opportunities. 

According to Double the Donation’s volunteer management guide, volunteering can take many forms, including:

• Event volunteering
• Skilled volunteering (including providing specific services like PR assistance, legal guidance, or accounting support) 
• Administrative work
• Advocacy

Conduct surveys to gather information about the types of volunteer opportunities that supporters are most interested in, whether it’s the ones listed above or opportunities unique to your organization’s work. Then, assign the volunteers to the opportunities you know they would be best suited to do. 

Don’t: Bore your volunteers. 

Your volunteer opportunities should be closely tied to and help make an impact on your organization’s overall mission. By involving volunteers in hands-on projects that directly support your goals, they’ll be more engaged and fulfilled. 

For example, if your nonprofit runs a community kitchen for people in need, assign your volunteers different prep tasks so they know they’ve helped put food on the proverbial table. If your organization is an animal shelter, allow volunteers to walk and bathe pets and introduce people to them at adoption events. 

Even when you’re completing routine tasks like stapling pamphlets or sorting canned foods, make your volunteer opportunities more engaging by adding a fun twist. You might play upbeat music or challenge volunteers to sort as many cans as possible, then give a prize to the winning team or individual. 

Do: Brand your volunteer program. 

Your nonprofit’s brand gives audience members an idea of your mission, purpose, and message. Branding your volunteer program can play a similar role in introducing these new opportunities to supporters. 

Your volunteer program’s brand should be a variation of your organization’s primary brand, using some of the same elements so supporters understand that the two are related. As you design the program’s brand, you might use the secondary colors in your brand color palette or a variation of your main logo. 

Make the program distinct from your nonprofit’s other activities by giving it a unique name. For instance, if your volunteer program is focused on local tree conversation, you might call volunteers “Tree Defenders” or “The Tree Team.” 

Branding your nonprofit’s volunteer program helps you increase program awareness. It can also give your volunteers a sense of community, especially when you offer them branded merchandise like matching t-shirts.  

Don’t: Pigeonhole volunteers.

You may find yourself only sending information about upcoming volunteer opportunities to your growing volunteer pool. However, volunteers might be interested in supporting your nonprofit in other ways as well.

Promoting those other opportunities will help your volunteers become even more invested in your mission and inspire them to have a greater impact. Volunteers may also be interested in:

• Donating
• Participating in peer-to-peer campaigns
• Attending events
• Advocating on your behalf

By sending your volunteers information about different ways to engage with your organization, you can appeal to their desire to get more involved. Highlight these opportunities using your social media posts and emails.

Do: Ask volunteers for feedback. 

Build your volunteer program with volunteers’ preferences in mind every step of the way. If you’re uncertain about what your volunteers think, just ask!

Show volunteers that you care about listening to and implementing their feedback by sending them a post-volunteer event survey. Ask questions such as:

• On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate the volunteer experience? 
• Did you feel the training process adequately prepared you for the experience? 
• Would you participate in our program again? Why or why not?
• Would you recommend our volunteer program to a family member or friend? 

Use volunteers’ responses to adjust your program strategy and let volunteers know how you’re incorporating their feedback. For example, send an email summarizing three to four key trends that emerged from a recent batch of surveys and how your organization plans to adjust your upcoming opportunities accordingly.

Don’t: Forget to show appreciation.

Just as you steward your donors, you must also actively build relationships with volunteers to retain them for the long haul. An effective volunteer stewardship strategy starts with showing your appreciation for your volunteers. 

Here are a few volunteer appreciation ideas to incorporate into your program: 

• Send thank you emails after each opportunity summarizing what your volunteers accomplished and how they helped your mission.
• Highlight volunteers’ accomplishments on social media and via your email newsletters. 
• Send volunteers thank you gifts, such as free merchandise or gift cards. 

Expressing gratitude for volunteers is crucial for improving your volunteer retention rate. This will help you increase your ROI when it comes to finding new long-term volunteers and expanding the program in the future.  

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By following these tips, you should be able to build a strong, sustainable volunteer program that engages supporters and helps your organization work more efficiently toward its mission. 

About the Author

Jay Love
Co-Founder and current Chief Relationship Officer at Bloomerang

He has served this sector for 33 years and is considered the most well-known senior statesman whose advice is sought constantly.

Prior to Bloomerang, he was the CEO and Co-Founder of eTapestry for 11 years, which at the time was the leading SaaS technology company serving the charity sector. Jay and his team grew the company to more than 10,000 nonprofit clients, charting a decade of record growth.

He is a graduate of Butler University with a B.S. in Business Administration. Over the years, he has given more than 2,500 speeches around the world for the charity sector and is often the voice of new technology for fundraisers.

Your donors and your board members might seem like completely disconnected groups in your organization. While your board is a small but powerful team that steers the direction of your organization, your donors are a vast collection of individuals that pitch in to empower your fundraising campaigns and keep your organization afloat.

However, your board members and your donors are actually two sides of the same coin. In particular, both groups help propel your mission forward, represent your values, and raise awareness for your cause. But if that’s the case, then why do these groups tend to rarely work together? 

Encouraging a sustainable relationship between your board members and your donors is an excellent way to boost engagement and improve your public image. Donors want to feel more involved with your organization, and a connection with your board members offers them a glimpse into the inner workings of your organization. Similarly, it’s helpful for board members to get to know your donor base and understand how to work together. 

Overall, establishing some familiarity between your board members and your donors has several key benefits, including: 

• Establishing a strong community. 
• Encouraging deeper involvement. 
• Building an open line of communication. 
• Increasing transparency. 
• Adding a more personal touch. 

Fortunately for many causes, the framework to make these relationships possible is already in place. All you need to do is to extend the invitation. You might be surprised to learn that your board members and donors are eager to get to know one another. 

Plus, connecting your board members with your donors might help to increase overall board engagement and could raise more donations, which will benefit your organization as a whole.

Establishing a strong community. 

No matter the size of your nonprofit, building a community within your organization is important. A strong community means that your supporters are more likely to spread the word about your mission, keep one another informed about updates, and attend upcoming events. 

Establishing a sense of community among your board and then a separate community among your donors has its own benefits. A united board is more productive and more comfortable sharing new ideas, while effectively engaging donors and creating meaningful donor relationships increases the chance of these supporters becoming major contributors. 

If a strong community already brings several assets to your board and your donors, a connection between the two groups would bring even greater advantages to your organization. Here are some ways to establish a better relationship between your board members and your donors: 

• Dinner parties: If your board members and some donors have briefly met before, consider inviting them to a dinner party at your facility. They can get to know each other in a relaxed atmosphere. 
• Mixers: Want to get lots of donors to interact with your board members? A mixer can be an effective way to kickstart the relationship between interested donors and your board members. 
• Outdoor activities: Especially if your organization is nature-focused, an outdoor activity or event, such as hiking or a picnic, is a cost-effective and fun way to engage your board members and your donors. 
• Volunteer events: Several of your donors or board members might already volunteer with your organization, but hosting a specific volunteer day or weekend for donors and board members will give both groups the chance to meet and chat, all while furthering your cause.
• Team building exercises: Organizing a team-building activity is a great way to reinforce the idea that your board members and your donors are working toward the same goal. Try an escape room, an obstacle course, or a scavenger hunt to encourage your board members and your donors to work together. 

Creating a community among your board members and your donors requires time and effort, but with so many long-term benefits for fundraising, donor retention, and board engagement, the extra work is well worth it. 

Encouraging deeper involvement. 

Stronger bonds across different sections of your organization can encourage your supporters to attend a wider variety of events. For example, if your donors have had positive experiences with your board members and with your volunteers, they will likely want to attend events with both groups. 

By building a stronger community between your board members and your donors, you can simultaneously encourage both groups to get more involved. For this reason, connecting these two groups is crucial for sustainable participation. 

Additionally, you could design programs specifically aimed at creating opportunities for donors and board members to work together. Some collaboration ideas include: 

• Partner programs between donors and board members: For your local donors, design a partner program where you pair a donor and a board member together. The partners could brainstorm ideas for an upcoming event or lead a volunteer training program. 
• Donor input at board meetings: Create an online feedback form where donors can contribute ideas for your organization to further its cause, and then set aside some time at each board meeting to discuss donors’ ideas. Record your discussion in your board’s minutes and make them publicly available to show donors that you’re acting on their ideas. 
• Matching gift program: According to 360MatchPro’s matching gift statistics page, more than 18 million people work for companies with matching gift programs. This is a great opportunity for your donors and board members to collaborate and research potential match opportunities, especially if many of your board members and donors happen to work for the same company. 

Maintaining board and donor engagement is one of the most challenging aspects of running a mission-driven organization. But by facilitating a working relationship between your board members and your donors with plenty of involvement opportunities, you can effectively engage both groups at once. 

Building an open line of communication. 

Connecting your board members with your donors also opens an essential line of communication between the individuals who steer your organization and the individuals who make those strategic plans possible.

As your board works on your organization’s long-term goals, they should be interested in your donors’ preferred direction for the future of your organization. Similarly, your donors want to know how their contributions are being used to forward your mission, and sharing this impact can play an important role in enhancing your donor communications. 

There are several ways that you could open the line of communication between your board members and your donors. You can: 

• Publish your board meeting minutes: Most often, your board members will discuss how to allocate donations, and donors have a right to know this information. Consider publishing a public-facing version of your minutes for your donors to review. This Boardable guide to board meeting minutes can help you record efficient and comprehensive notes that cover all the necessary details your supporters need to know. 
• Host Q&A sessions: Invested donors would be delighted to have an evening to ask board members all of their questions about how your organization works and how you’re achieving your mission. 
• Involve donors in the board member selection process: It can be hard to determine if a prospective board member is the right person for your organization. Getting some input from donors can help you decide who to involve while simultaneously allowing your donors to play a bigger role in your organization.

Bridging the communication gap between donors and board members can clear up any points of confusion and make it easier to plan for big-picture changes that appeal to all parties. That way, everyone will be on the same page about how to move forward and will appreciate knowing their opinions matter.

Increasing transparency.

Fraud and corruption risk don’t only impact for-profit organizations — they’re a threat to the mission-driven world as well. With this in mind, it’s understandable that your donors will want to know how their money is being spent. 

Donors might feel more trusting of your organization if they feel connected to your board members. If you’re transparent about your onboarding process for new members, how your board meetings are run, and what tasks your board handles, your donors will have a better sense of your board’s purpose and your organization’s goals. 

Another way to increase transparency between your board and your donors is to publish the results of all voting items after a meeting. This way, your donors can understand what decisions were made and how this will impact your strategy moving forward. 

Overall, the more transparency you can offer your donors, the better. Not only does increasing your board’s transparency reduce the distance between board members and donors, but it also ensures that you’re managing your organization honestly and ethically.

Adding a more personal touch. 

Because donors naturally outnumber your board members, your donors might feel as though their voices aren’t being heard by your organization’s leaders. When it comes to building lasting relationships with your supporters, you want to show your donors that they are invaluable to your organization. 

For this reason, connecting your donors with board members can add a personal touch to the way that you conduct your supporter relations. As you probably know, personalizing your outreach materials and segmenting your donors often leads to higher response, conversion, and retention rates. 

So, if personalization can enhance your fundraising and outreach efforts so significantly, why not apply the same personal approach to relationship-building? With these strategies, you can potentially create lasting connections for years to come. 

To take a personalized approach to the donor experience, designate a point of contact or two for donors to reach out to with feedback or suggestions. Donors will feel as though they have a direct line for sharing their suggestions. For larger donor bases, you might consider only sharing the contact information with major donors, because an influx of emails or calls can easily overwhelm your board members. 

Your board members can also get involved with other aspects of interacting with donors. For instance, they might personally reach out to request donations or say thank you to those who have recently given to deepen those connections even further. No matter your approach, connecting your donors with your board members will naturally personalize each donor’s experience.

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Connecting your board members with your donors is a great way to grow your organization’s community, encourage more people to get involved, and give your donors insight into the inner workings of your organization. Although it might take some extra effort to forge these connections, they can propel your organization’s work forward. 

Author: Jeb Banner is the founder and CEO of Boardable, a board management software provider for mission-driven boards. He is also the founder of two nonprofits, The Speak Easy and Musical Family Tree, as well as a board member of United Way of Central Indiana and ProAct. Jeb is based in Indianapolis, Indiana.

It happens. You get that profile and say to yourself, “Well, I knew all THAT,” or you take one look at that capacity rating and say, “In my DREAMS they’ll give that much!” — or worse, you say, “They could give so MUCH MORE than that!”

Where do profiles and capacity ratings go wrong and how can you unlock the major gift magic for you and your organization?

At Aspire Research Group, we prepare a lot of profiles, and we spend a lot of time fretting over capacity ratings. We also spend a lot of time with our clients, asking and listening to what information serves them best.

Following are three things we’ve learned that anyone can implement to unlock major gift potential in your prospect research efforts:

1 – Say “Yes!” to prospect strategy reviews with your researcher

Every new client at Aspire gets a brief follow-up profile review after the first delivery. This is a critical juncture in making sure we are delivering the right information. When we get a request, we know you trust us to sort through a treasure trove of data and deliver the right bits to you. But how do we know which bits are the best?

Some of it is standard, but if you want major gift magic, we have to talk to you and learn more about what matters most to you and your organization. That first conversation leads to more conversations. Sometimes we have questions at the time of your request, or right in the middle of doing the work!

Making the time for periodic prospect strategy review meetings pays off with better information being delivered in the profiles. But if you really want to up your major gift game, you have to do more to get the most out of prospect research.

You have to push back, question, and – dare I say it – complain. We recently had a client get frustrated with the way we’re delivering information he found critical to his success. What if he had kept quiet? Grumbled to himself and spent twice the time finding it on his own?

Now we are back on track, supporting him on the research path he has discovered works really, REALLY well for his campaign. At Aspire we WANT our clients to be successful!

2 – More is better – but more of what?

Aspire clients are probably a lot like you. Fundraising operations that do not have a prospect researcher on staff, but are either raising millions every year or on track to cross into 7-figure territory. What we’ve learned over the years is that confident fundraisers are BOLD.

Research is expensive. But NOT getting research is devastating. It means no new building. No programs for people who are suffering.

If you know how to build relationships with your donors and ask for larger gifts, what is holding you back from asking for more profiles? Why wouldn’t you want to know exactly what your experience indicates will lead to a deeper relationship faster?

Yes, information on prospects does go stale over time — but not if you are out there cultivating and asking for gifts. Bold and confident fundraisers make the investment – and generate the return they need to fund their mission.

3 – Capacity ratings are like weather forecasts

There are so many types of gift capacity ratings or ways in which to calculate them, that it’s no surprise when development officers throw up their hands and give up on them altogether!

The primary purpose for a capacity rating is to help you prioritize and segment donor prospects. Does that surprise you? If this is true, then why are they on every profile?

When you see the capacity rating on your profile, think of it more like a weather forecast. You know it has a high level of unreliability, but it is correct often enough that you bring your umbrella when there is a high chance of rain.

If you have a relationship with your researcher, make sure you understand something about how they are creating, verifying, or updating the capacity rating. This will go a long way to helping you unlock some major gift magic from them.

Once you have some confidence in the gift capacity rating, you will have more confidence in using it as an important consideration when crafting your major gift proposal amounts. At this point, the gift capacity rating might validate what you were already thinking, or it might give you the confidence to ask for even more.

Fundraising is hard work.

Major gift fundraising is even more hard work. It’s not your fault that you are pressed for time and struggling to pay attention to yet another thing – prospect research. We get it.

That’s why we created a new 30-min webinar series this year – Research Rocks!

In 30-minutes you get the “why” of profiles and capacity ratings and tips on how you can implement better practices easily and immediately. If you show up live, you get to interact and connect with others. But there’s always the replay.

WARNING: At Aspire we really do LOVE prospect research and by the end of 30 minutes, you might get hooked, too.

1 – Can you really trust gift capacity ratings? | 8/9/2022 from 2-3pm ET | $49

Gift capacity ratings are touted as one of the best ways to segment for major gift prospects, but just how reliable are they? And why are they based on a 5-year pledge? Veteran researcher, Jen Filla, tackles the topic, diving right into what works and what doesn’t for development officers responsible for major gifts. Walk away knowing the different types of capacity ratings, how to leverage them for maximum impact, and how gift capacity ratings are changing with emerging technology.

2 – Build better relationships – and ask for more – with profiles | 9/13/2022 from 2-3pm ET | $49

Not all donor prospect profiles are created equal – and that’s a good thing! In this session, prospect research professional, Jen Filla, demonstrates how you can navigate the prospect profile continuum to build faster, better relationships with your donors and feel confident asking for larger gifts. It all hinges on getting the right information at the right time – and using it.

If you have any questions about how you might use this training opportunity with your team or elsewhere in your organization, please contact us.

July 2022 | Tampa FL

Aspire Research Group LLC released Disruptive Philanthropy: A Guide to Donor Advised Funds written by Research Consultant, Elisa Shoenberger. This book was born out of a desire to examine both sides of the donor advised fund – the advantages and the disadvantages.

As one of the fastest growing areas of philanthropy in recent years, it is critical that organizations understand the legal structure of donor advised funds and that fundraisers position their organizations for successful donor acquisition and stewardship of this class of donors.

While Disruptive Philanthropy is not a definitive guide on these topics, it is meant to help you understand exactly what a donor advised fund is, how it is different from family foundations, and how your organization can succeed in stewarding these donors.

This 61-page e-book provides a holistic view of donor advised funds for fundraisers, whether you are a development officer or a prospect researcher. It explores what donor advised fund account holders look like as well as clearly outlining the benefits and disadvantages of donor advised funds. The report is broken up into seven chapters and two interviews including innovations in fundraising, how to be ready for donor advised funds, and ends with links and sources to help you access even more information on your own.

“Donor advised funds have been well-marketed to the general public and are clearly fulfilling donors’ needs. As fundraisers, we need to be better prepared to understand the motivations of donor advised fund account holders and manage these gifts in a legally compliant way,” indicates Aspire CEO, Jen Filla.

“Donor advised funds present such a big opportunity for nonprofits, if they know how to go about making connections,” says Shoenberger.

About the Author

Elisa Shoenberger is a Research Consultant at Aspire Research Group. She has over eight years of experience in the fundraising sector working as a prospect researcher at Loyola University Chicago and benchmarking analyst at Grenzebach Glier and Associates.

Elisa earned her MBA in marketing and operations management from Loyola, a MA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; and a BA in history from the University of Chicago.

She has written about philanthropy for the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Inside Philanthropy, Brainfacts.org, the Daily Dot, Rewire (PBS affiliate), and others. She has also written for the Boston Globe, Huffington Post, Slate, and Business Insider. She writes regularly for Book Riot and Murder & Mayhem. In her spare time, she plays alto saxophone.

1. In Good Company: A Guide to Corporate Fundraising banks the #1 spot as the most downloaded publication at Aspire. No surprise really, because it benefits from author, Elisa Shoenberger’s journalist approach to the topic. And, of course, it highlights how prospect research can help you land the big gifts.
2. Prospect Research Philanthropy and Wealth Report 2021 is like one of those smartphone apps that pick your best eye color or transforms you into a Disney princess. Each year we distill the insights from long, dry, complicated studies and make them short and dressed for action. This year we spotlighted Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Cryptocurrencies, just in case you needed even more glam to your philanthropy glow.
3. Prospect Research Spotlight on Broadway Producers and Investors was born out of the love of the arts. Ask Elisa Shoenberger a question like, “Can you find Broadway producers who might fund our captioning?” and she just can’t let go! Dive deep into the world of funding Broadway shows.

Curious what other publications we have available? “Check out” the complete Publications Library today!

Google Analytics Says… BLOG!

The top blog posts at Aspire might surprise you, but then again, maybe not.

1. Fidelity Charitable 2020 Giving Report: Inside Donor Advised Funds outranked our coverage of the 2021 Giving Report. We don’t take offense. When it’s good, it’s good, and the 2020 report coverage laid out the demographics of DAF giving and challenged you to take four steps to maximize your fundraising efforts with DAFs.
2. Capgemini 2021 World Wealth Report is always a winner! How can you go wrong with global trends and asset allocation among HNWIs (high net worth individuals)? London took a nosedive off the top 10 cities list for Ultra-HNWIs in 2021. Egads, supercity! What kryptonite might land in 2022?
3. Nonprofit KPIs: 5 Key Metrics to Track in 2021 is the first guest post to debut on our top blogs list. It’s written by Gerard Tonti, Senior Creative Developer at Salsa Labs. I bet you a Florida key lime pie that you won’t guess what the #1 KPI is on his list!

If this list leaves you wanting more, join our mailing list and get delicious research candy like this delivered to your inbox monthly. (Even your mother would approve of that dessert frequency!)

Righteous Randomness

• Nothing gets more web hits than our Free Research Links Directory, and maybe that’s because everyone on the Aspire team uses it? Remember when you were a kid, and you went into a chocolate store for the first time? That’s what this web page is like. Fun little boxes with curated goodies you just. Want. To. Click.
• Donors: Understanding The Future Of Individual Giving, written by Tim Sarrantonio of Neon One, is fresh off the presses. This is one-stop shopping at its best because he has synthesized and made sense of a long list of published research, each of which happens to be beautifully listed at the end. Best bit? It’s formatted for PDF reading. Bless you, Tim Sarrantonio!

If this reading list doesn’t get you in the mood for summer frolic, I can’t imagine what will. Because fundraising research was meant to be poolside, or beachside, or watching the kids run through the sprinkler-side, or even in the air conditioning with a mocktail. Anywhere you go to let your neurons roam free so you can return to work with new ideas and new perspectives.

What is your volunteer program’s brand? Or, maybe a better question, does your volunteer program have a brand, to begin with?

Your volunteer program’s brand encompasses your logo, brand colors, fonts, and the tone and message you’re trying to convey to your audience. When these elements are streamlined and cohesive, your brand becomes a powerful marketing tool for appealing to and recruiting new volunteers to help your cause. 

If you’re looking for creative ways to engage volunteers and increase your program’s brand recognition, you’re in the right place! We’ll review these four tips for boosting your volunteer program’s brand awareness: 

1. Create a brand style guide. 
2. Develop your brand’s personality.
3. Design branded merchandise.
4. Use uniform branding across marketing platforms.

Ready to improve your volunteer engagement strategy with greater brand awareness? Let’s dive in. 

1. Create a brand style guide. 

It’s vital to document all of your brand elements in a written style guide. This guide should consist of all of the defined elements that your team will need while creating any communications on behalf of your organization. Your brand style guide is a crucial guiding resource for creating digital and print marketing materials. 

Your brand style guide should include specifications for your brand’s:

• Logo – Include several logo variations, such as black and white versions or other color options.
• Colors – Note your brand colors with their hex codes and label primary and secondary colors.
• Fonts – List all of your approved fonts, when each font should be used, and specify the guidelines for using bold, italics, and different font sizes.
• Tone/message – Provide information on the tone of your volunteer program’s brand by mentioning the types of words your team members should use and when or avoid communications and describe your brand’s personality.

Remember to make your volunteer program style guide easily accessible once completed. Send it out to your full team, and let them know who to contact if they have any questions or concerns. This ensures that everyone is aligned with your brand guidelines!

2. Develop your brand’s personality.

Beyond the visual elements, one of the most impactful elements of your brand strategy is your brand’s personality, tone, and message. These elements convey your program’s beliefs and values and form a strong impression in audience members’ minds.

Your brand’s story and personality are crucial factors that will help you get the attention of your target audience. A brand personality refers to the human characteristics that are associated with a brand. For example, a friendly brand will use more of an informal tone and warm, inviting colors.

Getting Attention’s nonprofit branding guide describes these main elements of developing your brand’s message:

• Connect with your audience using a message that compels them to act.
• Make interacting with your brand a rewarding experience for volunteers.
• Include calls to action to encourage prospective volunteers to join your organization.
• Create a memorable message using emotion and tangible rewards. 

When you develop your brand’s personality, it allows you to determine how you will choose other brand elements, such as colors and fonts. These help craft a well-rounded sensory experience for your target audience.

3. Design branded merchandise.

Creating branded merchandise turns your volunteers into walking advertisements for your program. When they wear or use your merchandise in public, they help spread awareness of your logo, colors, and other brand elements. These also make great gifts to show gratitude to your helpful volunteer team!

Consider creating branded merchandise such as:

• T-shirts – This is a great way to promote your volunteer program to a larger audience. Use a t-shirt design platform to develop your custom t-shirts. Remember to brand your t-shirts with your organization’s logo and colors.
• Mugs – Designing mugs with your organization’s logo along with your volunteers’ names reminds them of your organization each time they enjoy a drink! Plus, your logo won’t wear away over time.
• Tote bags – Tote bags can be used over and over again, at the grocery store, department stores, or just for general storage. Consider offering a sustainable tote bag designed for every age and brand it with your company’s colors and logo.
• Sweatshirts – Who doesn’t love comfy sweatshirts? This will not only make a great gift for your volunteers but will easily help get your organization’s name across when your volunteers wear it.

Make things fun by asking your volunteers to participate in a design competition. Ask volunteers to submit design ideas and allow them to vote on their favorites using a poll system. This is a great way to get all your volunteers engaged and feel a part of your nonprofit.

4. Use uniform branding across marketing platforms.

Now that you’ve got a better understanding of your brand’s elements and personality, it’s time to get your strategy up and running. As InitLive’s volunteer management guide explains, effective volunteer recruitment requires a multi-channel marketing approach. To keep your brand consistent and raise awareness, we recommend keeping your branding elements uniform across platforms.

These platforms include your:

• Volunteer management app – This will help you improve your communications with your team by sending alert notifications to everyone all at once. Your volunteer management app can be branded with your logo, colors, and fonts to help reinforce brand recognition and offer volunteers a professional, uniform experience. 
• Social media profiles – Social media is one of the most effective ways to reach a large audience all at once! Create fun and engaging posts and stories to attract your viewers. This is the perfect way to tell a story about what your organization is all about.
• Printed materials, such as flyers and direct mail advertisements – This is the time to use your graphic design skills and create exciting flyers and other marketing materials to get your name and brand across! Post these in high-traffic areas where your target market is most likely to see them.

Every marketing message that is created on behalf of your volunteer program is an opportunity to inspire and bring in new people to support your cause. This is why it’s crucial to ensure that all of your materials and communications promote a consistent and cohesive brand story.

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Exceptional branding is critical to help you raise awareness of your volunteer program. Now that you’ve learned several ways to boost your program’s brand recognition, it’s time to start planning accordingly and put it into action! Whether you want to attract new volunteers or remind your organization’s existing volunteers why they dedicate their time to your organization, investing in a well-thought-out brand will set your program up for success!

About the Author

Shreya Tragad

Shreya is a creative content creator focusing on delivering information about the importance of volunteerism for nonprofit organizations. She is passionate about creating engaging content, writing, and graphic design to help viewers easily retain information. You can find her work at www.initlive.com or on Linkedin and Twitter.