Every nonprofit or social enterprise wants to raise a ton of donations and awareness through viral social media promotion. While there are plenty of tools and platforms out there, it takes bit of time to find the best ones for your campaign.
But raising money and awareness is less golf fundraiser ideas about finding the finding the right online tool than it is an effect of putting a compelling and extraordinarily unique story out there. The reach of your online fundraising campaign in social media is determined by the quality of your message. The better story you can tell about your cause and organization, the further it travels.
That said, here are some of best online fundraising sites we’ve discovered for raising awareness and inspiring behavioral change.
1. Chipin.com
This is a widget that you can add to your Facebook page, website, or blog. It’s essentially an online fundraising target that you can use to track a fundraising goal. What we like about this widget is that is it is great for partnerships (if you want, for example, to help out your favorite social cause on your corporate website), as well as an easy way to convert web traffic into donors. Time and cost? No fees. Takes about 15-30 minutes for a web developer (or someone with some basic website skills) to install. Effective? Attached to a specific cause, this widget can be effective. One drawback is that it needs high traffic to covert (for example, per 1000 people that see it, maybe 1 person would donate).
2. HelpAttack.com
Help Attack is a fun, user-centered online fundraising platform that helps “build the act of giving into your online life.” It’s designed to integrate with Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter and has interactive features such as collecting coins as you progress in your fundraising efforts. Users get to choose the organization or nonprofit they want to support. You can also add your cause or nonprofit so that your supporters can find you. It’s a fun little online fundraising tactic. Time and cost? Minimal set-up. Small fee to add your nonprofit. Effective? This site taps into the power of social networking and makes giving fun. It has raised about $300,000 so far for various charities and organizations.
3. CharityIntelligence.ca
According to a 2007 study on charitable giving by Stats Canada, Canadians donated a total of $10 billion in 2007, which represents an increase of 12% in donations from the $8.9 billion reported in 2004. While philanthropy in Canada has become quite fashionable, the recent rise in charitable giving and activity has also led to a trend toward “philanthropic capitalism”, meaning that donors are coming to expect more professional and business-like conduct from the charitable sector. Charityintelligence.ca is a site that responds to this trend, helping potential donors find the most worthy causes. Its mission is to “identify Canada’s most cost-effective charities through independent in-depth research and objective analysis.” It publishes a list of the charities to donate to, recommending that people donate to these high impact organizations. Cost and Time? Application process takes some time and resources (50-100 hours?); it is designed to look deeply into the operations and budget of a charity. Effectiveness? If successful, this site could generate high returns: inclusion in their annual recommendations for donors; exposure to serious donor networks; and creditability for your organization’s existing communications.
4. Givemeaning.com
Started in Vancouver BC, this site has helped hundreds of non-profits and other worthy organizations raise awareness and funds for their campaigns. The site’s goal is to connect your organization with new donors, acting as a hub for donors to come and find new nonprofits to support. While anyone can submit a project proposal, there are a few conditions: you have to be a Canadian registered charity; you have to submit a proposal that outlines a specific tangible outcome; 9.99 monthly hosting fee, and each new project has 30 days to collect 100 votes of support. Cost and time? 5-8 hours to set up. Effective for raising awareness and funds? Yes. Lots of BC charities have benefited from this site. The set-up is simple and not very time-consuming.