Making an online ask may seem difficult if you’re not used to digitally interacting with donors, but you’d be surprised by how easy it can be. Check out these five tips for bolstering your online fundraising.
1. Develop your social media strategy
Social media has quickly become the most popular way to engage with your community.
Your first step is to determine where to focus your energy. Some of your options are:
No matter where you decide to post, you have three directives for an effective strategy:
- Promote your mission and goals
- Tell your nonprofit’s story
- Engage with the broader community
Once you’ve effectively developed your social media presence to tell your nonprofit’s story, you can post updates, pictures, invitations, information and opinions to your followers.
Remember to post about your fundraisers and campaigns, and your followers will respond.
2. Merge your online and offline strategies
Let your in-person fundraising successes inform how you strategize for your online fundraisers.
What motivates your community to get involved in your campaigns?
Have your supporters responded well to a little friendly competition during fundraising campaigns? Include gamification techniques in your online fundraisers! These can include:
- Points
- Badges
- Levels
- Challenges
3. Simplify the giving process
It’s your responsibility to make the donation process as simple as possible for your supporters. Once they make the decision to support your cause, the action should be a snap.
So what are some ways to make your donation page as simple as possible?
- Include suggested amounts, recurring gifts or a planned gift option on your page.
- Promote matching gifts on your website or donation page.
- Use a custom donation page that operates smoothly with your website.
4. Optimize for mobile devices
More and more people, especially those under forty, primarily use their smartphones to access the internet. Therefore, your online asks and donations pages need to be compatible with mobile devices.
What are some questions to keep in mind when making your online presence mobile-optimized?
- Will your email campaign load correctly on a smartphone?
- Is your font readable on a small screen?
- Is your website up-to-date enough to be mobile-responsive or optimized?
This tip ensures that those who are swayed by your online asks will be able to give right away, without technical difficulties.
5. Prioritize follow-up communications
The most important part of building donor relationships is following up with them after the donation.
What steps should you take after someone responds to your online ask?
- Say thank you as soon as the donation is completed.
- Send a follow-up thank-you email with their donation receipt.
- After a few days, say thank you again and send them a little more information about ways to get involved with your nonprofit.
If someone is willing to donate money to your organization, odds are that they care about your cause and might be willing to get involved in other ways.
By reaching out to your community where they already are and making it as easy as possible for them to respond, your online asks will be as successful as your in-person ones.
