Digital Fundraising: Ideas for Non-Profits and How to Fundraise Online

In today’s digital age, fundraising for non-profits has never been more convenient. With a staggering 94% of Swedish households possessing internet access, non-profits have a vast array of digital tools and platforms at their disposal, allowing them to connect with existing and prospective donors, and obtain funds for their initiatives. From engaging social media campaigns to exciting online auctions, digital fundraising has opened up a whole new world of opportunities for non-profit organisations to expand their reach and therefore increase their impact. In this blog post, we’ll explore some of the most effective digital fundraising ideas for non-profits and charities and how you can implement them for your organisation. 

What is digital fundraising?

Digital fundraising refers to the use of digital technologies and online platforms to raise funds for a cause or non-profit organisation. This can include a variety of online strategies such as social media campaigns, email marketing, online auctions, and donation pages on websites. 

Thanks to digital fundraising, non-profit organisations get to reach a larger audience, engage with supporters, and collect donations more efficiently as online platforms offer easy and convenient ways for donors to support the charities close to their hearts. With the increasing use of online platforms, digital fundraising has become a crucial strategy for non-profits and charities from all over the world. 

Get started with digital fundraising and set up a branded donation plugin on your website

When designing a digital fundraising campaign, it’s important to start with the most important aspect of your online presence and identity: your website. Putting your focus on social media is a crucial part of any charity’s strategy but you must remember that your website is your most valuable asset as you have full control over its design and content. Hence inserting a donation widget on your web is a great way to raise funds for your projects. 

Waytobill’s donation plugin is a customisable iframe that can be inserted into any page of your website. Some charities prefer to create a separate donation page where users head to in order to support the good cause, while others insert the plugin directly onto the home page to make it more visible and easily accessible by all website visitors. 

Our donation plugin enables non-profits to customise the colours and text and insert the organisation’s logo so that it aligns with the corporate image of the charity. This also makes it easier to make the plugin part of the website like in the example above. 

But what are the benefits of using a donation plugin on your website?

• Convenience: interested donors can financially support a project or charity without the need of visiting donation centres or participating in field sales. Supporters visit the website of the charity they want to donate to and simply scroll down or visit the page with the donation plugin embedded. This is also much easier than making bank transfers or donating via social media sites. Additionally, the plugin generates trust since it’s inserted on the organisation’s website. 

• Increased reach: many charities work tirelessly to reach a wider audience beyond their local community or traditional fundraising channels. By opting for Waytobill’s donation plugin you welcome people from different locations, age groups, and interests to donate. Besides, you can share the link heading to the page with the widget on social media, via emails or by inserting QR codes on leaflets and letter communications. 

• Cost-effectiveness: donation websites are a cost-effective way for charities to collect donations and process payments, as they typically have lower transaction fees than traditional payment methods. Additionally, there is no need for developing new website features or investing in new solutions. 

• Improved donor engagement: ask donors to provide their email addresses so that you can stay in touch with your supporters via email updates, which tend to improve relationships with donors due to the personalised human connection. Make sure to invite your donors to connect with your charity on social media too so that they can stay up to date on your projects. 

• Data analytics: donation websites, including our donation plugin, provide valuable data insights and analytics that help non-profits understand donor behaviour, preferences, and trends. Use this priceless data to improve fundraising strategies and donor communication. 

Digital fundraising ideas: maximize donations on social media

Social media is where your average donor spends hours every day and so it’s a vital medium to generate awareness, visibility, and funds for your charity. However, it’s important to know exactly where the majority of your donors are spending most of their social media time. 

According to Idonate, 88% of Matures, 72% of Baby Boomers, 59% of Gen Xers, 60% of Millennials, and 44% of Gen Zers donate to charities. These numbers make Matures and Baby Boomers your primary target audience. Having that in mind, it’s important to launch a digital fundraising campaign on the platform they’re most likely to be active on. But let’s not forget about Gen Xers and Millennials who are also likely to support your digital fundraising efforts. So what’s the best way to reach them?

Facebook continues to be the most popular social media platform among the older generations, while those born in the 80s and 90s are likely to be found on Facebook and Instagram. So that’s the first step covered - choosing the right network to run your fundraising social media campaign. 

Let’s take a look at different strategies you can use on social media to take your digital fundraising campaign to the next level.

Use the features provided by social media platforms to raise funds

Meta rolled out some compelling features for Facebook and Instagram, which can be extremely useful for non-profit organisations. Charities and NGOs can add a “Support” button to their Instagram profiles, visible to all users who visit their profiles. Take a moment to view the accompanying image to see the button’s placement and how it can be utilised.

A similar option is available on Facebook where users can view all the fundraisers created by the charity’s supporters and also access the non-profit’s online shop from which profits are donated towards the good cause.

Publish creative and shareable content to maximise your reach

Social media users willingly share content they find interesting with their followers, friends and family. That opens up the door for you to convert more donors, event attendees or even volunteers. And promoting your new donation plugin on social media is a great idea! It will allow you to make more people aware of the new feature and therefore possibly drive traffic to your donation page. Use a variety of different posts including images, videos, and Stories to reach as many people as possible. It might also be a good idea to shoot short videos explaining how to participate in the digital fundraising campaign, showing the donation process step by step. 

Besides, social media is the perfect place to generate engagement among your audience and stay top of mind with your supporters. Daily updates, fun questionnaires, and even online games spark the user’s attention, which has a direct impact on the engagement and therefore visibility of your organisation. 

Here are some more ideas that will help you promote your digital fundraising campaigns on social media:

1. Share infographics and visuals that highlight the impact of donations, such as the number of people served or lives impacted. You can also showcase the impact of each donation, for example, what can be achieved with a 200SEK donation.

2. Publish personal stories and testimonials from those who have been helped by the charity to show the real impact of the organisation. 

3. Record short videos that explain the charity’s mission, values, and how donations will be used. Behind-the-scenes footage is great to showcase the work of the charity and its volunteers while it also generates trust.

4. Share milestones and progress to encourage more followers to help you reach the target.

5. Educate your audience about topics related to your charity’s mission so that people can better understand the issues or learn ways to prevent them in the first place.

Have you heard of telefundraising? Find out what telefundraising is and why should incorporate it into your fundraising strategy!

Make the most out of email marketing for your digital fundraising 

Email marketing can be a powerful tool for digital fundraising since it allows non-profit organisations to reach out to existing and prospective donors with personalised messages, tailored for each occasion. 

Correct segmenting plays a crucial role in email marketing campaigns so before you hit the send button, ensure the message has the potential of connecting with its audience. Here are some ideas for utilising email marketing for your digital fundraising campaigns. 

1. Newsletters: regular newsletters keep supporters informed about the charity’s work, upcoming events and campaigns, and successes. This is a great way of showing donors how much of an impact their help has.

2. Donation appeals: send targeted donation appeals to subscribers who have previously donated or shown an interest in the cause. Explain how their donation will help your project and add a direct link to the page with your donation plugin. 

3. Progress updates: a good idea is to send progress updates on the digital fundraising campaign and show how donations are making a difference. You can even encourage further contributions. 

4. Urgent appeals: create an email marketing campaign in response to disasters or emergencies to encourage subscribers to donate to your fundraiser. 

5. Personalised messages: send personalised emails to your donors and subscribers to thank them for their support or to wish them happy holidays during the festive season. This kind of communication is a great way to maintain good relationships with your audience. 

We hope that this article has given you insight into digital fundraising and that you’ve gathered some ideas for your own campaign. Don’t hesitate to contact us in case of questions about our donation plugin or other fundraising solutions.