Eight Social Media Trends to Help You Exceed Fundraising Goals
Building relationships is an essential part of fundraising, and social media is one tool that might help you achieve that. It’s not a novel strategy to use social media for fundraising.
Almost everyone has a Facebook account, and, especially around the holidays, most nonprofits utilize Facebook to raise funds.
However, social media is merely a tool. It’s not a cash machine, and, just like any other tool, you must know how to use it.
It’s not enough to pop up on Facebook now and then and ask for money. People do not donate simply because you require funds. To make the proper Asks to the right audiences, you’ll need to develop a ‘social media plan’ and ‘strategy’ that uses the proper channels in the right way.
Social media fundraising has shown to be successful for many nonprofits and charities worldwide. If you incorporate social media trends into your fundraising efforts, your organization’s visibility and donations will increase. So get online, identify your audience, and watch your fundraising objectives soar, according to author Lisa Bennett’s top eight social media trends to incorporate in your fundraising campaigns.
- Personalized Content is Key to Social Media Fundraising
The success of social media fundraising initiatives hinges on conveying a compelling story. Personal stories can be shared on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, among other social media platforms. These are posts that last for 24 hours before disappearing and allow you to interact with your supporters by giving them insight into your fundraising event’s daily activities.
Think like a supporter when creating content for your social media fundraising campaign. You’ll be able to successfully engage with your donors and keep them coming back for more if you can get into their heads. Create compelling, relevant, and sincere content for your charity’s cause on your fundraising website to elicit an emotional response and drive action.
Make your posts as funny as possible to increase their shareability. Visually appealing content is always a winner. Add headlines, hashtags, bullet points, infographics, GIFS, memes, and videos to catch your followers’ interest and keep them sharing your articles for further exposure. Remember to thank your supporters and acknowledge their importance to your fundraising campaign in your posts.
- Learn to Livestream
Hosting a live-stream fundraising event is a great way to boost awareness for your cause and maximize your outreach among supporters. Livestreaming has gained incredible popularity since the start of the pandemic, primarily due to the growth in virtual and hybrid events. The great thing about a live-stream is that it allows you to engage with your supporters and show the human face of the story behind the cause you’re raising awareness for. Most social media platforms have live-streaming capabilities such as Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Instagram Live, and LinkedIn Live.
- Videos Also Work for Social Fundraising
Consider how many posts had videos if you recently visited any social media platforms. The number of videos shared on Facebook surged by 75% last year, and this trend is only expected to continue.
Because videos have a higher reach than photographs and links, consider the advantages of including videos in your fundraising social media postings to raise event popularity and awareness. To tap into your fans’ emotional and personal interests, make your videos engaging, inventive, and authentic to your cause.
- Offer Fun Polls, Quizzes, and Games
Increase your donor network by using online tools to help enhance involvement. When it comes to drawing donations to your campaign, the idea is to get as much contact as possible. Incorporating gamification components into your social media fundraising is a terrific way to do this.
Polls, quizzes, and games are just a few gamification ideas that will bring your fans together to promote a good cause, foster healthy competition, and have fun at the same time.
- Post Daily Updates and Reminders
Your contributors will be updated on your fundraising progress with updates and reminders. Remember not to over-communicate with your followers, as this can be overwhelming, but don’t leave them in the dark either.
The majority of people nowadays have access to a mobile smartphone. This is fantastic news for nonprofits and charities that may use text-to-donate as a way to increase revenue.
So, while your fans check their social media accounts for fundraiser updates, remind them that donating is just a click away.
- Create #Hashtag Challenges
Hashtags have been used for a variety of purposes, including product launches, film titles, and fundraising challenges. In addition, many nonprofits use hashtags to raise awareness and fundraise for their causes.
Using hashtags is a terrific method to reach a wider audience, educate your fans about your cause, and raise funds for your organization. For example, take the #IceBucketChallenge from ALS. This is a fantastic example of the power of hashtag challenges, as a global challenge raised almost 90 million dollars.
- TikTok is Trending
TikTok can be a fun approach to raise global awareness for your cause and engage with your fans. TikTok has become the social networking platform of choice for a younger age, allowing users to produce 15-second videos with music and effects and host livestreams. Because of its simplicity, it appeals to many fundraisers.
Donation stickers are now available to add to your TikTok video to raise extra money for your charity. Consider your target audience once more. TikTok is a terrific option if you work with or want to reach a younger market.
- Consider Using Facebook Fundraisers
Facebook has nearly one billion daily active users, which is great news for social media fundraising campaigns. However, when it comes to sharing your story on Facebook, the possibilities for global outreach and charity awareness are endless.
On Facebook, you can run a fundraising campaign that includes a “Donate Now” button on your page that directs fans to your external donation website or allows them to donate directly on the platform. While Facebook provides the opportunity to increase community awareness and exposure, many organizations prefer to attract contributions via their website.
Summary of Social Media Fundraising Trends
Social media is here to stay as a tool for optimizing fundraising initiatives. It’s a fantastic method to interact with your supporters and form personal bonds with your donors. You may connect with and attract new donations through captivating social media fundraising efforts while reinforcing your relationship with regular supporters.
Sources:
Author: Lisa Bennett – Morweb.org
https://morweb.org/post/8-Social-Media-Trends-to-Exceed-Fundraising-Goals
Author: Sandy Rees – GetFullyFunded.com
https://getfullyfunded.com/social-media-for-fundraising/