6 Ways to Raise Money Online Successfully
If you’re wondering how to online fundraise effectively, a crowdfunding campaign is a great option for any type of fundraising. Whether you are raising money for a personal cause or supporting a nonprofit initiative, crowdfunding can be a powerful tool.
It might seem overwhelming at first, but by following these six simple steps, you’ll soon know everything you need to raise money online for yourself, someone you care about or an initiative you care about.
How to raise funds online in 6 easy steps
1. Define your goal
Start by setting a clear fundraising goal. This is very important because it helps your potential donors understand how much money you need to raise as soon as they click on to your campaign page. It helps build trust as people are more likely to give money to a fund that is clearly defined.
Calculate your fundraising goal based on your total cost and be as detailed as possible. For example, if you’re raising money for a medical procedure, don’t list just the big-ticket price of the procedure itself, but also related expenses such as lost income, rehab, medications, and medical devices.
Remember that many crowdfunding platforms, like GoFundMe, allow you to change your goal amount if you need to, so it’s never set in stone.
2. Choose an online fundraising platform
When picking an online giving platform for fundraising online, you should look for:
- Platforms that allow free fundraising without upfront costs
- Low platform fees and charges for payment processing
- Good functionality of the fundraising software and how user-friendly it is, including how mobile-friendly the donation process is, so people can donate from anywhere using their smartphones and credit cards
- Customer support options
- Safe, trusted, and quick access to your funds with direct transfers to your bank account
- Fundraiser sharing capabilities, such as easy sharing on social media
- Embed options and integration abilities, allowing you to add your campaign or a button for online giving seamlessly into emails or newsletters, a website or blog
- Fundraising tools to help you manage donor data effectively
To dive deeper into crowdfunding platform comparisons, see our blog post on the top crowdfunding sites.
3. Tell your story from the heart
As humans, we are hardwired to respond to powerful stories. Fundraising pages with personal stories can create an emotional connection between the reader and the beneficiary, which will ultimately lead to more donations. This is why it’s important to be as honest as you can about your situation to get people clicking through to the donation page.
If you are raising money for a non-profit, tell a compelling story about its mission, just like you would a personal one.
We understand that setting up fundraising campaigns and asking for help can be scary, but you don’t have to do it alone. To help, here are a few questions you can ask yourself when writing your story:
- What will the funds be used for?
- How are you connected to the cause?
- How will the donations raised aid you or help others?
- Why does the recipient need this donation?
Try to answer basic “Who, What, Where, When, Why, How” questions to increase the likelihood of donation. Remember, when it comes to fundraising, the why is particularly important as a fundraising strategy.
If you would like additional guidance, check out our guide to learn how to write a captivating fundraiser story.
Write a captivating title to match your story
Come up with a strong title for your fundraising story. This should summarize your story in one standout phrase. Titles are very important because you’re giving the audience a glimpse into what your fundraiser is about. Make sure it reflects what your fundraiser is for in a clear way so that people click through and donate. If you are nonprofit fundraising, consider including this in the title.
You can also check out our great fundraiser title tips to help you get started.
4. Share your fundraiser with your friends and family
Once you’ve posted your fundraiser, get feedback on it from trusted friends and family. Use any good suggestions from loved ones to refine your story, such as adding powerful images, videos, etc. Then, start peer fundraising by asking your inner circle for donations. Why? If potential donors see that some funds have already been raised, people are more likely to donate. Once your inner circle has donated, share your fundraiser with everyone everywhere.
Sharing on social media
A couple of common questions we see asked are “how to get my GoFundMe noticed?” and “how to raise money on GoFundMe?” The more visible your fundraiser is, the more donations you’ll receive. Social media is a powerful fundraising strategy and an effective way to expand your reach is to connect social media and fundraising, with many platforms offering integrations with these platforms.
- If you create a Facebook page for your fundraiser, consider paying to boost posts if the costs will be outweighed by donations.
- If you want to promote your fundraiser on Twitter, try creating custom links to add to your tweets.
- If using email, try using one of our email fundraising templates to help simplify the process.
- Consider a livestream of in-person or virtual fundraising events like online auctions to engage existing supporters and attract new donors in real-time.
When raising money for a nonprofit organization, consider whether you can use their social media accounts to share the fundraising campaign with an even wider audience.
Sharing without social media
While social media is a great way to connect potential donors with your fundraiser, sharing fundraising campaigns in-person can be just as powerful.
Want to know how to raise money online without using social media? Try one of our top ways of fundraising without social media, like creating flyers for bulletin boards, direct mail or mentioning your fundraiser at community events.
5. Post updates
Posting frequent updates is a great fundraising tool to keep your family, friends, and others engaged and let them know how successful your fundraising efforts have been.
Updates also keeps your fundraiser in the minds of your support network, which is a great way to potentially get repeat donations. With the help of fundraising software, you can post updates to thank your network, remind people how much you have left until you reach your goal to encourage recurring donations, or express your feelings along your journey.
And if you are holding fundraising events to supplement donations, or if companies are matching gifts to donations, make sure to let everyone know.
6. Show appreciation towards your donors
When a person donates to your fundraiser, it’s because they believe in your cause. This is why thank-yous are so important—they serve as a way for donors to remain part of your story. Use donor data to send simple, personalized thank you letters and ecards as an easy way to show your appreciation and strengthen relationships. If you’re not sure how to thank new donors for their support, check out our blog for easy ways to say thank you to donors.
Get started today!
Now that you know the best ways to raise money online, create your fundraiser on GoFundMe today. If you need extra guidance, we offer a wide range of resources to help you double your donations and cover topics ranging from raising money for surgery assistance, emergency rental assistance, and much more. For more ways to raise money through crowdfunding, check out our fundraising tips, fundraising ideas, and many other guides on the GoFundMe blog.