Fundraising Fun with Social Networking

Social Media has really changed fundraising. While walkathons and bake sales are still popular, there are very few people who do not reckon with the power of social media networking sites and their ability to spread the word for free. Since there is already so much happening on social media sites, it is vital for the fundraising page to stand out and look “clickable.” The first step towards creating an effective fundraising social media campaign starts with creating an interesting page that gets people talking. Post up pictures of previous fundraisers, videos and blogs and tag all the people involved. Create the same event that has the same logo, pictures and administrators on every popular social media website to create recall and make the event more credible and easy to find. Create the same page on Facebook, Twitter and My Space, and use the administrators and added friends to connect with more people. Instead of just inviting people to the event, post the event on their profiles so people who are not friends or already added to the page, can also have access and every post by them on the fundraisers page can show up on their friends' friends' walls! Create a number of ways for people to help out. While local donations are a great way to get people involved in a cause, social media networking allow people from all over to connect. If they cannot physically come out to donate, make it easy for them to donate. Use the safe and secure services offered by popular tools that allow people to make monetary transactions online. Paste links on the fundraisers page and people can start donating right away. Get sponsors once the page has more than 200 members. Using the cause, the administrators of the fundraiser can approach companies or brands that might be interested in advertising on the page. Often brands want a positive image and like being associated with causes. They usually donate for every hit they get through that particular page or sometimes just pay a certain amount to have their logo and ad placed on the page. Make the event happening and alive online. Send out updates to members, have contests on the page to get new fundraising ideas and stay active. Reply to questions and comments and make the page interesting by getting the administrators involved. Talk about previous fundraisers or the people who will benefit from this particular one. Send out reminders with the date, time and venue for the fundraiser. If there is no event and the page is to raise money online, send out updates of where the progress stands and what that has accomplished and what more can be done. Constantly update pictures and show what difference is being made with the donations if possible. Lastly, check out the different online social tools available for fundraising. There are many online market places and communities that allow people to put up their fundraising ideas and gather support, whether it’s needed for cheerleading outfits or to provide clean, drinking water to villages. Post up the cause and get daily updates from people who are interested in helping out!

Barry is a charity fundraiser and has worked in the field for several years. During his career he has enjoyed coming up with new fundraising ideas and sponsorship ideas. For more information on the issues raised visit Easy Fundraising who can help with fundraising ideas for schools.