How To Integrate Your Nonprofit Event With A Crowdfunding Campaign

Events are a great way to rally your supporters in-person. But what about those donors that can’t make it? Or how about the people that don’t necessarily have the funds to give during the event itself but can at a later date?

You may also have folks that have wandered onto your crowdfunding site, only to learn about an upcoming event they want to attend.

There are an almost unlimited number of reasons why you should integrate your next nonprofit event with a crowdfunding campaign, including the following:

“You should integrate your next nonprofit event with a crowdfunding campaign…” tweet this

1. You’ll Capture More Donations

Naturally, you’re likely to get more donations combining a crowdfunding campaign with your nonprofit event than if you just ran an event itself.

Aside from the fact that an online crowdfunding campaign has the potential to reach a wider audience, you’ll also capture more donations from those who would have gone to the event anyway.

With an integrated campaign, donors are given the space and time to do their own research— resulting in less pressure and access to virtually unlimited information.

2. You’ll Educate Your Donors

Crowdfunding lends itself perfectly to donor education. Your crowdfunding website is designed to include ample information about your cause and projected impact.

You can also choose to include links to your organization’s website, tax forms, or donor testimonials, and extras like images and videos. Many crowdfunding campaigns powered by CauseVox also use an impact meter tool. This feature equates a donation to the direct impact the money will have on those you serve.

Keep in mind that some donors, especially new ones, don’t want to go digging for information (nor should they). Therefore, a thorough, engaging, and informative crowdfunding site can provide them with the right fuel they need to make a gift.

Plus, this information may not only motivate your donors to give, but to also share your campaign with their own friends and family.

3. You’ll Track Campaign Progress (& Encourage Donations While You’re At It)

The motivating factor for many donors could be your campaign’s progress. When you use CauseVox to power your crowdfunding campaign, you can see that progress in real-time directly on your website.

4. You’ll Provide Social Proof

As humans, we’re hardwired to follow the action. If there’s a hot new restaurant, new diet fad, or new baby-centered parenting technique, we’re all eager to jump onboard. And the same goes for fundraising and crowdfunding.

CauseVox’s crowdfunding website provides donors with a running total of every donation made to the campaign. So, when prospective donors see that 800 people have made the decision to give, they’ll be more likely to follow suit.

5. You’ll Streamline Event Registration & Other Variables

When you use CauseVox to power your integrated nonprofit event and crowdfunding campaign, the registration and donation process is simplified.

Your nonprofit can customize a website to meet the needs of your organization, including custom donation fields that can cover every circumstance from event ticket sales to t-shirt sizing and release waivers.

Now that you’re ready to integrate your nonprofit event with your crowdfunding campaign, follow these steps to bring it all together.

1. Hammer Down The Details

Start the integration by finalizing all aspects of the campaign.

• Goal: Create a combined goal for your event and crowdfunding campaign, which can be slightly higher than if you were to just run an event itself. As always, remember to make your goal specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based.
• Timeline: Determine a reasonable timeframe for your campaign based on the day of your nonprofit event. As a point of reference, most crowdfunding campaigns run around 30-days.
• Create a social media/marketing plan: Craft your communications plan weeks before you kickoff the fundraiser. Organize social media posts, email content, and any sponsorship materials so you’re ready to go on day one.

2. Customize Your Website

Use CauseVox to create your crowdfunding website.

If you’re new to online fundraising, schedule a one-on-one demo. Then, sign up and begin creating your site.

We make it easy to personalize your crowdfunding website based on the needs of your nonprofit. After adding your goals, story, and branding during your website design, select Settings to customize the donation tiers and donation fields depending on how you plan to integrate your campaigns together.

There are many options you can include on your website, including:

• Collecting donations
• Registering event participants
• Purchasing tickets
• Specifying ticket delivery
• Collecting t-shirt sizes

For example, if you choose to include event registration into your crowdfunding campaign, add ticket number options under the Donation Tiers setting or by using Custom Donation Fields.

The flexible field categories available make it easy for you to collect any and all information you need to successfully run your event. Your options include a customized dropdown menu, checkbox, radio selector, text line, and text box.

For a great example, check out the registration options for World Bicycle Relief’s Zwiftaton. As you can see, participants are asked to select their t-shirt size.

When it comes to custom registration fields for personal and team fundraising pages, the sky’s the limit. Think of your fundraising site as a one-stop-shop to cover all your needs, from event registration to fundraising and beyond. And it’s not just your nonprofit reaping the benefits.

Using CauseVox’s custom registration fields also simplifies the process for participants because they’re able to give, create a page, and sign up for the event all at the same time.

3. Consider A Gift Match

Gift matches work very well with online fundraising. Plus, donors like to know that their gift is leveraged. It may even motivate those on the fence about giving to step up.

To secure a gift match, start with your Board, major donors, and local companies that have supported your cause in the past. Remind them that the gift match doesn’t have to be large to make a difference. You can also check with the Double The Donation website for a list of companies that match employee donations. This may give you a good idea of businesses you can reach out to for support.

Once you’ve worked through the details, include gift match information on your crowdfunding website and in your communications.

4. Promote The Campaign At Your Event

During the event, let your event attendees know they can continue building on the momentum of the campaign by contributing online.

Before and after the event, use social media and email marketing to keep current and prospective supports in the loop about the campaign status, reasons to give, and how to make a donation.

5. Encourage Sharing

Don’t just rely on your own marketing efforts to spread word about the campaign. We suggest you reach out to key donors to build momentum. If the interest is there, consider adding a peer-to-peer fundraising component to your campaign.

When you run a peer-to-peer fundraiser, your supporters become your voice. They fuel your campaign by sharing it with their own friends and family. Peer-to-peer fundraisers set up personal websites that are linked to your main fundraising site. On these pages, they can share their own story about why they got involved with your cause and how to get involved as either a donor or event participant.

6. Communicate Updates and Results

Throughout the campaign and beyond, use the blog feature on your website to keep supporters updated on the campaign’s progress.

As the campaign nears the end, promote one last bump by rallying your donors using urgent language. Ramp up requests to share the campaign, and be sure to keep including relevant, inspirational stories and posts about those served by your nonprofit.

Integrating your nonprofit event with a crowdfunding campaign is a great way to increase your campaign’s exposure, capture more gifts, streamline registration, and engage your donors in a different way. If you’re ready to start fundraising online, head over to CauseVox to sign up for your account and begin creating your website.

“Integrating your nonprofit event with a crowdfunding campaign is a great way to increase your exposure…” tweet this

For more information on crowdfunding, check out How To Plan A Nonprofit Crowdfunding Campaign.

If you found this article helpful, you may like 101+ Fundraising Ideas For Nonprofits and How To Promote Your Nonprofit Crowdfunding Campaign.