6 key elements to get you started
Some fundraising events have become legendary: Race For Life (UK), Imagine for Margo (FR), Oxfam Trailwalker (world), Amsterdam City Swim (NL), Pan-Mass Challenge (USA), Shine a Light Night (UK), to name but a few. With several million euros raised each year, these events are sure to make any fundraiser dream.
However, organising such an event represents a significant initial investment in terms of logistics, marketing, human resources, promotion, etc. It could be a considerable risk for any organisation looking to give it a go.
Fortunately, for those of you who wish to test the mechanics of peer-to-peer fundraising without having a large budget, you should know that you can do so without creating your own event. But how can you include this in your fundraising plan? Below you'll find our 6 tips to help you get started.
1. Every moment of your supporters’ lives could be an opportunity for them to fundraise for your organisation.
Based on this principle, you can very simply set up a peer-to-peer fundraising platform and propose to your supporters to contribute to your charity and raise money in an original, fun and very rewarding way.
All it takes is some creative thinking to offer digital fundraising campaigns that are accessible all year round, with no registration fees, based on important moments in the lives of your supporters. Moments in life that everyone is likely to experience: birthdays, weddings, retirements, sports challenges, campaigns in memory or celebration of a loved one, etc.
Just as your organisation’s own events have a specific date and promotion calendar, and your supporters have to follow your schedule, these campaigns are geared towards personal life events, following a calendar specific to each person. This makes it much easier for your supporters to commit to your campaign because the motivation is individual, without any major constraints.
It’s a great opportunity because you can keep your platform alive throughout the year and share all those great fundraising pages and personal stories that have one goal: to support the cause you are defending.
2. Join existing events
More and more “general public” events are opening up to charitable participation. Whether it’s the Paris or London Marathon (which reserve part of their race numbers for solidarity runners), the mythical Mont Blanc Ultra-Trail or the Tour de France (which opens a solidarity stage dedicated to associations), the trend is well established and grows every year.
Involving your organisation in one of these events is therefore an additional opportunity to test the benefits of peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns at minimal cost.
Get inspired by this initiative for the Paris marathon!
3. Minimum Budget, Maximum Impact
Another significant advantage of this strategy is the budget. Again, when you compare this strategy to organising your own event, the investment costs are not at all the same. Here, all you need is an online fundraising platform, some tools and resources to help your supporters with their challenges and to spread the word (to be provided by you), and a good dose of creativity to promote your platform among your network of supporters.
4. Fundraising Tools
Let’s be clear, you are fundraising professionals. You know the mechanics and techniques to make your campaigns a success. Your supporters and volunteer fundraisers are not experts. At least not yet!
It is therefore essential to support them in their efforts, to provide tools and advice to launch their donation pages, and to be there for them when they need it. The best part of all this? You already have most of these tools, you use them in your daily work!
You just need to present them in a different way, adapted to your audience’s needs, and make them easily accessible for them. Here is a non-exhaustive list of materials you can provide on your platform for your supporters to download:
- Your organisation’s logo
- Posters of your organisation
- Posters that can be customised by fundraisers
- A fundraising guide (online or PDF version) to give basic advice
- Images dedicated to social media (profile picture, badges…)
- Testimonials from beneficiaries to share
- Examples of emails asking for support from friends and family (to be personalised)
- Explanation of how donations are used
- An annual report
- A list of simple and fun peer to peer fundraising ideas
5. Social media on the front line
Social media offer you a great opportunity to mobilise your supporters around your peer-to-peer campaigns. This method of fundraising is particularly well suited for younger generations, who are present on the different channels and are looking for a different way of getting involved. They are eager to find new ways of mobilising and having a positive impact.
Engaging donors through social media can be a powerful way to create a meaningful connection between your organisation and your audience. To start, it is essential to create a strong social media strategy that speaks directly to the values and interests of young people. This might include using visual content like videos, infographics, or images that can be easily shared and reposted by your followers. Additionally, encouraging young people to fundraise for your cause through social media can help to create a sense of ownership and engagement.
Keep in mind, it's important to be authentic and transparent in your messaging, creating an open and honest dialogue with your audience that fosters trust and connection.
You can also use social networks to animate and encourage your community of fundraisers. By creating private groups where you invite your supporters and donor base, you open the door to discussions and advice between fundraisers, and may even encourage team fundraising and a sense of community. You’ll be surprised how quickly your network grows and becomes self-governing, much to your benefit and delight!
By focusing on these elements, your organisation can build a strong, engaged following of young donors who are passionate about making a difference in the world.
6. A complementary strategy
Obviously, if you compare this strategy with the results of the biggest fundraising events or even with the donations generated by your last email campaign, the results will clearly not be comparable.
But the important thing here is to see this strategy not only as an opportunity to create a complementary fundraising lever that allows you to reach a new audience that is in line with the values & aspirations of the new generations, but also to test the receptivity of your network at a lower cost.
Piggybacking on large events through peer-to-peer fundraising can offer numerous benefits to organisations of all sizes without spending a lot of money. By leveraging the existing energy and excitement of a large event, organisations can gain exposure and raise funds through their network of supporters, with the added benefit of increased visibility and credibility from being associated with the larger event.
By doing this through a peer-to-peer approach, your charity will be able to start building a community of fundraisers and also assess its ability to dream bigger about a future fundraising event in your organisation's name!
As you can see, implementing a winning peer-to-peer strategy without organising your own fundraising event is a very realistic and achievable opportunity. With digital fundraising tools at your disposal, such as the brand new iRaiser peer-to-peer platform, all associations, whatever their size and budget, are able to implement an innovative and effective peer-to-peer strategy. All you have to do is get started!
Get in touch with us today for a free demo of our Peer to Peer Fundraising Software, and see for yourself how to build your community and raise more funds!