5 practical ways you can still do digital fundraising in time for the Christmas giving season
Fundraising is tough.
This time last year, I’d joined a small peace-building charity. And, along with their new CEO, I was tasked with turning around their fortunes. I did everything I could to reactivate lapsed donors, secure grant funding, and reach out to individuals for help. And then Covid hit. And we had to close.
Rough, huh?
So what happens when the going gets rough? Well, the tough get digital.
And that’s why I’m giving you 5 digital fundraising ideas to help boost your year-end fundraising. Because if your charity is lucky enough to still be going, this is your last chance to meet year-end targets.
So if you don’t know where to start or have zero creative juices left, fear not, as I have some ideas to help. And none of them need you to engage in any endless sign-off processes or seek board-level agreements.
Because no-one’s got time for that.
Why end-of-year giving will be different this year
No-one needs to hear me say that things have changed. We’ve just had to get on with it. Yet, with all this change, many people in the third sector remain skeptical about the potential of digital fundraising.
And this is surprising, especially when 53% of charities reported a reduction in their giving levels this year. Plus, when you factor in the astronomical surge in eCommerce — where almost all retail industry bosses say they’re optimistic about the future of online sales — why is it that we’re allowing the charity sector to ignore these opportunities?
Do we want to remain stuck in the doldrums?
Or worse, not survive?
Last year, the Charity Commission found almost a third of people said they were considering giving donations in place of Christmas presents. This year, I predict this number will double. And I say this because who can honestly say whether they’ll be able to see anyone outside their household for Christmas?
It’s a sobering thought.
So when the likelihood seems low-to-non-existent of any of us getting together for Christmas, what are the next-best alternatives to a festive season?
An endless barrage of Amazon’s bestsellers to your doorstep?
The top ten gifts from ‘Not on the High Street’ via Hermes?
When so many people worry about the environmental impact of present giving — and especially the packaging — it seems clear that giving to charity would be a far better idea. And especially when so many charities have been really struggling.
So, rather than making it a question of ‘why’ should you do digital fundraising for Christmas this year, the question becomes ‘why are you not’ doing digital in time for your end-of-year efforts?
Digital fundraising ideas for the Christmas giving season
If you work in a small charity, here are 5 ideas that could help you take some confident steps towards inspiring online donations:
1. The power of social media buttons
You probably know about #GivingTuesday. It’s the one that follows Black Friday and Cyber Monday. But this year it’ll be different.
During the pandemic, almost half of all UK survey respondents said they’d increased the use of their smartphones to surf the web. And since the virus hasn’t gone away, they are going to keep using them.
So if you haven’t done so already, get your Instagram and Facebook pages set up to receive donations in time for GivingTuesday, 1st December. Thanks to Lockdown 2, Black Friday is a write-off this year. And I predict a surge in online giving to make up for it.
Do you want to be a part of it?
Here are three options to consider (and none of them will charge you any fees):
- Add a donation button to your Facebook and Instagram business accounts: When there’s a donate button on your charity’s social media accounts, it’s easier for donors to give. Plus, I’m sure you have at least a few followers on Facebook, right? Which takes us back to the ‘why not’ question. Get a donate button on your Facebook page. It’s easy. You will, though, need to make sure you’re enrolled with Facebook payments first.
- Run an appeal through Instagram stories: If you’re planning on running an appeal for Christmas, get it promoted on Instagram stories. They usually run for 24 hours, which makes it sensible to plug it around Giving Tuesday and ask your followers to donate.
- Encourage your donors to create their own content using Instagram Live: User-Generated-Content (UGC) is a powerful way to build your supporter base. Of course, it’s easier said than done getting supporters to use it. But that’s where the job of the fundraiser comes in — you need to inspire your donors to do something.
2. It’ll be digital this Christmas
Sure. Events aren’t happening as they used to. But virtual events are. And, with services such as Streamyard, live events are far easier to set up and run than you think:
- Host a Christmas party: Christmas is a wonderful, festive time of celebration. And knowing this, why not host a Christmas party for your corporate supporters? Charge them an entrance donation to attend, and keep the donations rolling with an online raffle. Some charities encourage staff to substitute their ‘Secret Santa’ presents with a donation. Plus, it’s an easy sell. And that’s because you’ll be doing the work for them. Just make it fun and exciting, and add a set of strong festive fundraising ideas.
- Christmas quiz: Who doesn’t love a quiz? And of course, it can’t be in the pub, but your supporters can bring at least some aspects of a pub to them, can’t they? Alzheimer’s Research UK has done this really well by enlisting celebs like Stephen Fry and Jonathan Ross to host. And, while you may not have many celebs to draw from, there will be supporters who’ll be happy to host and bring their friends and family too.
- Indoor Christmas challenges: Some brilliant, pandemic-proof ideas have emerged this year, like Guide Dogs UK’s Walk Your Socks Off campaign. This got supporters walking thousands of steps in their homes. And while this event has finished, use it as a strong example of how to inspire supporters. How about asking supporters to share photos of their Christmas trees, as a competition for the best-dressed tree?
3. Do they know it’s an eCommerce Christmas?
So what about the colossal surge in eCommerce trading this year? What does it mean for charities?
Well, it means there’s a good chance eCommerce will become a very popular way to get your Christmas presents. And if donors don’t want to replace their gifts with giving, you can drive donations from eCommerce platforms.
That’s because online sales increase by almost 30% when they’re linked to charitable giving.
So, if you haven’t done so already, sign up to Give As You Live or The Giving Machine. This allows your charity to receive donations from the platforms, at no cost to the donors. It’s also free for you as a charity.
Of course, succeeding with this is never as simple as just signing up. You’ll need to do the work to garner support and interest. And if you’re supporters plan to do their Christmas shopping online, you should encourage them to use these platforms.
4. All I Want for Christmas is some digital fundraising
Your job as a fundraiser is to get the donations in. But to do so, you need to focus on the needs of your supporters. This is where encouraging donations to your charity, instead of unwanted gifts, is key.
There are many successful models of giving to charity as a Christmas gift:
- Give a Goat: A well-known example, Oxfam makes it easy for supporters to give their loved ones a goat for Christmas. Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? But, in practice, it’s highly effective. But how can you translate this to your own cause? Are there ‘ideas’ you can think of to package up to make it easy for your supporters to donate? Creativity will be your friend.
- More than a Christmas hamper: Homelessness charity CentrePoint allows supporters to buy those who need it a Christmas hamper. For £50, supporters get the ultimate feelgood experience by giving to the homeless at Christmas. And this year, they’ve probably never needed it more.
- Help those in hospital for Christmas: Oxford Hospitals Charity has a great premise to ask for gifts. Children and older people who receive hospital treatment over Christmas receive presents and spirit-lifting entertainment. And all your supporters need to do is give online.
5. Step your CEO into Christmas
This year, you’re bound to have some exceptional stories to tell. But some of these could be very difficult to share with donors, especially if they affect you, your team, or the people you support.
But the truth is, your supporters deserve to hear them. After all, they’re investing in you. They’re your partners. And, with any good relationship comes openness, honesty, and humility.
So, consider asking a senior member of staff to record an end-of-year video. It should be clear on the challenges you’ve faced and make an ask for support.
This could be your CEO, but it could also be a trustee or key supporter. Some tools to easily create impressive videos include Give Magic and Loom. Use these to record a message from your CEO, and then share it with your supporters.
Talk about your successes, the number of service-users you’ve supported, and the challenges you’ve faced. Then, get them to make a clear ask for support. And after they do, follow up with the supporter.
Above all, make it easy to donate. If you’re making the ask by video, you need to tell your supporter precisely how and where they can give. Is that on your website? On Facebook? Make it clear.
Build your confidence in digital fundraising
At this point, you may be thinking ‘Well, ok, Mike. But none of my supporters really use digital channels. So I don’t think they’d really appreciate any of this’. And my answer to that would be…
‘Well, when was the last time you spoke to them about it?’
Because it’s so easy to make assumptions when fundraising. And this is why you must understand who you’re speaking to. You need to know your donors and what they want. And when you do, you’ll find it easier to match your digital activity to match their preferences.
It’s just that, in 2020, those preferences are limited. We all need to get used to using digital channels to communicate. Whether that’s Facebook, Zoom, or hosting a webinar, the future is already here. So there really isn’t any other choice.
But I do understand that a lack of confidence can get in the way. And there are tools to help you get over this:
- Google Digital Garage: Google offers a free, certified course that covers the fundamentals of digital marketing. But these are directly applicable to digital fundraising. And yes, the course is completely free.
- Digital Charity Lab: If you’re looking for something more bespoke to gain confidence with digital fundraising, the Digital Charity Lab has some reduced-rate courses. These could be a great way to get to grips with email marketing, for example, where very few charities are sending the amounts they should be.
- The Digital Fundraising Book, from Reason Digital: If you’re looking to start from scratch then take the time to read through Reason Digital’s excellent e-book. It’ll give you step-by-step instructions on how to move forward.
And, finally, if you haven’t looked at it yet, check out the Charity Digital Code. While many charities have moved their services to online delivery, some haven’t yet started to consider how to go digital with their fundraising.
So, use the code to see what more you need to do internally to get your charity up to speed.
Digital fundraising has been established for years, yet the naysayers exist. We don’t like change, do we? And as a fundraiser, it’s your job to defeat them. No funding source is ‘safe’ anymore. And where face-to-face interactions are off the Christmas list this year, how are you going to close down those asks?
So, this Christmas, there’s just one question you have to ask…
Are you tough enough?
