Internet Fundraising
“The future is already here – it’s just not very evenly distributed”, William Gibson
Who is the fundraising aimed at?
You need to balance the type of fundraising with the users of your site. The site content must therefore be relevant and of interest to the people you want to attract to your site.
Interestingly, although young people are least likely to give to charity overall, they are most likely to have given online (which is good news for the future). In contrast those over 65 are least likely to have given online with just 10% having made a donation online. Men are also more likely to give online, although overall women are more likely to donate to charity.
It is therefore important to plan your website and seek feedback from those using it on what they want to see.
You need to reach and engage donors in their favourite places. To do this you need to understand their demographics. Don’t expect them just to come to you; you need to entice them and even then, remember you then need to develop your relationship and offer them a great experience.
You need to integrate your Internet fundraising with your overall funding strategy. Who is the online fundraising aimed at, who will do the work for you, how will it engage with donors, how easy is your website to find and navigate?
Planning
A bit about donors
Donors are changing; recent research has identified that future donors will become more of a consumer in their giving habits. They have access to more information and choice than ever before and are therefore able to shop around to find the cause that most appeals to them.
They are becoming more demanding in their giving habits – what is the benefit to them? In addition they are more cynical, possibly due to media coverage of the occasional charity scandal. They are also less committed in their giving, being able to pick and choose where their money goes.
Engaging and finding donors
Tell donors about your work and the people you help, case studies and real-life stories are more effective. The following methods can all help you to spread the word about your work.
Let donors know where money raised is going and what difference your work is making to people’s lives. Let your work inspire them; show them how you have achieved your goals.
Set up ways to listen to supporters (and act on their wishes), find out how donors would like to be communicated with. Treat the website as if it belongs to supporters. Interaction is the key to engaging supporters and encouraging them to donate.
One of the greatest challenges is how to integrate online fundraising with other data about donors and supporters.