There are several different fundraising methods that non-profit organizations can use to raise money. These include both live and online events.
While live events are the more traditional fundraising method, more and more non-profit organizations are taking their fundraising efforts online as there are many benefits in doing so.
Not only is online fundraising easier than hosting a live event, but it is also much more affordable! This means that your non-profit can save some money and put it to better use. Here are the top benefits of online fundraising for non-profit organizations and charities.
Live fundraising events can end up costing your non-profit organization a lot more than expected. Things like venues, catering, extra staff, and print campaigns, are not necessary for online charity auctions and fundraisers.
For online auctions, all you need to do is set up a website on an auction platform, such as BiddingOwl.com. You might also consider running email campaigns and social media sharing to drive more bidders.
These online campaigns are simple to do and will help you to spread the word of your fundraiser to many people in a short amount of time. Not only are they quick to do, but they are much more affordable than traditional advertising mediums like printed flyers, posters, and advertisements in newspapers or magazines.
Online fundraising events can help save you a lot of time and effort. It automates most of the tedious, time-consuming tasks involved in traditional fundraisers.
Payments come through almost instantly online. This means you don’t have to wait around for people to pay or keep track of all the money yourself. The online system does all that for you.
Not only does it track how much money you’re raising, but online software can also help you track who’s donated or who’s paid for what in your online charity auction. This means no more manual data entry into spreadsheets!
For example, BiddingOwl tracks and records the details of who makes a bid and organizes the information for you in a convenient downloadable spreadsheet. Then you can start sending out tax receipts and thank you messages as you have all of the necessary contact information readily available.
It is also very useful for keeping a record of all interactions and contact information for future use. By keeping a record of these details, it helps you to build a growing contact list of people you can market your future events to and keep them up to date on your cause and what your non-profit organization does to help.
With the use of the internet and online marketing tactics, you can extend your reach significantly further than you would be able to with live fundraising events. This is because there are no geographical limitations.
Depending on the type of online event, whether it's an online charity auction, a raffle, or a simple donations drive, you can decide the reach. By using advertising, social media or email campaigns, you can let people all around the world know about your online fundraising event.
However, if you are hosting something like an auction with physical items, just make sure that you voice your shipping policies.
Because of this extended reach, online fundraising events attract more participants than the traditional live events that are restricted due to their location. Not everyone can get to a physical place at the specified date and time. It is much easier to simply go online and visit your online fundraiser from a computer or mobile phone.
With this wider reach, you are sure to increase the number of bids on items in your auction or donations to your cause.
Online fundraisers are very quick and simple to set up. They require much less planning than live events do.
You can host an online event within a matter of days, as opposed to the weeks or even months that it takes to set up all the moving parts of a physical event.
With the right software or online service, they are also very simple to set up. Many of the basic processes are automated so you can focus your attention on more important tasks.
When setting up your email campaigns and advertising for your online fundraising endeavor, you can make the content of those emails more targeted and relevant to specific segments within your contact base.
You can appeal to different people based on their demographics and even their interests. Many different people may be interested in your cause but the way they respond to certain tactics could be different.
Using different strategies can help garner more interest in your fundraiser or online charity auction so that more people donate.
Online fundraising has also proven to be more effective as it's more engaging than simply handing out a brochure. People can follow the event online, see where the money is going, what causes they are contributing to, etc. This makes people feel more valued and more likely to donate or make a bid.
Online analytics tools make it incredibly easy to record and analyze the results of your online fundraising events. Immediately after your event takes place, you can see how successful it was. You will see how many people visited your web-page or the online auction site you used.
Analyzing the data from your online charity auction can help you see what tactics are working and what aren’t. You can use this information to better your future online fundraisers. Ultimately, this will help you raise more money for your non-profit’s cause.
As mentioned above, there are numerous benefits of online fundraising for non-profit organizations. Not only will it save you time and money, but it can also help you build better relationships with your supporters.
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