A lot could depend on the fundraising campaign you are planning to conduct right now (whether a child gets much needed medical attention, your boy scout troop gets to go to the national jamboree, or your choir gets to go to that worldwide competition). But you do not need to buckle under the pressure. Online fundraising has become the most used mode for solicitation primarily because of the wider reach and the ease with which you can establish contact with your potential donors.
While attempting to start an online fundraiser, many people fall prey to some of the common mistakes which can deliver a death blow to their campaign. It is important to stay clear of these roadblocks to make sure that your campaign runs smoothly.
Too often innovation is given undue encouragement. Yes, it’s a great idea to be unique. But trying to reinvent the wheel too much could be detrimental to your efforts (that old saying “don’t fix it if it isn’t broken” actually has quite a lot of worth to it). You should not throw in the towel on conventional modes of fundraising just because technical advances allow you to. As with most things, moderation is the key. You can successfully combine tried and true methods with new methods to enhance, and not replace, your current modes of fundraising.
Even if you plan to dive headfirst into online fundraising, it is too easy to forget the available resources in the search for a more lucrative and attractive option. Making use of the available resources to the fullest is the primary objective. If you already have an email or a blog, make use of these channels before you start thinking about newer modes. And make sure that you use them to the FULLEST extent possible.
In the age of social media there is nothing that escapes the Twitterati and Facebook fanatics. If you are not ready to embrace social media, you will miss out on a lot of opportunities to spread the word about your cause.
The second most important objective of a fundraiser is to bring in volunteers. Once you have recruited and drafted eager men, women and children to bolster your cause, it is up to you to keep them abreast of your plans. Keep in touch with them regularly, as they will look to you for guidance. Emails are the best way to stay in touch. Neglecting to communicate with them is a common mistake. (But never forget to pick up the telephone and give a personal touch to a conversation, offer encouragement, or just chat to keep lines of communication open!)
The “ask once and wait” policy is not the way to go for fundraising. While being polite and avoiding inbox spamming is important, it is necessary and indeed advisable to send follow up emails for those who have shown some interest. Just think of how many times you have forgotten to do something after being asked about it! Thanking them for their contribution is a great way of showing appreciation. This will help in expanding your spectrum of donors and repeat donors.
Your friends, relatives, relatives of friends, friends of relatives, colleagues and ex colleagues are all part of your target donors. USE YOUR NETWORK. You must be very sure not to miss out on reasonable opportunity. Hindsight is 20/20, but research and active networking will ensure that you don’t have any regrets about the way that you have conducted your fundraiser.
And then the most clichéd mistake! Sending a common and generic template to beseech for support from your donors will not work. You need to send a personalized request. Remember that emails and snail mail are only an alternative to an in person meeting. The letters should reflect your appeal, and appeal to the donor’s desire to be part of a larger cause!
With the use of Phoneraiser you can deliver a valid reason to your donors to convince them to support you. Avoid the common mistakes and achieve your goal with Phoneraiser!
What better way to motivate your sponsors than to make them understand what their actions mean to the community?
These words have been repeated several times over, across all the websites that promise to give advice on fundraising campaigns. Most of the people fail in fundraising campaigns because they are unable to find a worthy cause or because they are unable to explain to the sponsors the use of their contribution.
At Phoneraiser you have both a noble cause and a clear explanation of how your sponsor’s contribution will benefit the community. Surely, most of us have realized by now the hazards of improper disposal of used mobile phones. If that didn’t convince your sponsor to make a contribution this should!
A majority of the people have absolutely no idea about how our used cell phones are recycled. The important thing is that most of the cell phones that we use could end up as toxic wastes poisoning the very air we breathe and the water we drink. To avoid this, safe disposal sites are set up to ensure proper disposal of used mobile phones.
When the used mobile phones enter the recycling plant, they end up giving back a lot of valuable metals including platinum and gold. This is not to say that your mobile phones are made of gold or for you to imagine the metals in your mobile phones turning to gold by alchemy. But, mobile phones do contain a certain amount of gold.
Secondly, if trained technicians take care of your used mobile phones, they can separate working parts from the mobile phones to reuse them. Very rarely do all the parts of a mobile phone become trash. There is no end to the amount of savings that can be made in terms of material by recycling and reusing “old” mobile phones (old of course being relative). Here at Phoneraiser, we are “dated enough” to remember those massive blocks of things that we had in the cars, and that awful, but very useful, mobile phone that Zack on Saved by the Bell used. (Of course, we certainly don’t miss the massive phone bills that those phones came with… it’s money that we can put to good use!)
This should help you to persuade your sponsors. Armed with the technical knowledge of what happens behind the scenes in a mobile phone recycling plant, you can make an appealing request to your potential donor. It certainly can’t be said often enough. Get your donors invested in the cause. People who are invested also become very good “spokespersons” for your cause, officially or unofficially.
The power of persuasion is not achieved without a solid reason to back up your cause. Phoneraiser gives you an opportunity to contribute to the community as a whole, while ensuring that you derive benefits out of your fundraising campaign. Recently several organizations have realized the importance and need for contributing to the community. This coupled with an easy way to raise funds seems ideal to most organizations.
Visit this link in YouTube to know more about how mobile phone recycling is done:
Fundraising campaigns have increased in number and you don’t want to be treated like one in a million. Standing out from the rest is important if you are planning to succeed in your fundraising campaign efforts. Whether you achieve success or not in your campaign depends on how good you are at convincing people. (In fact, fundraisers are in effect sales people. You have to be able to sell your cause.)
Your organization should have a strategic plan. You must ask yourself how this new fundraising campaign is going to fit into the scheme of things. The biggest challenge in your campaign will be to convince your benefactors. You must demonstrate that your efforts are benefitting the cause and it would be even better if you are transparent enough to show the results of how you are managing to help your cause with their contributions.
It is always a good idea to advertise your fundraising campaigns with a set of well written statements that shows your motivation and commitment towards the cause. You begin by writing a mission statement explaining why your organization exists. This should convince your prospective donors that your company does yield benefits to the community.
Next is the vision statement. This should explain what you are planning to do in the near future. The way your organization operates to achieve your long term goals is also equally important. People are not going to look at your organization as a benefactor to the society unless you go out of your way to express your intentions.
The strategic plan should be an explanation of how you are intending to achieve your goal. It should be clear and concise. It should make sense to the sponsor and appeal to him. Finally you get the chance to talk about your fundraising plans. This is indeed nothing but your strategic plan, but you can explain how your vision and mission are going to be utilized by this fundraising campaign. It is important that you present a coherent and clear picture of what you are intending to do. This will go a long way in convincing and converting casual onlookers to active contributors and volunteers.
Your ‘case for support’ statement is an important element of your fundraising campaign as it explains to your sponsor why he or she should be contributing towards your cause. Here you relate the needs of your organization and also the reason why you are approaching the sponsor.
If you really have no experience in fundraising, you can still succeed in your campaign. If you have visited bank managers asking for loans you know how to handle them. This is a similar kind of situation where you are looking for a bigger amount!
Explaining that used mobile phones are a hazard to our environment if they are not recycled properly is an easy way to convince your sponsors. With the help of Phoneraiser, explaining to your contributor about the importance of his actions is not going to be a big deal! Enjoy the power of fundraising from Phoneraiser.
And Phoneraiser helps you get your campaign off the ground with marketing templates and documents that will help you in your efforts.
With the recession hitting every aspect of our society, there are very few organizations that are showing signs of weathering the storm, without external financial help. So if your organization is in need of some quick and relatively easy funds to keep it going, Phoneraiser gives you the most “bang for your buck” fundraising campaigns, (especially since it does not cost you a penny!)!
If you are planning to run a fundraising campaign with the help of Phoneraiser you should understand the motivation behind Phoneraiser. This will help you convince your donors the cause they are donating to, is one that benefits people on many levels. Once your benefactors appreciate the cause they will be more forthcoming.
A recent survey shows that an enormous amount of cell phones are being disposed of as garbage each year. With the average life expectancy of a mobile phone being around one and a half to two years, a huge amount of mobile phones get dumped daily and most of us fail to think about where they are going! (And if they are not being dumped, they are hanging out in various drawers, nooks and crannies around the house.)
It has been estimated that the toxic content of mobile phones is dangerous enough to consider them as hazardous waste. Leaving them in open garbage cans is not the proper way to dispose them. There are quite a few organizations that are environmentally responsible and they take on the job of recycling the used mobile phones.
The limited resources of our earth should not be wasted incessantly without regard for future generations. Recycling used mobile phones, to use them longer is a great way to sustain and protect our natural environmental resources.
Apart from the obvious benefits of recycling mobile phones, there are certain amounts of gold used in the ICs of mobile phones and PDAs. This can be extracted and reused. This is perhaps the most important fact about recycling mobile phones. Recycling all the mobile phones carefully could accumulate a large amount of gold content which would otherwise be wasted!
The alarming fact is that very few people are aware of this. This is certainly important information that should be passed on to everyone. The more people that are aware of the environmental impact of tossing cell phones, the more people want to donate their used mobile phones for this worthy cause, especially once they are made aware of the benefits.
Phoneraiser will pay you money for every used mobile phone you donate. This is a nice way to kick start your fund raising campaign. Once you explain the importance of recycling used mobile phones and PDAs, a lot of people are going to want to contribute. A change of heart is imminent if you take pains to explain how harmful the toxic wastes can be for our health, if they are left to decompose…. SLOWLY, while leaking precious metals and untold other toxins!
To better understand the after affects of throwing away your used mobile phone, see this short video which will inspire you to donate your mobile phones for reuse!
As we often like to do Phoneraiser wants to encourage people to fundraise to the best of their abilities. While we offer a unique fundraising opportunity that you can use time and again, and one that benefits not only yourself, and you cause, but also the environment and the underprivileged, we know that a lot of planning and effort must go into the process in order to make it a successful venture.
There is a lot of talk about goal setting and planning when it comes to fundraising events. Many of you might not understand the importance of prior planning and establishing goals. But before you begin any fundraising campaign, it is always better to set goals so that you can work towards the intermediate and final goals. Having short term and long term goals helps you to keep your team motivated.
Lack of planning is the problem with most fundraising campaigns which struggle to succeed in their efforts. Without a fixed goal, it would be impossible to avoid chaos in your campaign team. Unless your team is given a tangible goal, it is entirely possible that you will find some of them working in a disorganized fashion without leading to the overall success of the campaign. A goal on the other helps people to focus on what they should do to contribute effectively. Additionally clearly setting out the responsibilities and duties for each person will help with meeting your goals.
At the outset, if you have clearly planned your goals, it eases the management job for you. You have broken up the elements of the campaign into reasonably manageable groups. You have assigned goals for individual teams and set up deadlines. This helps your teams to strategize and think about the ways to bring success to your campaign.
Set reasonable yet challenging goals. Remember that, it is always fine to set up goals that appear challenging. If you aim for the stars, you might land up on top of a mountain. However improbable your goals appear, you should provide your team with the resources to achieve the goal. If you fail to provide the required resources, your team will feel frustrated!
Setting goals is not the end of the management job. Once you have your team moving towards the goal, working on the plans you have made for them, you must keep them motivated. Bring them together once in a while and deliver motivational speeches. Appreciate the contribution they are making towards the campaign. Be honest with them when you talk about where your campaign starts. Make them believe in themselves. It is very easy to get frustrated during an off week. Make sure you are right there, to push them towards the goal!
The process of setting a goal is not easy. But success does not come without planning. Most fundraising teams are successful because they do what other people never think of doing. Uniqueness is the key to success.
Fundraising events and campaigns could be a long term effort especially if you are planning to make substantial contributions towards a cause. No matter what you do to kick start your fundraiser campaign, always begin with a positive attitude. Be passionate about your efforts. If you are enthusiastic about the cause, it will catch up with everyone in your team. A motivated team can do wonders, even with limited resources.
Never forget that planning and motivation are the two eyes of a successful fundraiser campaign.
Now that you have decided that a fundraising campaign is a highly effective way to help your organization raise funds, you have to understand some of the basics of fundraising. Assuming that most of the potential fundraisers are the people who live in your community, you should develop a relationship between the community and your organization.
Building a solid relationship with the community will help you find a lot of volunteers and benefactors for your organization. You must use the power of persuasion in convincing your potential benefactors. Phoneraiser can help with this by helping you create the necessary promotional materials that you can share with your community regarding your Phoneraiser fundraiser.
For the sake of easy understanding, lets say we have three distinct steps in building an effective relationship with the community. The motive behind this exercise is to search for potential sponsors and volunteers for your organization or for your cause.
The first step is to sell your benefits to the society. Everything you do to help someone or some organization outside of your own comes under the benefits tag. You must take careful steps to make people realize how your organization brings benefits to the community. Many fundraising campaigns fail to do this effectively. This step lays the foundation for bringing in volunteers and sponsors! Through this effort you are trying to create awareness about your organization in the community. You can’t expect a new soccer team to have a big fan following, if no one knows about its existence! You must stop being a ‘nobody’.
Building a personal relationship is the second step in this relationship building exercise. Put to use all the techniques you have to build a strong relationship. Invite your community members to a relationship building event. Make sure the people who attend your event are inspired by the way your organization works and start to see your organization in a new light! You are passively converting people who are politely curious about your organization into active sponsors and volunteers.
The final step is the most important of the lot. You have no way of reading the mindset of the people who have attended your relationship building event, unless you are psychic. If you fail to follow up with the attendees all of your efforts till now would have been wasted! The relationship building event is just a warm up session. You must identify potential volunteers for your cause and recruit them, and this means staying in contact with them. It is very difficult to get volunteers otherwise.
If you think you have spotted a potential volunteer go out and talk to them right away. Give them small responsibilities at first and encourage them. You can gradually increase the workload as time goes on. This will make them enjoy the work and contribute to your organization’s cause. This is the most effective way to bring in volunteers. And people passionate about your cause are the most effective ambassadors.
You can easily convince the community that bringing in used mobile phones and ink cartridges are a great way to contribute both to your organization and to the environment. It will be much easier for you to make them understand the potential benefits of their actions. If one begins to appreciate their own actions they will be much more forthcoming in contributing towards your organization’s cause!
There are very few areas of society that can boast of being left unscathed by recession and subsidy cuts from government. If your organization is in need of funds, it’s only natural that you start thinking about fundraising campaigns! Schools are worst hit by the financial depression because of the lack of funds. Phoneraiser offers you a quick and smooth way to accrue funds for your cause.
If you are planning to use phone raiser you must of course have thought about how to obtain a substantial number of used mobile phones or PDAs in a short period of time. Fundraising letters and emails are a great idea if implemented with the right technique. Here are a few tips to ensure that you get the maximum result out of the efforts that you expend towards your initiative.
Being clear with the W’s and H!
Before you begin writing your fundraising Email or Letter, you must be certain that you can answer the ‘all important’ questions that people would ask you if you confront them with a fundraiser leaflet. You must clearly define your cause. The contributor or the potential contributor should understand the rationale behind your fundraising campaign. They should be made to appreciate the cause behind the campaign.
Promptly after mentioning a convincing and honest answer to the ‘what’ question, you must brace yourself to answer the ‘When’ question. Be sure to state the deadlines clearly that you have in mind. If your initiative requires immediate response, you must be able to communicate the urgency of the situation through your writing. Finally, be clear to mention ‘How’ they are expected to contribute towards your campaign. This should include the mode of communication and also the fact that you are expecting used mobile phones and PDAS!
Tone and style
Your letter should neither be a demand nor should it ooze flattery. Keep your tone casual but sincere. Use phrases to convey that you are requesting and not demanding them to contribute. Your style should bring out the dedication and the value that you attach to the cause. Remember that being flippant or writing exaggerated letters could be off-putting to someone that is asked to donate. How are they expected to trust that you will do good with their money or donations if you don’t seem to take your cause seriously yourself?
Make the Contribution count
It is also important that you acknowledge the donation. Let the potential contributor know that you are intending to acknowledge their efforts. It could be something like displaying their name in a list of donors in a notice board.
Explain the benefits
The best way to convince a potential contributor is to show the benefit that the community gains from the contribution. If the benefactor’s actions could only passively benefit the target community, make sure you clearly explain the role the contributor plays towards supporting the community.
Fundraising is an art! It is not as difficult as it sounds but there are quite a few important aspects that you need to understand to become an effective fundraiser! Lots of professional fundraisers around the world are of the opinion that successful fundraisers have some typical habits that play a huge role in their success. Phoneraiser offers some tips for effective fundraisers. And if you are an effective fundraiser, you should also always take advantage of any help out there. Let Phoneraiser help you!
Always be on the lookout for an opportunity
If you want to become successful in your fundraising campaign, motivation is a key factor. Be pro-active and make use of every opportunity that comes your way. The best fundraisers are those who are self motivated individuals. If you work in an education institution, be the first one to notice that the school playground needs a repair. If your organization auditorium needs a face lift, be the first one to initiate a campaign to raise funds to repair it.
Set your goals
Even before you start thinking about a fundraising campaign, be sure to set your goals. You should push yourself to work towards the goal at all times. Set interval goals. Furthermore, knowing what your end result is provides you motivation when you need it the most. During the course of your campaign, if you feel low you can push yourself towards the short term goals you have set. Nothing works like self motivation.
Manage your Campaign
You need not be a qualified business administrator to succeed in your fundraising campaign. But you have to be smart in what you do. Setting your priorities straight is an important part of a successful campaign. You should not be shy about handling money matters. It is the most important task in fundraising.
Listen before you talk
Ever heard of the quote, ‘Great speakers are great listeners’?
If you are running a big fundraising campaign, you might have to deal with a lot of volunteers. You must be ready to listen to the problems they have. As much as you try to keep the campaign in good shape by taking a leading role, you must be ready to hear and solve the problems that each member of the campaign team faces. An effective manager is able to solve problems on the fly using excellent problem solving skills. Listening and problem solving skills always go hand in hand!
Bring them together!
Appreciate the importance of each and every department of your campaign. Bring them together once in a while and keep them motivated. The sight of a large number of people working towards a common goal never fails to inspire others. Be equal to all the members of your team. Make sure your team is always moving towards that common goal.
Physical and psychological fatigue is sure to catch up with you. Take time off once in a while to keep your mind and body fresh. You are not going to get a great deal of job done when you don’t have the cooperation of either of these key elements!
Fundraising job is not a bed of roses. Make up your mind and be ready to take up the challenge before you begin your campaign.
Online Fundraising is going to be a major part of the fundraising efforts of the future. Are you up to speed? Answer these few simple questions. (And bear in mind that folks are not very interested anymore in purchasing popcorn, magazine subscriptions or wrapping paper!)
Are your online fundraising efforts legal? This is a biggie if you’re a non-profit organization! All fundraising efforts should be registered with the proper authorities when those efforts cross state lines. (Religious organizations are exempted overall, but double check with your local state attorney general to ascertain whether your organization is exempt. (PhoneRaiser’s program for recycling cell phones is not subject to this law as you are not soliciting online donations from Phoneraiser, but rather sending the results of your offline fundraising to be recycled, for which you receive a fee to apply towards your organizations needs.)
Are you utilizing every tool at your disposal? Another big item on the to do list! If you are not using all of the resources that you have to hand, you will never generate the buzz that you need to meet your goals. Of course you should put a “Donate Now” button on your website. But also add in a signature file on all of your emails, mention the campaign in your online newsletters, blog about it and ask others to blog about your campaign. And keep your supporters up to date with regular status updates on what you have raised! (And don’t forget to utilize your social networks.
Are you being polite? Don’t spam people! Unsolicited mass emails to people who may not have opted in to receive fundraising emails and updates are not only rude, but you run the risk of either being blacklisted by the email provider, or alienating a possible contributor to your campaign! Instead of sending out mass emails to folks that have not expressed an interest, if you feel that they could be beneficial to your campaign, write a personal note and acknowledge they did not opt in, but that you feel that the cause is one that they could support, and here’s why. Failing that, a phone call will never go amiss in this day of technological overload. Personal contact will more likely generate a positive response than electronic communications. Think about it, it’s easier to say no in an impersonal email message than when speaking to someone face to face or on the phone.
Are you providing every opportunity? Are you giving folks more than one way to donate? Donate by text message (inexpensive for all parties), mail, phone, or electronically. The more options available, the fewer excuses there will be not to donate.
Are you visible? Have you hidden the donate now button at the bottom of a page or is it buried somewhere on your website? Make it prominent!
Are you investing people in your cause? Make sure that you have a cause that people want to support! Target the right groups, and if you are doing multiple fundraisers throughout the year, then make sure to spread the love around! Don’t go back to the same well every time. All wells will eventually dry up if tapped to often. And make sure that your goals are reasonable. If you are trying to purchase $1000 cheerleading uniforms that are going to have to be repurchased for every cheerleader each year, folks are not going to want to donate.
Be reasonable. Be frugal, and do not expect everyone to support your cause. You will be told no, and when that happens, redouble your efforts and hit the pavement, and make sure that everyone who will benefit in any ways shape or form is involved and burning the midnight oil as well!
Let’s face it, fundraising has taken a hit in the last two years. What’s more? We as parents and organizations need the funds from fundraising activities more than ever. We have less disposable income than ever before, and prices for things like cheerleading uniforms, bus transport for church outings, camp fees, etc are certainly not going down, in fact they are climbing at the speed of an asteroid in some cases.
So what can we do? We as a society, organization or parent need to make sure that we squeeze every ounce of success out of every fundraiser we host, from bake sales to car washes. And Phoneraiser has a couple of tips to share with you about how to do that:
Have a marketable product or service: What’s the point of organizing a fundraiser if you are offering a service that is overpriced, or that no one wants? Make sure that you are competitive in your pricing, and have a product that is desirable. If you can’t come up with something sellable, then don’t sell at all. Collect and recycle cell phones/pda’s and inkjet cartridges! It’s great for the environment and a very profitable way for your group to raise funds. Phoneraiser offers the opportunity for 100% of the profits used cell phones to go to your organization.
Enlist local businesses: Whether you are enlisting them as sponsors in a dollar for dollar match, as advertisers, or asking them to provide you with free advertising, free product or some other service, you will find that local car washes will often offer you their center for free, or a discounted price, grocery stores will allow you to set up camp outside their store, newspapers will offer free advertising, and sporting goods, toy, and specialty shops will often outright donate items or money to your cause. Get your community involved. The more people you have, the more funding you can generate.
Cheap Labor: Seriously! If your kids are benefitting from this fundraiser, its time for them to man the battle stations. In fact, anyone who benefits from the event, should be involved in some way, shape or form. Everyone you know should be approached about getting involved. Have each family in your group Facebook their friends and family and ask them to donate phones to your cause too.
Advertise: Send out emails to your network and ask them to ask them to pass the word along. Ask local publications to write a story about the person/organization that will benefit, and mention the fundraiser. Set up a Facebook page for your group. How can a fundraiser be successful if no one knows about it? Get the word out!
Add onto another event: If there is a fair, or sporting event or some other event that will already be drawing large crowds of people, ask the organizers if you can set up a booth at the event. They can only say no, and more than likely if you explain to them the goals of the fundraiser they will be more than happy to help!
Don’t Over Stimulate the market: Its not a good idea to hold a fundraiser every month, regardless of how badly the money is needed. Choose a couple of times a year to talk about it, and offer something fitting for that season. Or alternatively, have an ongoing yearlong campaign with campaign markers showing the level of success so that people get involved and excited. It’s a fact that if people can see results they redouble their efforts. You can collect and recycle at any time, so you can raise funds all year long!
Pick the Right Time: Who has extra money around Christmas? Definitely not a good time to have a fundraiser. Pick a time when the weather is likely to be pleasant, and there are no major holidays. Pick a time when you will have little competition, and when people will not be stressed out from some other big national/religious event.
Always Share: With those that have helped you achieve your goal. They are involved and want to make sure that you are successful. This kind of grass roots communication will make sure that you can consider them in the future for help. Don’t think about just this one fundraiser, but all of the ones that you will need help with in the future. (Be sure to not approach the same people every time!)
Use Phoneraiser – It’s free, and 100% beneficial to your organization, and what’s more it helps the environment. Kill two birds with one stone, and watch your fundraising profits climb. Who doesn’t have old cell phones lying around these days? Most households have between three and five phones in drawers waiting for you to recycle them.
Helping people get rid of unused and unwanted items will certainly be good no matter what the time of year is.
A lot could depend on the fundraising campaign you are planning to conduct right now (whether a child gets much needed medical attention, your boy scout troop gets to go to the national jamboree, or your choir gets to go to that worldwide competition). But you do not need to buckle under the pressure. Online fundraising has become the most used mode for solicitation primarily because of the wider reach and the ease with which you can establish contact with your potential donors.
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