Does Your Non Profit Have The Fundraising Blues?

Don’t allow the campaign season to dig into non-profit revenue.
U.S. Charitable Giving was up 8.1% in the first quarter of 2011.  But, according to Rob Mitchell, former Chief Development Officer with The American Cancer Society, charities can find their fundraising efforts hamstrung as individuals divert money earmarked for their favorite charities, making a choice to support political candidates instead.

“Historically, election campaign fundraising has a negative impact on the charitable giving economy. With the U.S. economy growing at glacial speed, much of the giving momentum gain produced so far this year will be eroded as election campaigns divert funds that would have gone to nonprofits. The impact will become more pronounced as electioneering activity increases—especially if the economy is not growing fast enough to blunt much of the blow.”

For those non-profits looking to compete for the limited funds available innovation and non-traditional means of raising money are key.  Online fundraising platforms allow non-profits to create turnkey solutions, reaching scores of potential donors with a few clicks of the mouse: At zero cost.

The social media revolution has increased interconnectedness exponentially. With friends, followers, communities and the ability to reach people with common interests the potential to raise money and awareness is limitless.

Online fundraising platforms integrate social media tools like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and even SMS texting.  With the click of a button you can reach an unlimited number of potential donors through any device the tech world can throw into the market.

Beyond spreading your message far and wide the online fundraising platform can accelerate more traditional means of raising money like charity events.  Tickets can be sold online and the money can be processed securely just like donations.

An online fundraising campaign can be established in just minutes with a simple sign-up process.  It can be configured to meet your non-profits’ needs, whether you require the ease of a simple hosted online form or the complexity of full integration into your website and brand.

The ease with which to create an online fundraising campaign frees up resources and time for staff to concentrate on more important details like creating successful programs that can benefit your cause for years to come.

Donor pools will decrease with the coming political season in the face of increased demand for the same funds.  Online fundraising provides the non-profit with the ability to reach more donors, quickly with less effort, increasing your potential for raising money even in these difficult times.