13 Effective Strategies to Rapidly Generate Funds for Nonprofit Fundraisers (2024)

Fundraising is a major goal for all nonprofits, which allows them to create positive change in the world. But let's face it – raising funds can be tough and time-consuming. Therefore, developing effective strategies to raise funds quickly and efficiently is crucial.

If you’re a nonprofit struggling to raise funds, this is the right place to be. This blog uncovers all the practical strategies to kickstart your fundraising efforts.

Tips for Raising Funds Quickly for Nonprofits

#1 Leverage Social Media

In today's interconnected world, social media has completely transformed how nonprofits like you connect with supporters and raise funds.

Platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram offer an incredible opportunity to reach a vast audience and inspire you to join forces for meaningful causes.

As a nonprofit, you can tap into the immense power of social media to share your mission, heartwarming stories, and compelling fundraising campaigns to create a wave of engagement and support that spreads far and wide.

Here’s the simple four-step formula to do it:

• Make social media pages
• Start posting content
• Engage with your potential donors
• Offer your fundraisers from time to time

#2 Host a Virtual Fundraiser

As a nonprofit, you must acknowledge the power of virtual fundraisers to engage supporters and raise funds online.

With BetterWorld, you can create an extraordinary virtual fundraising event that will leave a lasting impression.

Here’s how we can help you during your virtual fundraiser:

BetterWorld is an online fundraising platform that allows organizations to run virtual events and manage donations in one place. You can choose from various virtual fundraising events, such as auctions, galas, and peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns.

You can set up your virtual fundraiser on BetterWorld's platform. You can use our platform to coordinate virtual and hybrid galas.

To launch your campaign, simply share a link and start raising funds.

Encourage your donors to participate in your online fundraiser in real time from anywhere worldwide.

#3 Partner With Local Businesses

Partnering with local companies can transform your fundraiser and amplify the impact on your community. You can seek assistance from local businesses because it helps maximize your reach and make a major effect.

When looking for partners, look for companies who share your enthusiasm and support your mission. Approach them genuinely, then ask for sponsorships, in-kind donations, or joint promotions.

When you collaborate with local businesses, you can increase your fundraising possibilities while also cultivating a feeling of community. It exhibits your teamwork to attain a common objective and inspires others to support your mission.

#4 Launch a Peer-To-Peer Fundraising Campaign

There are several crucial steps to launch a peer-to-peer fundraising campaign:

• Establish campaign goals: Determine how much money you want to raise and how you intend to spend it.
• Choose a peer-to-peer fundraising platform: Use peer-to-peer fundraising software that allows your supporters to make individual contributions.
• Recruit peer-to-peer fundraising volunteers: Contact supporters who can act as peer fundraisers and help you raise donations.
• Celebrate your achievement: Celebrate your accomplishments and thank your supporters.
• Thank everyone who has assisted you: Thank all of your supporters, whether they contributed money or shared the word about your campaign.
• Keep track of essential campaign metrics: Track crucial indicators such as the number of donations, the amount raised, and social media interaction as your campaign progresses.

#5 Send Donation Letters

Donation letters are a great way for you to raise donations. You can benefit from them in the following ways:

Formal Request

Donation request letters are a formal way to ask supporters for donations. They allow you to formally request donations and provide a forum to properly state your requirements and explain how a donation would help your purpose.

Additional Information

Donation letters can be sent on their own; however, some of you may want to include other information like brochures or booklets. This allows potential funders to learn more about your nonprofit and choose whether their values align with the cause.

Personalization

The more personalized the fundraising letter, the more likely it will be read and positively responded to by a prospective donor.

Using the person's name in the salutation and when asking for the donation, acknowledging and thanking them for their previous gift, and stating the particular donation amount (where applicable) can all help to provide a personal touch.

Matching Gifts

You can use a matching gift database to discover which contributors are eligible for a matching gift as you prepare to send your letters. Then, you can generate a donor segment list of these particular supporters in your CRM.

You can also emphasize that submitting this request will not require more contributions from the giver.

#6 Sell Merchandise

Consider what your supporters will like while selecting products for merchandise. Find things that proudly display your organization's logo or mission, such as attractive t-shirts, trendy mugs, and functional tote bags.

Use social media, email newsletters, and online fundraising platforms to promote and sell your products easily. You may streamline your fundraising process to guarantee your supporters a pleasant buying experience.

Try and encourage your community to become not only buyers of your merchandise but also champions for your cause. Make them become walking advertisem*nts for your mission when they proudly wear or use your merchandise.

#7 Apply for Corporate Sponsorships

Sponsorships can be a big help in raising money quickly for your nonprofit’s fundraiser. Corporate sponsorship can give you many benefits, such as it can give you recognition, signage, invitations, and events. A sponsorship can boost your organization’s reach and engagement, resulting in more supporters and donors.

You’re gaining a sponsor and building a long-lasting relationship with an organization that can introduce your nonprofit to a whole world of philanthropists in their network.

#8 Use Crowdfunding

A crowdfunding campaign is when a big crowd funds a campaign or a project. Each person from a crowd donates a small amount of money towards the bigger end goal. It lets you take the help of a bigger group of people and tap into their collective generosity.

A crowdfunding campaign can amplify your donations and supporters.

If you have any time-bound projects, consider launching a crowdfunding campaign. This is great for projects that you need money for on an urgent basis, such as new equipment, facility, mission trips or renovation work, etc.

You can create a compelling crowdfunding page with BetterWorld that can portray your fundraiser’s mission, cause, and the impact you bring to the world.

#9 Use Email Marketing

Email marketing is a big tool for fundraisers when it comes to gaining more supporters and increasing your donations. It is a valuable tool that lets your organization connect to potential donors and raise funds.

However, for email marketing to work effectively, you need to build and grow an email list and capture the interest of those who have shown interest in your fundraiser’s cause.

For this, you need to segment your audience and previous donors into different groups to write emails tailored to those groups.

Use compelling subject lines so the recipients can open the email instantly and feature a powerful attention-grabbing story in the body that outlines the importance of your cause and its positive impact.

Personalize emails with the recipient's names and content based on your previous interaction so you can build a stronger relationship and increase your chances of recurring donors.

If used correctly, email marketing can be a powerful means to communicate effectively with your donors and foster meaningful relationships with them in your fundraising journey.

#10 Host a Charity Auction

Charity auctions can act as a booster to yield funds for your fundraisers. They are famous for attracting donors and bidders and drawing their attention to your nonprofit’s cause.

Donors mostly contribute items, services, and even experiences to be auctioned off, whereas bidders are interested in acquiring these unique offerings and supporting your nonprofit’s cause simultaneously.

Auctions tend to have a competitive spirit that can act as a powerful driver for bidders and donors as they eagerly bid for their desired items. This results in higher bids and increased funds.

Besides the increased funds, charity auctions unite the community to support the nonprofit's mission because they highlight its cause.

Charity auctions can be conducted both in person and online because these events have the potential to reach a broader audience, transcending physical boundaries. Therefore, charity auctions are your best chance at engaging a more extensive network of donors.

#11 Apply for Emergency Grants

Grants can be a great way to raise money for your fundraiser because government agencies, foundations, and corporations offer them. To apply for them, research to find grant opportunities that fit your nonprofit’s mission, location, and project.

After that, write a compelling story and enticing message along with your grant application to increase your chances of securing a grant.

The grant process can also include a meeting with a representative to convince and inspire them enough to get their support for your nonprofit.

#12 Use an Online Fundraising Platform

Investing in a fundraising platform can automate and streamline your fundraising process as well as help you raise more funds in less effort done by your volunteers and team members. You can gain access to tools and technology offered by the platform, which can help you in many ways.

From tracking donations, organizing volunteers, designing new campaigns, and communicating with members, the platform will help you automate each task of your fundraiser.

The more you can automate tasks like sending emails, event registration, and gathering donor data, the more time your team will have to focus on building close relationships with donors.

BetterWorld has helped many nonprofits transition from a simple process to a robust and automated fundraising management system completely FREE of cost.

#13 Say Thank You

One last but extremely important task that every organization ignores is appreciating and engaging with their donors' post-fundraising events. But you must always remember to reach out and thank your donors for their contributions and support.

You won't believe it, but this does mean a lot to them.

Once done with the fundraiser, write a thoughtful thank-you message for them in the automated donation receipt and follow up with a more detailed thank-you message a few days later. Try writing personalized thank you messages to each donor to build long-term connections.

All of this increases the chances of them returning and donating to your cause again.

Conclusion

To quickly raise funds for your fundraiser, you need a well-thought-out approach that includes a variety of fundraising ideas and resources. You can develop a fundraising strategy that includes specific income targets, areas for improvement, virtual fundraising concepts, and great donation tactics.

To maximize donations, it is critical to personalize fundraising emails and leverage matching gift databases. You can even employ creative fundraising concepts and powerful technologies to motivate contributors to participate and donate more generously.

Start collecting funds for your fundraisers with BetterWorld today!