5 Key Ways to Optimize Your Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Campaign
What is peer-to-peer fundraising? In short, this is a fundraising strategy that uses your existing networks of supporters to acquire donations for you through online fundraising pages. There are an incredible number of benefits to doing peer-to-peer fundraising, yet many organizations are missing out on the opportunity to participate in this viable fundraising strategy. Peer-to-Peer events and campaigns are the ultimate fundraising tool when it comes to reaching new donors and building awareness for your organization’s mission. By enabling peer-to-peer functionality on your website, you empower your constituents to raise funds on your behalf by reaching out to their network of friends and family to help you make a difference.
This blog will cover 5 key ways to optimize your Peer-Peer Fundraising Campaign.
- Increasing Participation Through In-Person Communication
- Increasing Awareness through Social Media Marketing
- Digital Fundraising Solutions
- Create a Campaign That Motivates
- Clear and Consistent Messaging
For some, this may seem like a new strategy but whether you know it or not, you’ve probably already seen a Peer-to-Peer campaign on your Facebook newsfeed, in your Instagram stories, or even received one in your email inbox. Maybe you've seen your neighbors raising donations for their 5k run or your co-worker sharing their golf event—yes, that’s an opportunity for Peer-to-Peer fundraising!
There are many ways run successful Peer-to-Peer, or P2P, fundraising campaigns. If you think some of your current fundraisers may be P2P, check out our guide of 10 easy steps for success with Peer-to-Peer to be sure you reach your goals and maximum fundraising potential. If this is going to be your first time creating a Peer-to-Peer campaign, follow along to learn why your organization would benefit from implementing this strategy.
Can Your Organization Do Peer-Peer Campaigns Today?
In short, absolutely. With just a little evaluation of your current campaigns, your future goals, and the use of the following tips, you’ll be well on your way to creating successful P2P campaigns for years to come!
#1 Increasing Participation Through In-Person Communication
When starting a new fundraising effort, the biggest challenge can sometimes be getting enough people to participate. You might use on-the-ground efforts like flyers at your local stores and markets to increase awareness or have your connections pass out sell sheets at their office like a Girl Scout might have their parents do.
#2 Increasing Awareness through Social Media Marketing
Another strategy is to utilize online advertising and social media marketing. No matter where you are sharing your flyers, be sure to create visuals that are eye-catching, and easy to read and share all relevant information, like where you are accepting donations, the cause, and the story behind your organization. Sharing on social media is a great, free or low-cost way to get your fundraiser out to more people. No need to pay for printing costs or drive around hanging up flyers! You may reach people you’ve never imagined you could, and they may share your posts, creating a snowball effect of positive awareness. New to posting on social media for your organization? Check out our tips on best practices for nonprofits using social media.
#3 Digital Fundraising Solutions
In addition to social media, there are so many tools available to create successful P2P campaigns. Utilizing software like ExceedFurther combined with a Website Development service will allow you to create a professional-looking landing page and seamlessly collect your donor data for future efforts—you can even share the campaign directly to social media from the landing page! Using software that empowers P2P, is easy to work with, and has a seamless user experience is essential to getting your volunteers, staff, board, donors, and friends to create a campaign and begin raising funds for your organization or cause.
#4 Create a Campaign That Motivates
Once you have your platform of choice, be sure you set up the campaign in a way that incentivizes your constituents—there’s nothing wrong with a little friendly competition! You should include things like thermometers and leaderboards to let your constituents and donors know how much they have raised and how close they are to their goals. Help each one of your fundraisers choose a goal that’s appropriate for your cause—usually, at least $1000 per person fundraising is an achievable target—then their campaign landing pages can serve as a reminder to stay on track and continue sharing to potential donors. It’s also important to establish a timeline for when the goal should be reached. You can always extend your campaigns, so don’t be afraid to set a date! Here is a great example of a fund, interactive, and competitive P2P fundraising campaign.
#5 Clear and Consistent Messaging
You also want these donation pages to feel personal. A clear message about why you need the funds as well as what your organization does is essential to getting people to buy in. You should encourage the volunteers, or whoever is raising the funds, to include some personal information about why they care about the cause and even a photo if they are comfortable with that. Remember, they will be sharing these pages with their friends, family, and personal network. Anything that connects the page to the person raising funds for your organization will increase the chances of their network supporting your cause. It’s also a great idea to set up notifications to the constituents so they know when someone has donated, and automatic thank you emails with a tax receipt to the donor—this promotes good communication.
As your fundraisers continue to be shared amongst your current volunteers, staff, board, and their networks, you’re now getting new eyes on your cause and your mission. This increased awareness is just another benefit of P2P campaigns. Maybe the greatest benefit of Peer-to-Peer is after your campaigns are completed, you now have a list of new contacts who may become long-term donors or volunteers. The possibilities are endless! You can even reach out to these new contacts for future P2P fundraising campaigns.
A Final Piece of Advice
If you’re now considering Peer-to-Peer fundraising but don’t have the proper tools to get started, take a look at our P2P ROI calculator and see what your potential return might be if your organization invests in fundraising software. Some questions to consider:
- How much money can you raise with peer-to-peer fundraising?
- How many new constituents can you acquire with peer-to-peer fundraising?
- How does peer-to-peer fundraising impact the return on your fundraising software investment?
Ready to embark upon your P2P journey? Download our Getting Started with Peer-to-Peer Guide.
