Do you remember when social media was “the bomb dot com”? Then all of a sudden it wasn’t anymore. And then it was, but only if you got on ALL the platforms, or maybe you needed to find the right platform and go really hard at it to build a following… 🤔
Just like fundraising, social media seems to follow a cyclical pattern. We get excited about all the possibilities, discover the myriad of ways we can use it to benefit our company or non-profit, and then we get burnt out, or the policies change, or someone ruins the experience for everyone else, or… or… or…
All I’m trying to say is this: If you’ve been burnt out or burned by social media in the past, it might be time to revisit your old platforms to see what kind of fundraising power they have for your organization NOW.
You know I’m all about big asks and cultivating major gift individuals using a long-game approach. And nothing about that has changed.
But…
Whether you’re looking for a biannual cash infusion or a new stream for your donor acquisition strategy, social media has some redeeming qualities you won’t find literally anywhere else.
🌎 Everyone and their mother are on social media these days. That means the potential for reach is insane. Remember Bacon’s Law? Well, that major gift individual that checks all the boxes is just a few degrees away if you leverage your friend list.
🌎 But even if social media doesn’t help you cultivate major gift donors, the data shows that “if you post it, small donors will donate.” Yes, a social media strategy focuses on soliciting a high volume of small donors through energy-driven short-term campaigns, but it works. And, you’re likely to make that initial connection with your ideal donor.
🌎 The important thing to keep in mind is that there are a lot of generous people out there. When you use social media as a cash infusion AND a donor acquisition strategy, you can get those generous people on your email list and into your funnel where the real magic happens. (16% of all giving revenue happens through email.)
🎤🎤🎤
I had the privilege of talking to Sean Kosofsky, the Nonprofit Fixer, about this very topic! Sean is a Detroit native, a 30-year non-profit veteran who spent the majority of his career focusing on social justice and progressive causes. He’s now the owner of Mind the Gap Consulting where he helps executive directors increase their funding and impact through coaching, consulting, and courses.
Sean is also an expert at running Facebook Fundraisers. But wait 🚨, don’t skim over this part just because you’ve been put off of Facebook for whatever reason. Sean dropped some really insightful and pertinent knowledge bombs about how Facebook is a whole different ball game now. You might even find it to be an integral piece of your fundraising strategy.
Here are a few of my takeaways from our conversation:
- Facebook fundraisers tap into individuals’ personal networks and harness the power of peer-to-peer fundraising at low cost to nonprofits. This makes them an underutilized but highly effective tactic.
- Driving results requires concerted effort – inviting all connections and consistently posting in the fundraiser itself, not just on your wall or feed. This level of engagement keeps the fundraiser top of mind.
- Timing fundraisers around relevant cultural moments generates urgency and larger gift sizes. Anniversaries, Giving Tuesday, current events, etc. can all provide compelling hooks.
- The key to a successful campaign is recruiting ambassadors who will put in the time and effort. Their level of commitment matters more than the size of their networks.
- Facebook now provides nonprofits with donor email addresses, so retaining and cultivating these new supporters is much more feasible.
There’s more to the conversation, but you’ll have to listen to the full episode to get all the deets. Sean will tell you how, when, and with whom to launch your next Facebook Fundraiser so you can get the most bang for your buck.
