Social Fundraising

Social Fundraising By Ashley Lojko May 2011

Social Fundraising • Empowering supporters and donors to spread the word and raise money for causes they believe in. • Fairly new space that is becoming more and more competitive. • Many free or low cost, easy to use tool sets.

Social Fundraising - Types of Tools • Widgets • Applications • Websites & Custom Team Pages • For all tools in this presentation there is an emphasis on social sharing features and integration (in some cases) with social media sites, as well as community building.

ChipIn - Fundraising Widget Popular web-based fundraising widget that can be implemented on any site that accepts HTML (Facebook, Website, Blog, etc). Also offers a website for your ChipIn fundraiser with a custom link users can share: yourname.chipin.com

Cons: • No real “donor management” back end options. You can see who has donated and how much, but that’s about it. • Does not integrate with Facebook as an app – custom page must be coded with widget. • Only works with PayPal processing. • Ease of use for donor: 10 • Ease of use for organization: 10 • Set-up time: 5 minutes Pros: Works seamlessly with PayPal accounts (if you do not have on it must be created to use this widget). Widget is easily embedded in a number of places. Updates automatically as people donate. Free tool to set up, very easy to create in minutes. Offers basic metrics on donations.

The great thing about this widget is that any organization (with PayPal) could use it to set up a fast way for people to donate and to share.

FundRazr – Donation Application with Facebook focus Social way to collect and manage money using your facebook fan page or personal profile. Organizations can collect for campaigns and donors can collect for a cause, group, team, or club. FundRazr gives donors and supporters an easy way to ask people to support a cause they believe in.

Supporters can choose how much to give and submit their donation to the org via PayPal. Accepts all major credit cards.

Cons: • Only works with PayPal. • URL for FundRazr page is ugly and non-customizable. http://apps.facebook.com/fundrazr/activity/41b29c5b8f144f82bdf8e0eb9bd947a7 3. Orgs cannot create a widget that can be posted outside of Facebook. • Ease of use for donor: 10 • Ease of use for organization: 9 • Set-up time: 5 - 10 minutes Pros: Integrates seamlessly with PayPal account. Donors only leave the Facebook site to approve the amount from PayPal. They are redirected back to the app page after. (Note that the donor does not have to have a paypal account to donate! Just a credit card). People who are not on Facebook can still contribute. Create nice looking page with orgs information and ask. Money goes direct to PayPal so org chooses when it goes into the bank. Free to set up, very fast. Integrates with PayPal iPhone app.

This application is good for any organization who wants to set up a fast, nice looking fundraising widget using PayPal. Fast to set up, easy to use. ICSF is currently testing out with a campaign for sponsoring a specific student.

Change.org - Petition site with Action / Donation Widget Helps to raise awareness about important social causes and to empower people to take action. Actions might range from joining an organization and making a personal pledge to signing an online petition or calling a congressperson’s office about an issue like homelessness or sustainable food. In addition to signing petitions or leaving comments, orgs can raise funds by creating a page with photos, videos, logos and supporting materials.

Pros: 1) Create a widget that is easily embedded on sites that accept HTML code. Widget updates automatically to show donations and/or petition signers. 2) Users of the site can choose to join your cause or sign your petition (outside of the network you are broadcasting to) and share it with their social networks. 3) Petitions are nicely designed. 4) Website gets a lot of daily traffic. 5) Recent activity has a chance of being posted on the home page. 7) Has a built-in email tool for communicating with audience. 8) Customizable pages can have photos, videos, logos and supporting materials. 9) Report dashboard with exportable option for data. 10) Users can be given a widget to put on their page / site/ blog as well. • Cons: • Only works with PayPal. • URL for FundRazr page is ugly and non-customizable. http://apps.facebook.com/fundrazr/activity/41b29c5b8f144f82bdf8e0eb9bd947a7 3. Orgs cannot create a widget that can be posted outside of Facebook. • Ease of use for donor: 10 • Ease of use for organization: 9 • Set-up time: 5 - 10 minutes

Cons: • 1) Focused on social change and advocacy groups – would only be good for a subset of our clients – those with advocacy programs. • 2) Pages must have another call to action besides donate – sign a petition, write a letter to congress, etc. • Ease of use for donor: 9 • Ease of use for organization: 7 • Set-up time: 15-20 minutes

GlobalGiving – Donation Management System with Widget An online marketplace for philanthropy where anyone can nominate an idea and hopefully get it funded. Provides a widget for website and social integration, as well as a page that orgs can send users to in order to raise money. The platform allows you to connect with your donors and send them regular updates on how their money is helping the organization.

Good for most organizations, although since the site is so large, smaller causes and organizations who don’t get as much traffic can easily get lost. Hot topics and advocacy seem to do better on this site. Easily embeddable widget that orgs can share with their supporters.

Pros: Good engagement with donors with the ability to send status updates and messages through the platform. Create a widget that is easily embedded on sites that accept HTML code. No upfront cost to get started. Helps the org reach out to a large network of volunteer organizations to find interns and volunteers. Users can send gift cards to friends and family which they can use to donate to a cause of their choice. (Physical cards and e-cards available). Recurring gifts can be made. Reporting dashboard with exportable option for data • Cons: • Expensive – 15% of donation is the fee to use GlobalGiving, meaning only 85% of donations actually go to the organization. • Money is dispersed monthly after $250 have been raised (so if the org doesn’t get there for 6 months, they won’t see any money) • Orgs must nominate themselves to be on the site and be approved by GlobalGiving. This can take up to 4 weeks. • Ease of use for donor: 8 • Ease of use for organization: 6 • Set-up time: Up to 4 weeks

Razoo – Crowd-sourced Fundraising site with Donation Widget Razoo helps donors find inspiring giving opportunities and helps nonprofits and volunteers with fundraising pages, social media tools and donation processing. A platform that works well with Team Fundraising. Offers donation processing through the site.

This tool is stronger in the team raising and crowd-sourcing area. Orgs encourage donors and supporters to embed widgets on their page, share from the orgs (or persons) razoo page. Pages are very nicely designed and can have lots of information. This site creates a sense of community.

Pros: Create a widget that is easily embeddable in sites that accept HTML code. Widget is updated automatically as donations are made. Users of the site can find your cause and support it or join your team (outside of orgs constituents) and share with their followers and friends. No monthly fees or start up costs. Featured popular causes and top fundraisers are featured on the home page, as well as recent comments from donors. Create custom pages for your fundraiser and allows for each member of your team to make their own to support your cause. Users can be given a widget to put on their page / site/ blog as well. • Cons: • Although there is the option to raise money for an individual organization, this product seems to cater more to team fundraising and crowd-sourcing. Wouldn’t recommend for clients who don’t have social media presence already. • Donations are dispersed to organization once per month instead of real time. • Ease of use for donor: 8 • Ease of use for organization: 8 • Set-up time: 10-15 minutes

Causes – Facebook-run Activism Donation Site using Communities Run by Facebook, Causes allows fundraisers to solicit donations from their own Facebook contacts and recruit volunteers who want to participate on behalf of a cause. People who use the site as a way to socialize can also participate in fundraising ideas by posting Cause profiles on their Facebook page. Causes is a free application.

Causes is a great program for any organization. The website has the highest amount of traffic (compare to Jumo and Crowdrise) and a high level of engagement. Focuses on donations heavily. Easily shared on Facebook with friends. Well known for their “Donate for my Birthday” function.

Cons: Only Facebook users/members can donate and contribute to discussions. While Causes is a Facebook-run application, it does not integrate with the Facebook tab system on fan pages. The widget can be placed on a tab, but it takes users to the actual causes page to make the donation. Use of this site is slowly dwindling now that many folks have donation widgets on their Fan Pages (I.e. FundRazr, PayPal, etc) Ease of use for donor: 9 Ease of use for org: 8 Set-up time: 15-20 minutes Pros: Allows orgs to recruit facebook fans to the cause, or invite people via email or sharing the link to your page. Users and organizations can create a custom widget that can be easily embedded in any site that accepts HTML code. Pages can contain a lot of information and update similar to a blog. Photos, videos and discussions can be a part of the page. Partner Center gives you the ability to download and export donor information for reporting. Donations happen right on the causes page. Users can be given a widget to put on their page / site/ blog as well.

Crowdrise – Crowd-sourced Fundraising Tool with Donation Widget Organizations set up a page which they can then send donors and/or advocates to encourage them to start their own fundraiser for the organization. A very good tool for leveraging donors to become grassroots fundraisers.

Pros: 1) Crowdrise has a very big user base and strives to get orgs the most publicity as they can. Users of the site can search for causes, donate to them, join teams and promote. (Big name, celebrity endorsed) 2) Free account option that offers a variety of great tools. Optional featured account. 3) Users get points for promoting and supporting causes, giving them more incentive to promote organizations. 4) Customized pages for the organization can have photos, videos, discussion and more. 5) Easy to share on other social sites. • Cons: • 1) Some organizations may not have as many donor advocates as others. Viral effect may be lost on smaller orgs. • 3) Money is deposited into organizations account every 40-50 days, not instant. • 4) Does not easily integrate with Facebook – custom tab with widget will have to be coded. • Ease of use for donor: 8 • Ease of use for organization: 8 • Set-up time: 1-2 minutes

Jumo - “Facebook” for Nonprofits and Supporters – Community and Relationship Building Tool “Most every site that's out there focuses on donations. And, don't get me wrong, donating to organizations, especially right now, is really important. But Jumo is taking a very different approach. It's not just about how much money are you donating to this or that group. It's about what kind of relationship you are building with that organization." – Chris Hughes. Jumo connects users to social activism by easily allowing them to follow and support their favorite causes through an integrated platform. Members can use the site to 1) learn about and 2) donate/support to their favorite causes, with an emphasis on sharing with your friends.

Pros: • Create a page that is similar to a Facebook fan page in a community that is specifically there to look for causes to support. • Share stories and information easily through Facebook and Twitter. • Accept donations on the site. Accept donations from donors who don’t have a Jumo account. • Ease of use for donor: 9 • Ease of use for organization: 7 • Set-up time: 10-15 minutes • Cons: • 1) Small user base compared to Facebook. Hasn’t taken off as hoped. • 2) Users must be a member of Facebook to get an account (in Beta now, might change later) and to interact with an organizations page (anything else other than donate). • 3) Money is deposited into organizations account every 40-50 days, not instant. • 4) Similar to Facebook causes which has a higher use rate.

Wrap Up Thoughts • ChipIn and FundRazr are the easiest to get started with. (Widgets!) • Crowdrise, Jumo and Causes require some planning before setting up. • Restrictions for apps that only work with Facebook may not benefit orgs with no social media presence. • All tools emphasize social sharing, essentially a grassroots process. Questions?

Social Fundraising