When GoFundMe Goes Wrong

When a great thing comes along there are always a select few that do it wrong. The crowdfunding movement has provided a free online fundraising for just about anything you can think of.

What crowdfunding platform are you thinking of using?

Specifically, GoFundMe is a great platform to raise funds safely, immediate distribution funds and a friendly interface for all ages. The success stories from GoFundMe are empowering and informative on the process, but more recently, I have seen GoFundMe for causes that are somewhat questionable.

When a great concept and beneficial platform arrives, the scammers are not to far away. We have heard of the various scammers and illegal donating that citizens have used to feed their personal greed. Do you remember the women and homeless man scam that collected over $400,000 in donations via GoFundMe? In March 2019, they plead guilty to federal conspiracy charges. This is an extreme case, however, most GoFundMe users are truly trying to raise funds, but using this platform takes finesse and basic knowledge of fundraising in order for the fundraiser to be successful.

Let's discuss five successful fundraising strategies when using a crowdfunding website.

1. Start with a Well-Defined Goal

This is the beginning of your fundraising campaign. Most often, your goal begins as a dollar amount, but it should evolve from that.

You may already know that you need to raise $10,000 over the course of the campaign, but how do you plan to do it? How will you measure your success? Is that amount actually attainable? These are all questions you need to ask.

The best way to answer these questions is to follow SMART criteria to shape your goal. A SMART goal includes these elements:

• Specific (give the metrics of the campaign, be detailed)

• Measurable (what will this money fund)

• Attainable (set realistic goals based on your audience and the need)

• Relevant (make sure the goal works for the organization)

• Time-Based (deadlines matter and hold an important level of accountability)

It is ok to make these goals public. If you are raising $10,000 to support STEM projects for middle school aged girls, simply state that. You can elaborate further by saying that $2,500 provides 5 laptops to students in the program.

Your overall fundraising campaign should be as detailed as the last sentence. If you are a non-profit organization, it is federal compliance to account for every penny spent that was donated.

2. Use Multi-Channel Marketing

The target audience is the most important aspect of a fundraising campaign. Understanding your donor audience and how they receive and act on information is critical. The brand message of your marketing is just as important. Multi-channel marketing simply reaches your audience anywhere and anyhow they view information. Your campaign can not exclusively include Facebook ads is more than 25% of your donor audience is more engaged on emails. Make sure you are marketing on multiple social media networks as well as a face-to-face presentation.

Don't let your delivery silence your message.

If you are posting on Instagram, do not be surprised if your elderly donor did not get the information to donate. This elderly donor would probably donate more frequently by telephone or face-to-face.

Many crowdfunding platforms provide a sharing tool that has multiple social media, embedding and email options. Make sure your delivery matches your audience.

3. Directly Link Your Impact With Donations

Remember how you crafted a goal that related the dollars you plan to raise with the intended impact? Don’t forget to use that impact figure during your crowdfunding campaign.

Impact can be educational and inspirational. It tells people exactly what they can expect to happen with their gift. At the same time, sharing information on impact helps promote transparency. Using an impact meter right in the middle of your website is always a great first step.

4. Determine the Best Method to Obtain the Funds

If you have completed the first 3 steps, you may find that using a crowdfunding website may not be the best method to obtain funds. Another way to obtain funds could be an email blast asking for donations, the reason why and a link to directly give on platforms such as SquareUp, PayPal, Givelify or CashApp.

If you need $200 as posted in the social media fundraiser screenshot below, understand that having a relationship with 4 people could meet this goal. Instead, this public fundraiser could be a viral meme. Asking 4 people for $50 is better than not reaching a fundraising goal of $200. Of course, no donation is too small but sometimes the method of obtaining funds is more simple.

5. Thank Your Donors

Most importantly, never forget to thank your donors. A personalized thank you note can make a difference in future fundraising, it may even lead the donor to make another donation just because you thanked them.

Fundraising Ideas

Little Caesars Pizza Kit

Murder Mystery Dinner Theater (you can always change the theme, use the idea)

Other Resources to Check Out

Free Checklists And Sample Plans For Your Fundraising Events Eight Months Out Checklist

We offer 1-on-1 Consultation for crowdfunding and fundraising coordination. Find out more here.

Good luck on fundraising!

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Did you have success with GoFundMe? Tell us what you did. What other fundraising ideas do you have? We can all learn from one another. Thank you for reading.