Top 4 Fundraising Mistakes

Fundraisers don’t always go to plan and some fail miserably. After scouring the net and getting user input, here are the top 10 fundraising mistakes:

1. People don’t know how the money will be used.

We often see fundraisers and it’s not clear how the money will be used (excluding charity fundraisers). These people often push hard when it comes to promoting the fundraiser but they fail when it comes to explaining why they are raising a specific amount of money and what good it will do. Failing to tell others exactly how the money will be used is a sure-fire way to see your fundraiser fail. An equally bad idea is to ask for the wrong amount of money. Think about how much is really needed and start a realistic fundraiser.

2. No personal connection

How many times have you visited a fundraising page and come across a stock image of a sunset or something else that is totally random and irrelevant? We’ve seen them all too many times. People donate money because they want to feel good that they are donating to a specific person. Failing to create the personal connection and show visitors who that person is means you’ll raise very little – if anything! Include pictures and even video if you really want to create engagement and get the money coming in.

3. Plain fundraising page

A few sentences asking for money is not going to be enough to get people to part with their hard-earned cash, yet it seems to be a tactic that many lazy people are following. You need to carefully craft your message and structure it so that it’s friendly and easy to read. Include titles and subheadings such as ‘About Me’, ‘How The Money Will Be Used’, and so on.

4. No pledges

The first few days of your fundraiser are the most important as that is what often sets the momentum. However, fundraisers often don’t plan the launch of their funding project and the slow momentum that it starts with carrys on until the fundraiser expires. No pledges to start off with often leads to minimal pledges in the coming weeks. As humans, we often follow the herd and we feel comforted after seeing an action being taken before doing it ourselves. Therefore, it is essential that fundraisers plan the launch of the fundraiser and get immediate backing from close friends and family. Those pledges help pull other people in that want to become part of the fundraiser.

Now that you know the biggest fundraising mistakes, be sure not to make them. Check out the fundraising websites page for essential tips on creating a great fundraiser.