Fundraising TipsHow often are you offered the chance to save someone's life? The cost to purchase, place and provide the associated training for a single Automated External Defibrillator (AED) is $4,000. The minimum fundraising amount to participate in 7 Summits is $2,500, but imagine the feeling of accomplishment that would come with raising enough to fund the placement of an entire AED. When you raise $4,000 your life-saving contribution is recognized by placing your name on the plaque accompanying the AED you funded. Think big, go beyond the minimum – remember victory demands that you stretch a bit, risk a little and challenge yourself. The more money you raise, the more lives we can save – your fundraising efforts have real results on real people. 1Set up a personal fundraising page online
2Network, network, network
3Suggest a donation amount
4Corporate matching programs
5Follow-up
6Say Thank You
After the event, you may also want to send out a newsletter or email with some photos, and an additional thank you for your donors' support – 'thank you' email templates are available on your online personal fundraising page. |
Fundraising online is both easy and secure. In a few minutes you can email your friends, family and co-workers and ask for support. Those who donate to you will instantly receive a tax receipt for their donation and have the security of knowing that their credit card transactions are safe.
Think about all areas of your life as you create the list of people you are going to ask for support – broaden your giving circle by expanding beyond your immediate family, friends and co-workers to include distant relatives, neighbours, former classmates, your dentist, doctor, dog walker etc. You can also expand your giving circle by asking your contacts to forward your fundraising message on to their own network.
You'll find that many people won't know how much is appropriate to give and will appreciate with being provided with a suggested donation amount. If they can't afford the amount you have suggested, they'll give what they can. Remember your supporters will receive a tax receipt for their donation, so don't be afraid to be ambitious in your ask. Share your fundraising goal with your network and let them know how important their contribution is to you reaching your goal.
Many companies will match the funds that you raise. Ask your employer if your company has a corporate matching policy in place. Even if they don't, they may still be willing to support your efforts. This is a really easy way to make your fundraising efforts go twice as far – and by securing a matching commitment from your employer, your other donors will have even further motivation to support you knowing that their donations will be doubled.
If you haven't received a response from someone you've asked for a donation, be sure to follow-up and remind them to make sure they haven't forgotten your request. A great way to keep people involved is to send an update newsletter or email, keeping your donors and potential donors up-to-date on your fundraising and training progress. Your online, personal fundraising page makes it easy for you to set up communication templates and send out email updates to your address book.
Once you have received a donation amount from someone, let them know that their contribution, whatever the amount is important to you and that you appreciate it. When you set up your personal fundraising page online, you'll receive an email notification each time someone donates to your page, making it easy for you to keep track of your supporters and thank them as they make their contribution.
