A successful charity event leaves a lasting impression on participants, strengthens their relationship with your charity organization, and, of course, raises funds for your cause.
However, events can be very challenging to pull off, as they are often highly complex logistically. Furthermore, it may seem like only those with years of experience and expertise will be able to reach excellent fundraising event results.
But although nothing can fully substitute experience, knowing a few proven techniques can help anyone develop an effective event strategy.
Would you mind keeping reading to discover three such techniques that you can start applying to your fundraising initiatives to fuel their success?
1. Focus on the Participants’ Experiences
The best way to make a charity event successful is by giving people a reason to come.
People need to feel like their donation will do some good and have a real impact. But they also want to feel like they will have a genuinely good time participating.
So, getting people excited about your fundraising program by making it fun is something that should be on your list of priorities, as it can lead to better fundraising event results.
There are many ways you can personalize your next fundraiser to add that element of fun. For example, you can integrate interactive elements such as raffles or auctions to add excitement to your fundraising.
Another great idea is to feature top entertainment or invite a well-known celebrity to make an appearance.
This will help engage attendees and make them want to donate more in support of your cause, as they will feel like they are getting something extra in return for attending.
2. Employ a Multi-Channel Social Sharing Strategy
Having a multi-channel social strategy can help you reach better fundraising event results, as all social media channels are different and thus have different audiences.
Combining multiple channels allows you to cast a wider net and helps you:
- increase awareness about your event;
- reach a bigger audience that may be interested in learning more about your organization and attending your fundraiser;
- engage multiple groups of followers.
The first step in developing a multi-channel social sharing strategy is to create a list of all the channels you want to present.
Then decide which channel is best suited to communicate different types of updates about your event.
This will allow you to gather content ideas for each channel and avoid posting repetitive content that may not fully resonate with a specific audience.
Consider the following mix as an example:
- Facebook – Share marketing material such as images promoting the event, testimonials from previous event-goers, and announcements that build excitement for your fundraiser;
- Instagram – Post Stories which take followers behind the scenes and allows them to get to know the people working at your organization;
- Twitter – This platform is excellent for sharing timely updates, asking questions to engage followers, and leveraging trending topics to increase reach.
3. Keep Learning as You Go to Identify Opportunities to Improve
Planning a charity event is not always smooth sailing.
Many different things can go sideways. Problems often come up unexpectedly, and it takes much experience to avoid them all.
So, one of the best methods for continuously improving your results is never to stop learning.
Learn from your mistakes, acknowledge the areas where you could do better, and always look for new ways to improve your processes.
Even minor hiccups can help you identify key learnings that you can use to change how you create events for the better.
So, talk it over with your team and develop best practices to make sure your organization makes the most out of every learning opportunity.
Want More Tips on How to Achieve Better Fundraising Event Results?
We hope that you’ve learned something new by reading this article. Or that, at least, the points made here served as a valuable reminder of what it takes to create an event that meets its goals.
If you want to continue learning, we recommend that you also check out this article and discover 12 fundraising tips that will help you organize a successful event.