16 Powerful Online Fundraising Tools

8/6/2019 16 Powerful Online Fundraising Tools

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16 powerful online fundraising tools for raisingmoney and awareness

By James Mulvey

Every nonpro!t or social enterprise wants to raise a ton of donations and awareness through

viral social media promotion. While there are plenty of tools and platforms out there, it takes

bit of time to !nd the best ones for your campaign.

But raising money and awareness is less about !nding the !nding the right online tool than it

is an e"ect of putting a compelling and extraordinarily unique story out there. The reach of

your online fundraising campaign in social media is determined by the#quality of your

message. The better story you can tell about your cause and organization, the further it

travels.

That said, here are some of best online fundraising sites weve discovered for raising

awareness and inspiring behavioral change.

1. Chipin.com#

This is a widget that you can add to your Facebook page, website, or blog. Its essentially an

online fundraising target that you can use to track a fundraising goal. What we like about this

widget is that is it is great for partnerships (if you want, for example, to help out your favorite

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Redbird CommunicationsHealthy People. Healthy Places.info[at]redbirdonline.comwww.Redbirdonline.com
http://www.redbirdonline.com/http://www.redbirdonline.com/http://chipin.com/http://chipin.com/


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social cause on your corporate website), as well as an easy way to convert web tra$c into

donors.#Time and cost? No fees. Takes about 15-30 minutes for a web developer (or someone

with some basic website skills) to install. E!ective? Attached to a speci!c cause, this widget

can be e"ective. One drawback is that it needs high tra$c to covert (for example, per 1000

people that see it, maybe 1 person would donate).

2. HelpAttack.com

Help Attack is a fun, user-centered online fundraising platform that helps build the act of

giving into your online life. Its designed to integrate with Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter

and has interactive features such as collecting coins as you progress in your fundraising

e"orts. Users get to choose the organization or nonpro!t they want to support. You can also

add your cause or nonpro!t so that your supporters can !nd you. Its a fun little online

fundraising tactic.#Time and cost? Minimal set-up. Small fee to add your nonpro!t. E!ective?

This site taps into the power of social networking and makes giving fun. It has raised about

$300,000 so far for various charities and organizations.

3. CharityIntelligence.ca

According to a 2007 study on charitable giving by Stats Canada, Canadians donated a total of

$10 billion in 2007, which represents an increase of 12% in donations from the $8.9 billion

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reported in 2004.#While philanthropy in Canada has become quite fashionable, the recent rise

in charitable giving and activity has also led to a trend toward philanthropic capitalism,

meaning that donors are coming to expect more professional and business-like conduct from

the charitable sector.#Charityintelligence.ca is a site that responds to this trend, helping

potential donors !nd the most worthy causes. Its mission is to identify Canada's most cost-

e"ective charities through independent in-depth research and objective analysis. It publishes

a list of the charities to donate to, recommending that people donate to these high impact

organizations.#Cost and Time? Application process takes some time and resources (50-100

hours?); it is designed to look deeply into the operations and budget of a charity.

E!ectiveness? If successful, this site could generate high returns: inclusion in their annual

recommendations for donors; exposure to serious donor networks; and creditability for yourorganizations existing communications.

4. Givemeaning.com

Started in Vancouver BC, this site has helped hundreds of non-pro!ts and other worthy

organizations raise awareness and funds for their campaigns. The sites goal is to connect your

organization with new donors, acting as a hub for donors to come and !nd new nonpro!ts to

support.#While anyone can submit a project proposal, there are a few conditions: you have to

be a Canadian registered charity; you have to submit a proposal that outlines a speci!c

tangible outcome; 9.99 monthly hosting fee, and each new project has 30 days to collect 100

votes of support.#Cost and time? 5-8 hours to set up. E!ective for raising awareness and

funds? Yes. Lots of BC charities have bene!ted from this site. The set-up is simple and not

very time-consuming.

5. CanadaGives.ca#

Over the next decade, Statistics Canada predicts that baby boomers will receive considerable

wealth and assets from their a%uent parents an estimated $800 billion to $1 trillion of

inheritiances.CanadaGives.ca is an organization that helps Canadians get the most out of their

charitable donations, including access to a turnkey administration service for creating or

building their own endowment(s) as an alternative to establishing a separate foundation.#In

other words, this organization doesnt solicit any new donors; it just manages existing ones. In

their words: "CanadaGives#is a donation vehicle for the committed philanthropist.#Time and

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cost? No direct fees and a simple sign-up process. E!ective? De!nitely, especially if you have

a history of attracting large donors.

6. Firstgiving.com

3 million online donors, 1 billion in donations raised, and 8,000 non-pro!ts--this site has the

ability to do some serious online fundraising for your organization.#Time and cost? 5%

commission; $300 dollars to use their software and you must be registered with Guidestar.

E!ective? While this site has a large network and established presence, most likely your

success will depend on how much energy and resources put into your pages and energy you

invest in encouraging peers to share. Estimated time to see a return20 to 30 hours.

7. GoBidCharities.com

Have a charity auction coming up? Then make it even more e"ective with this online

fundraising tool.#This site allows charities to collect items that are then sold in an online

auction. Your auction can run up to 3 months.Time and cost? 15% commission; no registration

fee. Requires you to upload pictures, set prices, and collect items to sell (8 hours and

upwards). E!ectiveness? A nice feature is that you can run online auctions at the same time

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as a live event (such as a Golf Day or 24 hour marathon), helping to extend the reach of the

event online.

8. Yahoo's Create for a Cause

Yahoos Create for a Cause is an annual contest that takes submissions from October 11,

going through December 3 (based on last years rules). Winners have their ad placed on the

Yahoo login page, resulting in massive group exposure. Winners can potentially reach millions

of viewers. Last year, it seems that only American non-pro!ts could enter. There doesnt seem

to be a Canadian version. Time and cost? Unfortunately, the competition is sti". You need to

develop a high-quality digital advertisement and past winners have been submissions frominternational creative agencieslots of entries, lots of creative competition, and a time-

consuming entry process. E!ective? If you have a really exceptional campaign, you have a

chance at winning exposure to millions of viewers.

9. YouTube Non-Pro!t Program#

Did you know that YouTube has a special channel for raising awareness?#On the YouTube Non-

Pro!t Program, charitable organizations and other social marketing and health promotion

organizations can post their videos (through their existing channel) and have the option of

having a donate now button.#Time and cost? Setting up is quite simple, maybe a few hours

to apply. E!ective? With any viral campaign, its important to not confuse the medium with

the message. YouTube doesnt make people and videos famous. Its only a channel that helps

to spread incredibly exceptional and amazing content. The best strategy is to test with some

smaller videos to see what stories create the most response.

10. KevinBacon6 Degrees of Separation#

Started by the actor Kevin Bacon, Sixdegrees.org#lets non-pro!ts and worthy organizations to

create fundraising badges which are shared on the site. The idea is based on viral fundraising

your cause needs to be shared and picked up by people.#Time and cost? Low (a few hours).

No fees. E!ective? Yes. But dont expect it to be a major fundraising source. It can integrate

well with other tactics such as Facebook.

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http://advertising.yahoo.com/campaign/create-for-cause.htmlhttp://advertising.yahoo.com/campaign/create-for-cause.htmlhttp://www.sixdegrees.org/http://www.sixdegrees.org/http://www.sixdegrees.org/http://www.sixdegrees.org/http://www.youtube.com/nonprofitshttp://www.youtube.com/nonprofitshttp://advertising.yahoo.com/campaign/create-for-cause.htmlhttp://advertising.yahoo.com/campaign/create-for-cause.html


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11. Change.org

Trying to raise awareness for a contentious social issue? Change.org is a platform to raise

some serious noise about big issues like Gay rights, labor disputes, and other social-orientated

causes. Its designed with a grassroots theme and has a simple sign-up process. The site allows

you to write a petition, upload some photos and info, and then let your cause grow.#Time and

cost? Just writing a petition and signing up. No fees. E!ective? Good place to get some

grassroots support and could be e"ective in driving tra$c to your website, if your cause gets

some attention from the community.

12. Dosomething.org

Want to get teens involved in your cause? Then Dosomething.org is de!nitely worth checking

out. This site is#designed speci!cally to engage teens with social causes. Any teen can post a

project and try to build support for it. They can also form clubs.#Time and cost? No !nancial

cost. But requires trying to get teens to set up an account. E!ective? The sites easy

integration with Facebook could tap into the large social networks of teens. If your target

audience is teenagers, this might be an e"ective awareness and fundraising platform for you.

13. LinkedIn for Good#

If your health organization or non-pro!t is active on LinkedIn, this is an easy and e"ective

online fundraising tactic. It basically allows LinkedIn users to use non-pro!t badges to

promote various organizations through their professional network. As some non-pro!ts and

health organizations have large professional networks, you might want to consider adding

this to your networking and fundraising mix.#Time and cost? A few hours to set up, no cost,

and most of the work (and success) depend on the response of people in your network.

E!ectiveness?This tactic most likely bene!ts larger National organizations (such as the

American Cancer Society), but it is relatively easy to set up.

14. Canadahelps.org

This site allows people to search for their favorite non-pro!t and to give an online donation.

Its pretty useful during a speci!c fundraising campaign, especially if you are a smaller

organization.#Time and cost? Free, easy set-up. E!ectiveness? Great alternative to setting up

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http://www.canadahelps.org/https://help.linkedin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/15/~/learning-about-%22linkedin-for-good%22http://www.dosomething.org/http://www.dosomething.org/http://www.change.org/http://www.canadahelps.org/http://www.canadahelps.org/https://help.linkedin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/15/~/learning-about-%22linkedin-for-good%22https://help.linkedin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/15/~/learning-about-%22linkedin-for-good%22http://www.dosomething.org/http://www.dosomething.org/http://www.dosomething.org/http://www.dosomething.org/http://www.change.org/http://www.change.org/


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credit-card processingjust register your charity with the site and direct your donations

through Canadahelps.org.

#

15. JustTextGiving.com

Use your fast texting skills. . .for a good cause. Justtextgiving.com helps fundraisers by

tapping into the power of mobile phones. Based in the UK, the platform has raised over 700

million pounds for over 8,000 charities. It only takes a few seconds to set up a page for your

charity, and easily integrates with Facebook, email, and iphone apps.#Time and cost? Really

easy set-up, only a few minutes. The fee is a small monthly charge and a 5% fee on every gift,

which is used to pay for web development and hosting. E!ective? A great way to integrate

your online fundraising with mobiles and smart-phones.

16. GiveForward.com#

Giveforward.com helps people easily create a fundraising campaign for friends or a favorite

cause. You set up a page, tell people about your cause, promote your page in Facebook and

other social media, and then spread the word through friends, websites widgets, and from

exposure on the site. While this site is designed for micro-giving campaigns, it can be an

e"ective way to encourage your donors to launch their own little fundraising campaigns on

your behalf.#Time and cost? Small commission fee and easy set-up. E"ective? Giveforward.com

has helped raise over 4 million for causes. Its mostly for micro-campaigns but has an easy set-

up.

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http://www.vodafone.co.uk/vodafone-uk/about-us/just-text-giving/?cid=rdr-1306-01http://justtextgiving.com/http://www.canadahelps.org/http://www.canadahelps.org/http://www.canadahelps.org/http://www.canadahelps.org/http://giveforward.com/http://giveforward.com/http://giveforward.com/http://giveforward.com/http://www.vodafone.co.uk/vodafone-uk/about-us/just-text-giving/?cid=rdr-1306-01http://www.vodafone.co.uk/vodafone-uk/about-us/just-text-giving/?cid=rdr-1306-01http://justtextgiving.com/http://justtextgiving.com/http://www.canadahelps.org/http://www.canadahelps.org/


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Some Final Tips:#

Remember, most online fundraising tools are similar: they are simply platforms to connect

your cause to an audience. As a result, its best to concentrate on a few platforms, rather than

blasting your message thin across every new widget that comes out. Its easy to think that the

platform will do the work. But the real e"ectiveness of online fundraising tools depends on

the ability of your organization and cause to capture a big emotional space with your stories,

videos, and fundraising communications.

Good luck!

If you need help creating an e"ective online fundraising strategy, the Redbird

Communications Team#is here to help.#

About us

Redbird Communications specializes in health promotion, awareness campaigns, and

behavioural change workshops.#Our clients include the Heart and Stroke Foundation of BC &

Yukon, BC Hydro, government ministries and other private and public-sector organizations

that in one way or another work to make the world a healthier, happier place.

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16 Powerful Online Fundraising Tools