How to motivate your supporters

Almost any organisation that organises a crowdfunding campaign, or has fundraising supporters, is going to find there are some people who need more help to get their fundraising underway than others.

That doesn’t mean that you should accept it and give up on those people, in fact, you should make the effort to engage. People are unlikely to struggle to fundraise because they don’t have people willing to donate. It’s more likely that they’re feeling unsure about how to get started, or nervous about asking for money. A few simple engagement techniques can quickly get them on track, and excited about fundraising for you.

If your fundraisers struggle to get started

It’s week two of your six week campaign, and some of your fundraisers are still on $0. That’s okay, it’s not too late (even in week six, never say never)! Here are some things you can do to get them started.

• Say thank you early
  People are usually motivated to take action when they’ve already committed to doing so. By messaging them, posting on Facebook, or sending a quick email thanking them for supporting your organisation, they might receive enough of a nudge to get them off the starting block.
• Call them for a chat
  If you’ve emailed them a reminder and that hasn’t prompted a reply or any action, it could be because they’re unsure of how to get started. By calling them, you can hear their concerns, and walk them through your fundraising tips again (they may have missed those!). You can make a plan for them to take specific actions over the next few days, and then plan to catch up again the week after.
• Help them figure out who to ask and how
  Sometimes people aren’t aware of the breadth of people in their lives who they can ask to donate to a cause they’re passionate about. By walking them through their various groups of friends, colleagues, family-members, acquaintances, sports teams, book clubs, etc, you’ll be showing them just how many people are out there for them to ask. Whilst you should encourage them to ask as many people one-on-one, group emails or public posts on social media can work well too.

If your fundraisers struggle to hit their target

Even the best fundraisers can struggle to hit an ambitious target. That's no reason to give up, though. Every dollar raised is a dollar closer to your target. Here are some things you can do to encourage your supporters to keep going.

• Remind them to keep asking others
  If your supporter feel like they’ve asked everyone under the sun to donate, and can ask no more, ask them if there’s anyone who they asked who said they’d donate and hasn’t yet. If so, tell them to send a reminder as the donor may have just forgotten. Public posts can sometimes be lost in the social media feed, so remind your donor to post more than one public post, to make sure the most people possible see it.
• Set-up mini-challenges to complete at each milestone
  If your fundraiser has quite a big target, it can be helpful to set up a mini-target with a mini-challenge to encourage people to donate. Perhaps your fundraiser has set out to raise $5,000 and will shave their head if they do. If they’re only at $2,000, you could get them to set a mini goal of dyeing their hair purple at $3,000, or shaving the highest donors name into their head at $4,000.
• Host an event mid-crowdfunder
  All crowdfunding campaigns go through a lull in the middle few weeks, so it’s important to keep your fundraisers motivated, particularly if they’re falling behind their targets. By hosting an event in the middle of your crowdfunding campaign, you’ll give your fundraisers an opportunity to come together and talk about their highs and lows, and help each other out if they’re struggling. It can also be good to remind everyone (and yourself) that crowdfunding campaigns are about people working together, not just about hitting targets.

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