According to new data by the Pew Research Center, over 65% of Americans identify with an organized religion – a sizable (and devout) captive audience, especially in the southern United States.
Whether you’re a faith-based institution or nonprofit looking to fundraise for a mission trip, ministry program, or other special project, the landscape of religious fundraising has changed, especially with the pandemic. These days, faith-based organization fundraisers have evolved beyond tithing or bake sales.
During this time of telework and social distancing, faith-based organizations have had to revise their fundraising plans by turning increasingly to technology.
Here’s our top 5 tips for faith-based organization fundraising, based on the latest trends in culture + fundraising strategy:
1. Replace In-Person Events With Virtual Events
55% of U.S. adults report that they attend religious services only a handful of times each year. Due to covid restrictions, this number has fallen. Many congregations have had to limited in-person events, opting instead to live stream their services through platforms like Facebook Live, Zoom, or Youtube Live.
But wait, if you’re already live streaming services, don’t forget the same can be done for your events.
While your livestreamed fundraiser might look different this year, the goal can stay the same. All of this to say – it’s important to meet people where they’re at, even if they’re not physically present.
Example: Virtual Gala-Style Event
Beginning as a small religious community based in North Carolina, Dorcas Ministries has made a homegrown difference in the lives of Cary-area residents over the past 40 years.
Like other nonprofits, Dorcas had to pivot their fundraising strategy last year. In lieu of their annual Thanksgiving Breakfast, they hosted a month-long virtual gala-style fundraiser that culminated in a Thanksgiving ‘gathering’.
Mirroring the look and feel of a live event, campaign donors were invited to become ‘virtual table captains’.
The organization also provided updates in the form of powerful client stories.
Along with first-hand testimonials, a speech, and a post recognizing sponsors, it mimicked the run-of-show for an actual event. Every ‘guest’ with a WIFI connection had a seat at the proverbial table no matter where they were physically located.
And guess what?! The ministry completely blew their campaign goal out of the water. Not only did they raise their initial $220K goal to $300K, they surpassed that stretch goal by an additional $30K.
When we break it down, here’s a few factors that contributed to how exceptionally well this faith-based fundraiser performed:
- Having an easily customizable and dedicated campaign page, that aligns seamlessly with their brand
- Ability to track both online and offline donations on a streamlined platform
- Ability to raise support and reach a wider audience through social sharing
- Giving donors the option of making recurring donations on their donation form
- Dedicating a month-long period to promote a sense of urgency
- Raising the campaign goal when the initial goal was reached
Tip: For more tried and true peer-to-peer fundraising strategies, check out our learn more about peer-to-peer fundraising.
Other Faith-Based Organization Fundraising Ideas:
- Virtual Walkathon/Hike – Participants join and walk on their own towards a virtual finish line. Anyone can participate at their own pace regardless of their geography. Participants generally pay a registration fee and create a page to fundraise from their family and friends.
- UnGala (aka Virtual Gala) – a peer-to-peer fundraising campaign that takes out the traditional components (and headaches) of a live event. An ungala can be combined with other revenue-generating ideas such as an online auction.
- Virtual Movie Night – an interactive way for groups to link up and watch a movie together in the comfort of their own living rooms. For the fundraising component, have “moviegoers” donate an amount equivalent to a regular movie ticket.
Check out more top-performing virtual fundraising event ideas.
2. Increase Your Social Media Presence
To brag on Dorcas Ministries some more, we also want to highlight how the organization made great use of their social media for their Day of Thanksgiving campaign. By sharing client stories via Facebook, they’ve increased the number of people who will see (and participate) in their campaign.
And…they didn’t just stop there.
The organization also leveraged social media to promote their Fill the Gap Holiday Food Drive and to highlight groups for their efforts:
Tip: With CauseVox’s integrated social share function, you can link your campaign across multiple social media channels.
3. Crowdfund To Fill A Gap
If you’re looking to fill a funding gap, raise money for an unexpected emergency, or get an innovative idea off the ground, crowdfunding is another viable strategy.
As a means to aid with post-covid recovery, the Israel Tennis and Education Centers set up an emergency relief fund to serve Israeli children in need of essential services.
By conveying urgency in their appeal, ITEC has raised over $133K so far.
The benefits of crowdfunding goes beyond simply raising money. Nonprofit crowdfunding allows you to tell your org’s story and mobilize direct support for your cause. These connections, when nurtured, can later become some of your org’s most loyal supporters.
4. Fundraise Online Through Peer-to-Peer
Cedar Creek Ministries Inc. took thoughts and prayers to the next level with their Prayer Pledge Drive. As an organization that ministers to religious leaders, this fundraiser promoted a month of prayer using a creative (and relevant!) giving tier:
For a $28 donation, Cedar Creek would pray over all pastors everyday for 28 days ($1 a day commitment) during the month of February. For a $40 donation, the organization sent the donor a unique set of shareable prayer cards.
To cater to a more visual audience, Cedar Creek created videos to explain the purpose of the fundraiser.
Or, if you’re looking to be more targeted, consider setting up a fundraiser for a specific program similar to how HOPE worldwide did in 2019 for their National Youth Advisory Council:
Don’t forget that p2p can also be used for year-end fundraising as shown by Project PEARLS’ 2020 Adopt a PEARLS family campaign. By sponsoring a family in need, donors are providing more than just presents – they’re giving hope during the holiday season:
Here, you can see how Project Pearls activated a small-but-mighty group of supporters to fundraise for families in need:
5. Encourage Recurring Giving For Your Faith-Based Organization
Another great source for donations is recruiting supporters that have given to your organization in the past to become monthly recurring donors. By allowing donors to donate on a recurring basis, the benefit is two-fold:
- You’re setting yourself up for future success by increasing funds raised. Recurring donors tend to give 42% more annually than donors that give once a year.
- You’ll give your nonprofit a more predictable stream of revenue. Recurring donors have a 90% retention rate.
Take the Germantown Avenue Crisis Ministry for instance. Last year, they doubled their $10K goal raising over $21K from nearly 200 donors for their Neighbors Helping Neighbors Thrive campaign. By enabling recurring donations on their CauseVox donation page, donors can select the frequency of their gifts and whether they would like to make their gift recurring.
Planning Your Next Faith-Based Organization’s Fundraiser?
No matter your religious affiliation, raising money for your faith-based organization doesn’t have to be a headache.
CauseVox can help you fundraise online easily, with easy-to-use donation pages (+ monthly recurring giving), crowdfunding, peer-to-peer fundraising, ticketed fundraising events, and more!
Get started on CauseVox today.
