How to promote your fundraising event on social media

Launching your fundraising event is one thing – getting people to join it is another. Charities and fundraisers are always looking for creative ways to promote their events and reach as many people as possible, to inspire more donations and encourage participation.

 

To that end, social media has become an increasingly valuable tool for fundraisers, helping them to grow entire communities around their events and sharing them widely with others, regardless of location or demographic. Social media can be a proverbial megaphone for event organisers, a catch-all tactic for boosting interest and involvement.

 

However, social media is a noisy place. For every one event, there are ten more from other charities, all competing for the attention of social media users, whether they’re existing supporters or those only newly aware of a particular cause. The challenge for charities is how to stand out, set themselves and their event apart, and make it as easy as possible for people who would be interested to take part.

 

And social media is not a monolith. There are many different capabilities, demographics, and behaviours all encompassed by different social media platforms. For example, TikTok is a video platform, predominantly used by younger generations. Facebook, which has 3 billion monthly active users across the world, is popular among millennials, can host a variety of content types, and allows fundraisers to share posts easily with their friends and family.

 

Charities must account for these differences when building a plan to promote their fundraising event via social media. Fundraising software provider iRaiser advises starting with setting clear goals around what you want to achieve – is it more ticket sales or getting your hashtag trending? “It’s a good idea to take a step back and think about your goals for the event itself,” iRaiser explains. “From there, ask yourself how your social media campaign can support these goals.”

 

iRaiser has developed a helpful guide for charities to support them in developing a strategy for promoting fundraising events via social media. The guide, “10 weeks to promote your peer-to-peer fundraising on social media”, offers charities:

• Information on the best platforms to use for specific audiences
• Advice on how to plan and create content
• A clear 10-week checklist to inform a fruitful event promotion timeline

In this article, we explore some of the essential elements of event promotion on social media, as outlined by the guide, and how charities can use them to make their fundraising event a success.

 

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Goals

 

As established above, the first thing charities need to work out is their objective. Once you have worked that out, organisations must then ask themselves how social media can support them in that aim. Your goals will inform what channels you use and the content you share. 

 

For example, if your goal is to attract more sponsors, an active social media presence with glossy, impact-focused content will be inviting and will build trust in your work. For recruiting volunteers, perhaps more authentic user-generated content would be more suitable, to show people’s real experiences supporting your charity and how exactly they can get involved.

 

iRaiser recommends following the SMART strategy of goal-setting, making them Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound: “Rather than the vague “I want my event to be more successful” you have the much clearer and far more motivating “I want my event to generate 30% more revenue from ticket sales in the next six months””.

 

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Content

 

What content you choose to post is likely to depend on what channels you are using. It can be text, images, graphics, or videos. It can be spontaneous and simple or planned and uber-professional. Depending on your goals and your audiences, there is room for all.

 

A balance of planned and spontaneous content is advisable, according to the guide. “While simple or spontaneous content can be a valuable part of a social media campaign, this planning stage is the perfect time to create some basic visual assets or text copy you can use again and again,” it explains. 

 

Create a series of taglines and ideas for posts at different stages of your event promotion. Save a file with existing images, logos, and videos that can accompany different posts and establish your brand. And share some basic copy that describes your event concisely that can be referred to and republished as often as necessary. Planning content means you don’t miss key moments and you have more freedom to create in-the-moment content when the need arises.

 

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Buzz

 

iRaiser’s guide talks about using a “tentpole” marketing strategy, in which the pinnacle of buzz around your event occurs during the event, having been built-up pre-event and managed down post-event (looking, on a graph, much like a tent).  The tentpoles in question should take the form of announcements and content planned to keep people aware of and excited about your event.

 

“Metaphorically, you can use major announcements and milestones as the tent poles of your social media campaign,” says iRaiser. “The idea is to have one main message at a time and to repeat it, rephrase it, and add more details until it’s time for the next announcement or message.”

 

Charities should plan what announcements will guide their messaging and content and how they will follow on from one another. iRaiser also notes that we shouldn’t be afraid of repeating ourselves on social media.

 

The sixth post for us might be the first time someone else comes across it. The point of using social media to promote events is to reach those who would be interested in attending and make it easier for them to participate – consistent messaging supports that goal.

 

“Remember, with your community spending more time at home and online, social media remains a powerful channel to reach your audience and promote your campaign,” concludes iRaiser. “Many of us are seeking ways to connect with others and feel a sense of community during this time, and through social media, you can offer this to your supporters.”

 

For more details on how to plan a promotional campaign, and for access to the checklist, click below.