Board Member Fundraising Activation with Peer to Peer

What is Peer-to-Peer Fundraising?

Peer-to-peer (P2P) is a type of crowdfunding that empowers your nonprofit’s supporters to raise money on your behalf.

How does it work? A board member creates a fundraising page on Mightycause connected to your nonprofit. From there they ask their social network to make donations to your cause. (That’s where the “peer-to-peer” name comes from.) 

If you want to organize a group of individuals to fundraise for your nonprofit, we call that a team fundraiser. In a team fundraiser, which is a type of P2P campaign, team members compete on a leaderboard to raise the most money or bring in the most donors for their cause. Need Inspiration? Check out One Team One Goal APCC, a fundraising team organized for Asia Pacific Cultural Center.

If you’d like to be able to get both individuals and teams fundraising that’s what our Events product is for!

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Why Peer-to-Peer Fundraising is Perfect for Board Member Fundraising?

Adding a P2P element to your annual fundraising plan will help you reach a new audience. Even if your nonprofit has a robust list of donors to solicit annually, P2P is a great way to add new names to your list and amplify your message.

P2P fundraising is one of the best donor acquisition tools available. The average fundraiser on Mightycause brings in 15 donors, most of whom are new to the cause. 

Running a fundraiser for your cause can also help deepen the relationship your biggest supporters have with your nonprofit. In general, for donors and supporters, P2P gives them a new and exciting way to champion your nonprofit’s mission and engage with your work. 

Specifically when it comes to board member fundraising, the concept can feel overwhelming if certain members don’t have experience fundraising directly before. Have a cohesive p2p campaign where you create a template page for each member and provide tips and strategy along the way will make it feel less daunting. And by being a part of a group effort (ie team fundraising campaign) each board member will feel like they are doing their part as part of a larger effort and it’s not all on them. Use the camaraderie of the board itself to make fundraising feel more approachable.

Three Phases of Peer-to-Peer Board Member Fundraising

1. Before

• Inspire your board member fundraising: Before you convince them to fundraise for you, you must remind board members of your need and how they can help. Being open and transparent about the areas where your nonprofit is struggling is something you should already be doing with your board. It is important to show them how they can help as the next step.
• Look for opportunities: Your board members should be expected to act as ambassadors throughout your peer-to-peer fundraising process and during the days leading up to it. Ask them to stay on the lookout for opportunities to promote the fundraiser online and in person.
• Provide Tools and Resources: Provide a quick training session at one of your board meetings so they can maximize their ability to fundraise successfully.  Make it even easier by supplying them with key talking points about your organization, and print collateral.  In fact, provide them with image assets, instructions for creating a fundraiser, sample social media posts, and emails, which are best pulled together in a toolkit.

2. During

• Use that Network: Your board members should be ready to tap into their personal and professional network for potential donations. Work with them to identify prospects and supply them with the tools for making the ask.
• Amplify Your Messages: Have your board members celebrate your successes by asking them to share fundraising milestones and posts on their social networks. This will amplify your progress while serving as a subtle reminder that there is still time to donate.
• Support your fundraising ambassadors: After your board members have signed up to participate and their pages are published, your main job is to provide support. Mightycause provides technical support but you’ll want to provide moral support and encouragement and stoke the flames of competition!

• • FUNDRAISING TIP – Create a “24 Donors in 24 Hours” Challenge: Less than 1% of #GivingTuesday fundraisers that had 24+ donors participate in 24 hours raised less than $1000. The concept of raising $1000+ can be tough for some P2P participants, boards, and ambassadors, but challenging them to get 24 donors in 24 hours feels like a more attainable goal.

3. After 

• Fundraising includes Donor Stewardship: Ask your board to thank donors via email and social media. Then give each board member a list of key donors to personally thank at the conclusion of your peer-to-peer fundraising event. This is a great best practice to include with your donor stewardship efforts.
• Don’t forget to thank your board! There are two main groups you’ll want to follow up with after your P2P event or team fundraiser has ended. Firstly, your donors, of course, but also your board and ambassadors. Those who reached out to their social networks to help raise money for your nonprofit are vital. Reach out to them personally, thank them for their efforts, write a note, or even host a happy hour to celebrate a successful campaign!

Gamification and Prizes

You don’t need to break the bank to offer cool prizes to your most successful ambassadors! Bragging rights can be enough to drive many people. However, adding the promise of a prize can really motivate people. Especially your ambassadors to raise more money and step up their fundraising efforts.

Here are some ideas that can help you add gamification to peer-to-peer fundraising without busting your budget:

• Partner with a local business: 

  You likely already have partners in the community who support your cause, so approach them to see if they’d be willing to offer a small prize to help motivate your ambassadors. A free dinner at a local restaurant, movie tickets, a gift certificate to a spa, or even a goodie basket from a local shop is easy for businesses to provide. Give the provider free advertising, good PR, and a chance to bring in new customers. These can all be great prizes for your fundraising superstars!

• Ask your board members to furnish a prize:

While some board members may not be comfortable participating in a P2P campaign, some will be more than happy to provide a prize! Gift baskets, prize bundles, and gift certificates can be easy for them to provide. It can give them a hassle-free way to participate in your campaign.

• Offer merch from your nonprofit:

Do you have t-shirts, bumper stickers, pins, or other swag available for your nonprofit? Better yet, offer it up as a prize for your top ambassadors!

• Offer perks that are free to your nonprofit:

A prize doesn’t need to be a physical object — it could be as simple as a lunch with your executive director, a guided tour of your facilities, recognition on your website or in your lobby, or any number of perks that are easy and free to offer!

Prizes are not required to have a successful peer-to-peer campaign, but doing P2P campaigns can really kickstart the competition. They can motivate your ambassadors to throw themselves into the fundraising process!

No matter how you decide to invest in these kinds of fundraisers remember that starting with your board is a great place as they already believe in your mission and are rooting for your success. The key is to help them turn into the Ambassadors of your Mission that they already are!

For more on Peer-to-Peer Fundraising check out the following articles:

Turning Peer-to-Peer Supporters into Superstars

Peer-to-Peer Event Recruitment Strategies