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Ideas for Innovative Fundraising

24-Hour Donation Campaign

A 24-hour donation campaign is one of the simplest ways to raise money, especially with an engaging theme or message at its heart. In 2016, a nonprofit based in Tennessee called Blood:Water hosted a 24-hour online campaign called The Real Game of Thrones that focused on gathering enough funds to build 21 latrines in Rwanda.

The organization works to fight the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa, and an extension of that is promoting sanitation and hygiene. With the sweeping popularity of the “Game of Thrones” HBO show, the theme made the campaign more relevant to online viewers and opened discourse on a subject that people would normally avoid, as toilets.

“The campaign was a great way to use current pop culture to shed light on the importance of healthy habits, sanitation and hygiene in sub-Saharan Africa,” said Audrey Millicevic, relations specialist at the organization. With just 184 donations, the campaign raised nearly $15,000, and donors received updates on the progress of the latrines throughout construction.

At conferences and events that have large groups, a 24-hour push is a great way to motivate attendees to make a difference in a fundraising cause while they are all together. And the momentum built by participants watching a tally grow in real time at a group event can bring greater success than standard fundraising campaigns.

Viral Video Challenge

Who can forget the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that went viral in 2014? The campaign demonstrated that fundraising does not have to be complicated or expensive to be a success, raising a reported $150 million for the ALS Association, which fights to cure a neurodegenerative illness commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

The campaign was simple: Pour a bucket of ice over your head and challenge a friend or family member to do the same within 24 hours or donate $100 to charity, though many people chose to do both. The videos spread like wildfire across the internet, with celebrities like Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey taking part.

So, what made it such a success? For one thing, humor is always a great incentive. Everyone loves a chance to do something amusing for a cause. The challenge also gave people a fun and easy way to make a difference.

Meeting planners can incorporate similar concepts into their events in a variety of ways. Encourage participants to create fundraising videos ahead of the conference, then play some of the best during the event. Or use the conference as an opportunity to launch a viral video campaign, showing the organization’s leaders taking part in a fun video to inspire other attendees to do the same.

Donate to Play

One of the most consistently popular types of fundraisers is a sporting event, which can involve anything from a 5K run to a community basketball tournament. In Muskegon County, Michigan, the city took advantage of the region’s beautiful lakes to host a Stand Up for the Cure paddleboarding event. The registration fee helped support breast cancer programs and research led by the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

“We had women and men from all over west Michigan come to participate,” said Bob Lukens, community development director at Visit Muskegon. “Virtually everyone knows someone affected by breast cancer, so it’s an issue people care deeply about.”

During the event, people could enjoy paddleboarding lessons and races, as well as food and music. The local hospital stepped in to provide free cancer screenings. In addition to raising awareness, the fundraiser enabled people to try something new with their friends and families.