The non-profit community is constantly wrestling with the value of social media in fundraising. Can Facebook, Twitter and Instagram bring in donations?
Social media can be a powerful tool for peer to peer fundraising, because of the old fundraising adage, “people give to people.” If your pal is running a race and shares the link to their fundraising page on your wall, you’re probably much more likely to support them than you are to make a general donation to the race.
Overall, most non-profit thought leaders agree that social media is a better tool for friendraising, rather than fundraising. Facebook is a place for finding new followers, engaging supporters on a regular basis, and sharing your mission, but not necessarily a place to collect donations.
For example, Special Olympics uses fantastic imagery on its flagship Facebook page to raise awareness, educate the general public about people with intellectual disabilities and shape perceptions.
Taking a look back on this #MedalMonday at some amazing portraits via ESPN from Special Olympics World Games Los Angeles 2015 of athletes showing off their bling!
Posted by Special Olympics on Monday, September 21, 2015
Ryan Eades, Director of Digital & Social Engagement for Special Olympics, says fundraising takes a backseat to these primary goals for the page, since it’s so hard to fundraise on Facebook.
Recently, however, Facebook threw a bone to charities, releasing a “Donate Now” call-to-action button for Pages set to “Non-Profit Organization.”
Posted by Facebook Business on Monday, August 24, 2015
Non-profit fundraisers shouldn’t throw a party in Facebook’s honor just yet. The “Donate Now” button has its flaws. It’s buried in the cover photo, and users might be scared off by the “Not endorsed by or affiliated with Facebook” pop-up that appears before Facebook sends you to the organization’s donate page.
But its potential lies in the ability to use the button on Facebook sponsored posts.
Posted by Facebook Business on Wednesday, August 26, 2015
As Nonprofit Tech for Good put it, “storytelling via Facebook status updates merged with a Facebook ‘Donate Now’ button could be a winning combination.” But I would revise their statement and say, visual storytelling via Facebook updates merged with the “Donate Now” button could be a winning combination. Make sure that button is appealing to click by ensuring that you have a great cover photo, sized correctly to make the awesome first impression.
If the “Donate Now” button has a shot at being effective, it will only work when it’s paired with powerful visual content that makes you want to donate.
“Special Olympics gives those who may feel that they live in a world where they don’t fit in the opportunity to be in an environment where they are just like everybody else.” — Vanessa Aguirre
Posted by Special Olympics on Friday, August 21, 2015
Eades explains that Special Olympics’ most engaging pieces of Facebook content are compelling pictures of athletes celebrating success. They pair these images with captions that provide powerful context, like in the post above.
Your attention span is short. It will take powerful visual communication to get you to click that “Donate Now” button as you’re scrolling through your newsfeed.
But if organizations catch your attention with captivating images, move you with meaningful (and short) captions, and use the donate button as a (slightly easier) vehicle to their fundraising page, perhaps the “Donate Now” button will be able to make a difference.
Only time and testing will tell.
To try it out with your organization, check out Nonprofit Tech for Good’s How To: Add a “Donate Now” Button to Your Nonprofit’s Facebook Page.
