How to Use Crowdfunding to Exceed Your Fundraising Goal in a Week: The Story of One Fund Boston

By Stephanie Kapera, Software Advice

In light of tragedy and disaster, crowdfunding can be a particularly successful fundraising strategy if a multichannel approach is taken. The One Fund Boston was formed in response to the Boston Marathon bombings. In just a matter of days, the organization raised more than $20 million, and stirred quite a media frenzy with their impressive figures.

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Though disasters of any sort are always tragic, nonprofit organizations can raise considerable money for a cause by launching immediate campaigns as a response. In the case of The One Fund Boston, there was immediate support from donors wishing to help those impacted by the bombings.

The One Fund Boston’s use of Teespring and Pinterest drew mass attention quickly, and the subsequent dollars the organization was seeking. Teespring allowed several individuals to create custom t-shirts in honor of the tragedy. From there, clever use of thought leaders and social media tools flourished.

Based on The One Fund Boston’s success, here are five tips your nonprofit organization should keep in mind when trying to launch a response crowdfunding campaign:

1. Act Quickly: The window to act is very small. It’s crucial to launch a response campaign as soon as possible following a “focusing event.” It’s important to also keep in mind that online donations after disaster drop within just one week. Acting quickly is pertinent for a successful campaign.
2. Leverage Online Influencers: Leveraging those who already have an established footprint in the social media sphere is also very valuable. In this particular case, several of those involved in The One Fund Boston reached out to Joe Waters, a well-known figure in the nonprofit sector. Waters then gathered support through his Twitter and Pinterest accounts, both of which have significant followings.
3. Use Multiple Channels: Using Pinterest and Twitter together led to a more widespread outreach in this case. In other cases, it’s important to also use Facebook, other social media sites like LinkedIn, and blogs. Using all the available tools during a response campaign can spread a message like wildfire. k
4. Create a Hashtag: Hashtags are essentially bookmarks. By creating campaign-specific hashtags, not only does it brand the campaign, it can also lead to special partnerships like the case of #TeamAutism; Samsung and the Dan Marino Foundation established a partnership where Samsung agreed to donate $5 for every “#TeamAustin” tweet. In just three days, more than $100,000 was raised.
5. Get Visual: Infographics and visual support are proven to stir more interest in a campaign. Most learning occurs visually, so using visual tools along with social media strategy can help improve the success rate of campaigns.

Collectively, these tools can help maximize the success of your crowdfunding campaign.

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