You’ve chosen a mass texting service, but how do you get started with a fundraising campaign for your nonprofit? The right strategy can encourage donors to give significantly via text.
If you’ve never created a text to give campaign, get ready for one of the most successful ways to encourage your audience to give. SMS messaging has a nearly 98% open rate with high conversion rates, retention, and ROI, too!
Keep reading to learn how to use mass text communication to boost your fundraising campaigns.
1. Define Your Goal
What’s the goal of your campaign? Choosing a specific event, project, or goal helps recipients connect with your campaign.
A clear goal also helps you plan the next steps to launching your campaign. With a goal in mind, you’ll also effectively track response, ROI, and measure success.
2. Choose Your Shortcode
Every successful text campaign asks donors to text a word to your fundraising number. This is your shortcode.
As the name implies, keep your shortcode “short.” It should be easy to remember and simple for donors to type in response to your campaign message. Your shortcode should also reflect your campaign.
If you’re raising money for school supplies, “SUPPLIES” makes an excellent, relevant shortcode for your text response.
3. Keep Forms Simple
A donor’s response starts their giving transaction, but they’ll complete their donation online. After receiving the shortcode response from a donor, your messaging system sends a link to a donation form.
Keep your form simple! Donors don’t want to fill out a lot of information from their phones to give a gift. Text to donate campaigns have a better success rate when donors can respond and complete their gift in only a few steps.
Set up your form to collect the basics: name and payment information. Anything more can increase the abandonment rate and reduce the success of your fundraiser.
Don’t worry! You don’t have to settle for a one-time gift from a “drive-by” donor. Increase the long-term effectiveness of your fundraiser by adding an option to give monthly.
4. Promote It
Texting is the method for giving, but it’s not the only way to spread the word about your campaign! Maximize the exposure of your campaign by using email, direct mail, social media, and your website to encourage people to give through your text campaign.
Encourage your social media followers and ongoing supporters to share the campaign. Offer incentives for sharing posts about the campaign to their social media. Contests and giveaways can increase your reach, help others spread the word, and increase giving.
5. Follow Up
When donors text the shortcode to initiate the campaign, they opt-in to communications from your organization. Be sure to thank donors immediately after they complete their gift. Follow up with progress reports on the campaign.
Text To Give For Successful Fundraising Campaigns
Using text to give is a powerful tool for nonprofit fundraising campaigns. Reach donors where they spend a significant amount of time: on their phones!
Let Txtfyre help you increase the effectiveness of your multi-channel fundraising through text. Contact us today!
