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4 Fundraising Trends that are Here to Stay

By Whit Hunter

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Online fundraising first opened new donation pathways to nonprofit supporters more than two decades ago. There’s no debating the rapid growth of this philanthropic trend. Online giving grew 10% in 2019 alone. This supporter behavior is expected to become even more widespread for years to come as our social habits continue to evolve.

Accepting digital donations is, of course, nothing new for the modern nonprofit landscape. Today’s fundraising trends reflect how organizations use this virtual space to match supporters’ needs, preferences, and behaviors to ensure that online donation rates keep climbing.

Top fundraising trends for 2021 and how nonprofits can harness them

As the digital world evolved, it reshaped how people access and engage with the causes they support. This dynamic bridged communication gaps through virtual connection, helping nonprofits foster broader levels of social impact.

It’s also raised the bar for organizations to deliver their message effectively, with more competition over donation dollars than ever before. To streamline mission success, nonprofits need to align their fundraising strategies with the expectations of today’s audiences.

After all, reports continue to show that philanthropic giving keeps growing. Leveraging today’s biggest fundraising trends can help ensure that your nonprofit’s bottom line does, too. ‌

A greater small-donor impact

Online gifts average around $148 across all nonprofit subsectors. This figure stems from a wide range of donations — nonprofits can’t afford to alienate the impact of even the smallest contributor.

This idea of micro-philanthropy, or encouraging gifts as low as $1, can lead to powerful results because it:

  • Engages a larger base of supporters
  • Motivates recurring giving and greater lifetime donor value
  • Cultivates younger donors, converting them to lifelong supporters
  • Generates social sharing and cause-related connections

This cycle of small giving also increases a nonprofit’s exposure with every social share, scaling the value of each donation no matter the size.

To benefit from this trend, nonprofits should appeal to the behaviors that set it in motion. This includes methods like:

  • Impact-giving that informs donors how their contribution is used, as in what impact $5, $15, or $500 will have
  • Crowdfunding campaigns that fund specific objectives
  • Text-to-donate options
  • Partnerships with consumer platforms like Uber, Venmo, or Shopify that offer simple yet creative ways to support causes
  • Experiential campaigns that provide more authentic connections between donors and your cause

It’s critical to support the avenues that field supporter excitement as well. Make sure that your donation pages are mobile-optimized — in 2019, more than a quarter of online giving occurred via a mobile device.

Integrating fundraising with social media and providing instant receipts also simplifies it for people to offer their support from anywhere, at any time. ‌

Heightened demand for transparency

The rise of social media and increased information access has shifted the balance of power to your audience of supporters. People have grown more accustomed to everything from delivery order tracking to voicing concerns over corporate activities. They expect this same level of transparency in the charity dollars that they give.

Nonprofits need to meet this donor demand by clearly communicating:

  • The details of your organization’s operations and goals
  • Any perceived or actual conflicts of interest
  • Who benefits from donations and how you’ll use each gift

It’s good practice for nonprofits to include a rundown of fund allocations in their communications with donors, whether blog posts, email updates, thank you notes, or newsletters. To offer additional public accountability and build trust, organizations should also:

  • Post recent 990 tax returns on your website
  • Apply for a Better Business Bureau Accredited Charity Seal
  • Get a Charity Navigator rating
  • Keep your nonprofit’s GuideStar listing updated
  • Share impact results across digital channels, from email to social, etc.

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  • Video Integration — boost the buzz around your online fundraising campaign

  • Time-saving – thoughtful automations save dozens of hours over your campaign 

  • One-Click Checkout — our system will automatically charge the lucky winner

  • Text Message Notifications — keep your bidders engaged with text message notifications

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Increased focus on digital events

Today’s virtual technologies don’t just offer nonprofits more opportunities for exposure. They also create a space for hosting digital events that can extend fundraising goals through:

  • Broad donor access that bridges both geographical and generational gaps
  • Engagement tools that scale a cause’s awareness
  • Participation options that fit into donor’s schedules

This trend helps nonprofits to scale any given fundraiser’s reach. Online events also maximize an organization’s most valuable asset: its time.

With the right set of tools, your team will have far fewer logistics to manage during all stages of event planning. This also translates to near-limitless creative potential with fewer overhead expenses.

You could motivate your base with an online auction, digital giveaway, virtual class, or even a remote 5k. To reap the full rewards — without new headaches — use a platform that supports easier event management with features that:

  • Let you fully customize your event, from its organization to how your branding looks
  • Automate payments, fund transfers, and formal receipts
  • Offer easy-to-create ticketing, registration, and dedicated event pages

Even as in-person events return to donors’ calendars, organizations will continue to benefit from digital fundraising with an integrated approach.

No matter what the event, virtual fundraising tools allow you to extend its reach — and impact — by enabling exponential participation among every level of supporter. Whether creating a virtual avenue for your fundraising auction or aligning an impact-giving campaign with your next gala, you can raise more money while deepening connections to small- and large-scale donors alike.

The power of harnessing social movements

The challenges that emerged in 2020 showed us how important it is for organizations to be agile in the face of change. These lessons also presented new growth opportunities.

Today's social issues are more politicized than ever, with people using additional online avenues to discuss the topics closest to their hearts.

Add in today’s 24-hour news cycle, and you get a recipe that works to intensely narrow the public’s focus down to a trending social need — if only for a brief time.

Nonprofits that keep their finger on this pulse can leverage it, driving a heightened awareness for their mission through:

  • A clear, identifiable “victim” that creates an emotional connection to its cause — a psychological effect proven to motivate giving
  • Opportunities for individuals to make an impact in the face of frustrating, sometimes negative news
  • Participation in the social conversation, presenting the organization's work as a solution to a trending issue

When your cause is placed in the public spotlight, your organization needs to be ready to capture the associated spikes in support.

With a platform like BetterWorld, your team gains access to a full suite of tools versatile enough to manage all of your online fundraising efforts — from long-term campaigns to overnight surges of support. Our system aligns with today’s fundraising trends, streamlining better outcomes for your nonprofit without upending its workflow.

When you use BetterWorld to power your digital fundraising, everything you need to drum up donor support is integrated within a single platform — and you get it all for free.

Start powering your fundraising goals with BetterWorld at no cost. We’ll help you spend less time raising funds, giving you more time to use them to serve your mission.

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Whit Hunter
AUTHOR

About Whit Hunter

Whit Hunter is the co-founder of BetterWorld, the free, easy-to-use online fundraising platform. His passion for empowering nonprofits and tech expertise have shaped BetterWorld’s mission to make fundraising more accessible and efficient.

Whit's innovative vision has helped countless organizations raise more funds and reach their goals, driving BetterWorld’s ongoing success.

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