Real-Life Examples of Impactful Campaigns on Fundraising Platforms

Fundraising is an art; every keen fundraiser aims to make a difference. With so many organizations taking away people’s attention, knowing innovative and creative ways to engage your audience and motivate them to support your cause is important. 

Since thousands of nonprofits compete to get their voices heard, how you can highlight your cause and make an impact is an important question that often pops up in the fundraising committee’s mind.

To help answer this question, this article lists some of the best inspirational and impactful fundraising campaigns to date. 

Take notes to create a place in people’s hearts through your fundraising campaigns.

#1 Cycle for Survival - P2P Fundraiser for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Cycle for Survival is a movement meant to beat rare cancers. 

This fundraising campaign accelerates progress in the research to fight off rare cancers and to bring new and better treatment options for people with rare cancer around the world

This campaign was started by Jennifer Goodman Linn, a patient at Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) and Equinox member, along with her spouse, Dave Linn. 

They gathered a bunch of friends and family for an indoor cycling ride in New York. With just 230 people and 50 bikes, they raised $250,000 for rare cancer research. 

Now, high-energy stationary-cycling events are being led by Equinox Group instructors at different outdoor locations across the country. 

All the money raised by this movement supports research and lifesaving clinical trials at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), the world’s oldest and largest private institution dedicated to revolutionizing our understanding and treatment of cancer.

Cycle for Survival made history by surpassing $300 million in total funds raised through its signature stationary-cycling events. 

The help of this amount has equipped hundreds of MSK physicians, scientists, and researchers to pursue bold ideas and transform how cancer is diagnosed and treated.

#2 Real Men Wear Pink — Fundraiser for Breast Cancer

Real Men Wear Pink is a campaign by the American Cancer Society that involves men and drives their support in the fight against breast cancer. 

Men Wear Pink ambassadors in several communities across the US help raise awareness and money to fight breast cancer by wearing pink during the month of October. 

This power of wearing pink also helps draw attention to the breast cancer fight which helps in raising awareness and donations. The raised amount helps the American Cancer Society save more and more lives from breast cancer through early detection and prevention. 

Moreover, these funds also help the ACS breakthrough breast cancer discovery and research, and lifesaving patient support.

This successful fundraising campaign has raised more than $40 million since its inception, which powered a live 24/7 helpline for breast cancer-related answers and support.

#3 Extra Life — Fundraiser for Children’s Hospital

This fundraising campaign is unique, but this creative idea has helped raise money for many children’s health. This campaign took advantage of the wide network of gamers around the world and turned it into an opportunity. 

Extra Life is a fundraising campaign by the Children’s Miracle Network Hospital meant to raise money to aid in the treatment of sick and injured kids in their local communities. 

Extra Life encourages and unites thousands of gamers around the globe to play games to support their local Children's Miracle Network Hospital. 

Gamers take part in video games, board games, and outdoor games. These gamers help raise money all year round.

Extra Life has raised more than $70 million for sick and injured kids since its inception in 2008. These funds help in life-saving treatment, care, and research of the UCSF kids. 

#4 Wings for Life — World Run (Spinal Cord Research Fundraiser)

Creating physical challenges is a traditional tried and tested way of fundraising. This fundraising campaign surpasses the traditional idea of charity marathons or boat races and brings on more unconventional sports events that can attract more attention. 

Wings For Life is a charity to fuel the research on spinal cord injury. 

The participants of this campaign raise money by running. However, instead of aiming to run a specific distance, participants have to run as far as possible within 30 minutes. 

They set a chaser car off after half an hour and as soon as it passes a participant, their racing time is up. This campaign gives quite a challenge to the people, which makes it intriguing and makes for good viewing. 

The Wings for Life World Run raised over 4 million euros for spinal cord research in the year 2021. This fundraiser was a tremendous success because sports are a great way to get people involved and engaged with fundraisers. 

Putting a slight twist on it makes it even more fun and attracts a wider audience. 

#5 Charity: Water — Quiz Fundraiser for Water Crisis

You may have probably heard of the Charity: Water campaign because of its worldwide success. 

Scott Harrison founded Charity: Water in 2006, and in less than a decade, it became a leader in the nonprofit sector and a fundraising powerhouse. 

It is a non-profit organization dedicated to ending the global water crisis and bringing clean and safe water to people around the world. 

Their fundraising campaign to raise awareness for the water crisis helped them reach a wide audience and educate the world about the impactful information. 

This campaign comprises a quiz called ‘How much do you know about the water crisis?’ which sheds light on important facts about the ongoing water crises of the world. People took the quiz and shared it with their peers and family to raise more awareness.

This was a creative way to raise awareness about such a serious topic where Charity: Water managed to tap into the competitive nature of humans and use it to their advantage.

#6 To Write Love on Her Arms—Virtual 5K Fundraiser for Mental Health

To Write Love on Her Arms is a nonprofit movement dedicated to offering hope and finding help for people who struggle with mental health issues such as depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide.

One of their successful and most impactful campaigns is ‘Run For It 5k’. 

This Run For It 5k campaign is a fundraising event that takes place every year where thousands of people come together and run, walk, jog, or roll 3.1 miles as a way to represent how much hope and healing is important to them.

However, in 2020, because of COVID-19, they held their Run For It 5k event virtually instead of canceling it. This virtual run comprised people signing up and simply running or walking 3.1 miles in their neighborhoods. 

#7 Good Work Austin — Fundraiser for Food Crisis

Good Work Austin (GWA) is a social charity that supports the hospitality industry by working with employers to raise their wages, provide benefits, improve workplace culture and feed communities that are experiencing food insecurity.

This nonprofit is dedicated to eliminating food crises in Austin. The Good Work Austin Community Kitchen pays the local restaurants to provide nutritious meals to their workers and the communities facing food insecurity. 

They also train the next generation of hospitality industry workers to boost the economy. Since the initial year of 2020, the GWA Community Kitchen has distributed over 2 million meals. 

It gives over 10 million dollars to the local economy and ensures more local restaurants can stay in business.

#8 Do Something.org — Would You Rather Environmental Cleanup 

DoSomething.org is a major non-profit platform that gives space to many social workers to run their campaigns and raise money. 

DoSomething members transform their local communities around the US and 131 countries around the world. 

This nonprofit fuels the young people to change the world for the greater good. 

A student-led one of their campaigns to help other students like him gain control of their financial lives through a ‘Would You Rather?’ quiz. This quiz helped students learn ways to earn and save money.

Another one of their fundraising campaigns, ‘GTFO: GET THE FILTER OUT,’ helped collect 3,700,000 cigarette butts from around the world. They dedicated this campaign to cleaning up the cigarette butt litter in order to protect the animals and the environment. 

This campaign was successful and also highlighted the impact of littering around cigarette butts, which can lead to serious wildfires. 

#9 Meals on Wheels People — Meals for Old Adults

Meals on Wheels People is a charity organization that is dedicated to fulfilling the social and nutritional needs of more senior adults in the community. 

They serve delicious and nutritious meals at dozens of dining centers in Multnomah, Washington, and Clark counties. 

Their volunteers deliver the Meals on Wheels meals to homebound elderly. The group of volunteers also visit these old age homes. Their motto is ‘No senior will go hungry or experience social isolation.’

The Meals on Wheels volunteers produce up to 7,300 nutritious meals four days each week in a 14,000-square-foot commercial kitchen which is located in the heart of Multnomah Village. 

This non-profit also assists them in maintaining independence by providing human connections and social support. They have helped and given hundreds of senior citizens hope through their empathy and hard work. 

#10 United Food Bank — Summer of a Million Meals Campaign

United Food Bank is a nonprofit organization that aims to distribute food through 150 agency partners that are helping feed those in need. 

Their campaign, “Summer of a Million Meals,” portrays that hunger never takes a vacation, so they work to raise funds for a million meals through this campaign. 

Their goal is simple: a million meals for people who worry constantly about where their next meal will come from. This nonprofit helps provide meals to those facing food insecurity and ease their hunger.

#11 Movember — Charity for Mental Health, Suicide Prevention, Prostate and Testicular cancer 

Have you noticed how more and more gents have been sporting facial hair on the days near Christmas over the past few years? 

This isn’t just for the manly looks but a result of an impactful fundraising campaign called Movember. 

Movember’s fundraising concept is simple. This campaign encourages guys to grow out their mustaches during November, which, as Movember says, ‘your face will raise funds and awareness.’

Movember is the leading charity that is changing the face of men's health on a global scale. Its focus is on mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer, and testicular cancer. All their raised funds go directly into tackling male health issues such as prostate cancer.

It's a fun and different way to raise money for a serious cause. Growing a mustache and flaunting it as a badge of honor that is for the greater good can play a positive role in a person’s self-esteem. 

#12 International Animal Rescue — Break the Cage

The International Animal Rescue is an animal rights organization that is dedicated to putting an end to animal suffering while also protecting the environment for people and the planet. 

They aim to restore the balance between humans and wildlife to create a more sustainable and healthier planet.

One of IAR’s most powerful campaigns, ‘Break The Cage,’ targets the poachers in Armenia who kill brown female bears to steal their cubs and sell them ahead. 

A short animated film showcased a bear cub having a great time with its mother in the wild, but the atmosphere was ruined when someone shot and killed the mother. Then, the little cub was captured and sentenced to life in captivity.

This film quickly raised awareness of the seriousness of the cause and portrayed the animal cruelty that happens in real life. They then urged the viewers to sign a petition calling for heavier penalties for bear poachers in Armenia. 

They also shared the petition far and wide on their social media. The IAR used storytelling to raise awareness about the cause, which invoked strong human emotions and attracted them to sign the petition. 

#13 Red Nose Day — Charity for Child Poverty

Red Nose Day is an annual charity campaign that aims to raise life-changing funds in order to help end the cycle of child poverty and ensure that children are safe, educated, and empowered across the world.

Branding is a big part of this campaign, with its wearable red noses on sale in almost every major store. This iconic red nose symbolizes hope and positive change. The power of the Red Nose campaign has been strong since the year 2015. 

The campaign's unique and multi-faceted approach to tackling both the consequences and the root causes of child poverty, including health, safety, education, and empowerment, has inspired many celebrities to support the cause.

Red Nose Day-funded programs also provide long-term solutions that set children up for a lifetime of success. 

Comic Relief US had a record-breaking year in 2022 since it raised over $50 million, and its flagship Red Nose Day campaign was the most successful campaign to this day.

Conclusion

In a world where attention is fought over, nonprofits must innovate in planning their fundraising campaigns. Nonprofits have to be innovative when they plan their fundraising campaigns. 

A successful fundraiser requires creativity to attract people who prefer unique things over traditional methods.

Remember that these campaigns don't experience overnight success, so it's important to be patient. It takes time, practice, and willingness to create a better world. 

In the blog, there were examples given that illustrated teamwork, creativity, and a willingness to adapt to change. You can get some ideas of your own by looking at these impactful fundraising campaigns. 

And if you’re looking to raise funds with ease and transparency, sign up on BetterWorld today!