Fundraising has long been an arduous process for Mila and her organization POWER PEOPLE - until she discovered the 2024 Fundraising Study. This unique opportunity helped her small non-profit organization learn the right tips and tricks to reach their fundraising goals more easily and effectively. Find out how digital fundraising has led POWER PEOPLE to new successes.
It's a warm fall morning in Augsburg. Mila stands in the small town hall in her neighborhood and looks at the few run-down mats that she and her team have used intensively over the years. They are worn, some are even torn. Ever since she founded the POWER PEOPLE association together with her sister and friends, money has always been tight. Yet they have such an important mission: to offer women and queer people free self-defense courses to give them self-confidence and safety. But there is not enough money to go around. The courses are going well, but the question arises again and again: how should things continue? New mats, better equipment and finally the opportunity to organize a big event - all this seems out of reach.
Mila dreams of expanding her vision, making the club better known in the city and involving the community even more. But how? Collecting donations is tedious work and often brings disappointing results. And the most annoying thing: manual bookkeeping is a huge effort every time. The idea of simply and effectively collecting more donations for her passion project seems almost impossible for Mila and her family.
Finally, Mila takes some time on a rainy afternoon and simply starts googling: "How can I collect donations for my organization?", "Simply collect donations", "Easily find supporters for charitable projects" After some seemingly expensive advice and complicated recommendations, Mila comes across an e-book on fundraising. "The Great RaiseNow Fundraising Study 2024 - Insights, Trends & Best Practices for Your Organization", Mila mumbles to herself and clicks on the suggestion.
At first she is skeptical, because fundraising sounds like bureaucracy and additional costs they can't afford. But the more she reads in the study, the more she realizes that fundraising can be done in a completely different way - uncomplicated, digital and, above all, effective for small non-profit organizations.
Mila skims over a lot of data on donation behavior in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and thinks to herself: "If others can do it, then we can too!" She finds it particularly exciting that over 80% of organizations do not collect donations with a donation jar (like the one she has at the exit of every course). Most organizations use online fundraising.
Mila thinks about the handwritten note with POWER PEOPLE's bank details hanging on the door to the course room. "Online fundraising? And how is that supposed to work, I don't know how to program," Mila thinks to herself. But she scrolls on and gets stuck on a page about online donation forms. It turns out that it's not difficult at all to collect donations online and keep track of them at the same time. Mila learns that such forms can easily be integrated into your own website - and best of all, they can even be designed in the club's colors. This arouses Mila's curiosity.
Hesitant but determined, she continues reading and becomes particularly interested when she reads about social media. Social media - that's exactly what her sister Jana is interested in. A WhatsApp message to her sister and a cup of tea together later, the decision is made: POWER PEOPLE gets an Instagram account.
Mila quickly and easily registers with RaiseNow and creates an online donation form for POWER PEOPLE. It looks really professional on the website, and Jana has created an Instagram page in the meantime, which already has a few followers because she sent the link to all her friends and WhatsApp contacts. There are also no more handwritten bank slips hanging up in the courses - now there are fancy stickers and flyers that refer to the new Instagram page and the website. A small investment in the future of the organization.
Jana and Mila hope that their efforts will pay off. They place the link to RaiseNow's new donation form directly on Instagram in the stories. Always open on their laptop is the Fundraising Study 2024, which provides them with checklists and practical examples to inspire and help them whenever they get stuck. The study explains step by step how online fundraising works and shows concrete examples of how non-profit organizations like hers can successfully collect donations via social media and digital tools.
And then it happens: Mila is on her way to work when her cell phone pings. An email from RaiseNow: "Your first donation has been received." Mila can hardly believe it. 15 euros! A small amount, but a huge success.
A few weeks have now passed and Mila and Jana are still busy promoting their website and providing information about the association's activities on Instagram. For the first time in the association's history, Mila realizes that collecting donations doesn't have to be complicated and annoying. The fundraising study not only opened her eyes, but also showed her that her organization is able to build sustainable funding in a way that is fun and brings her closer to her community.
Through the new Instagram page and online donation form, they are able to raise enough money to not only buy new mats, but also organize a self-defense action day. The participants are enthusiastic, the donations are flowing in and Mila can hardly believe it: a dream that previously seemed so unattainable has become a reality.
But this is just the beginning. The fundraising study has inspired Mila to think even further ahead. With the right tools and a clear strategy, POWER PEOPLE can achieve more than they ever dreamed of. Their next goal? A big end-of-year party for the entire community. Preparations are already underway, and this time Mila knows she will raise the funds. Thanks to digital fundraising and the support of RaiseNow.
Would you also like to find out how digital fundraising can move your organization forward? The Fundraising Study 2024 is full of practical tips and concrete instructions on how you too can achieve your fundraising goals. Learn from best practices and utilize the latest trends in online fundraising and social media marketing.
Mila and POWER PEOPLE have done it. And you can too.
*Note: This story is fictional and was created for marketing purposes, but is inspired by the experiences and stories of our customers.