7 Quick and Easy Tips to Boost Your Next Peer-to-Peer Fundraiser

Hosting peer-to-peer campaigns and events is a great way to extend your fundraising reach. But, what do you do when your peer-to-peer (p2p) fundraising results need a boost?  

Here are seven quick and easy tips for improving your peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns and events:

1. Make your website easier to use.

Go to the homepage of your website, pretend that you have never been to the website before, and step through the online process for your peer-to-peer campaign or event. Ask yourself the following questions, and work with your website manager to tweak the online process and make the website easier for donors and participants to use:

  • Is it clear what I should do if I want to learn more, register, or donate?
  • How many clicks does it take to sign up or donate?
  • How many questions am I asked during the registration or donation process (and do we really need to ask all of them)?
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  • If I’m donating, is it easy to find the person I want to donate on behalf of?
  • If I’m registering as a fundraiser, how easy it is for me to sign up and then actually start fundraising?
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2. Revisit your message.

You need an impactful story to get your supporters excited about helping you raise funds, and also for them to share with friends and family. Take a look at your story and communications for your campaign or event, and make sure they answer these questions:

  • What makes our organization unique?
  • What impact are we having on our mission?
  • What problem does this particular peer-to-peer fundraising campaign solve?
  • How do we want people to feel about our campaign (emotionally touched, inspired, outraged)?

3. Get the word out more clearly.

Many of your supporters will be happy to participate and help you raise funds — you just need to ask! Make sure that in every form of communication, your call-to-action is clear. And remember, asking someone to register and asking someone to fundraise are two DIFFERENT asks. If someone hasn’t registered yet, your messaging should be about asking them to register (not “register and then fundraise”). Once someone is a registered participant, then you can target them with fundraising communications.

4. Leverage your participants.

The supporters who register to fundraise for your organization can be your biggest cheerleaders. Ask your top performers how else they may want to help, and see if they can use their story to recruit other participants. You’ll likely get more fundraisers onboard and deepen your relationship with your participants.

5. Tie money to something real.

Associate the donation levels for your campaign or event with what the funds will provide for your organization. Letting supporters know that their donation will help feed a family of four or send a child to school for a year is more impactful than simply asking for a specified amount of money.

6. Reach out directly.

Pick up the phone and call your fundraisers. Ask them how things are going, and thank them for their work. Or, write a personalized note/email to thank fundraisers for their support. Also consider adding texts to the mix — they’re a great way to send a virtual high-five to fundraisers as they reach milestones.

7. Get creative.

There’s almost no limit to the number of ways you can use the peer-to-peer fundraising model to raise funds and engage with supporters. Check out what other nonprofits are doing to get ideas and inspiration on creative approaches to peer-to-peer fundraising.

When your peer-to-peer fundraising needs a boost, you don’t necessarily need to overhaul it. A few quick and simple changes today can go a long way to taking your program to new heights!

Author bio

Daniella Dowiak is the Account Manager at Cathexis Partners. Daniella has worked in the nonprofit sector for more than ten years. With a deep understanding of nonprofits’ limited resources, she is passionate about helping organizations get the most out of their technology.