Crowdfunding can be an excellent fundraising tool to raise money and excitement about specific nonprofit programs, capital campaigns, and events. In this article, we describe how a crowdfunding campaign works, and provide details on 10 Crowdfunding sites for nonprofits and charities, and how to choose the right one for your organization.
Crowdfunding isn’t a new idea, but, according to the 2023 Crowdfunding Global Market Report, campaigns for investment, debt payments, and donations will continue to grow. The global crowdfunding market is expected to reach $15.54 billion in 2023 – it’s no surprise there are now several top crowdfunding sites for nonprofits and charities.
If you’ve noticed a decrease in funds coming into your organization’s fundraising events and campaigns, or if you’re about to start a capital campaign or year-end fundraising campaign, crowdfunding can be an ideal fundraising strategy. It is an affordable way to help you reach a larger audience and meet your fundraising goals.
The following article will give you a better idea of how to add a campaign to your fundraising strategy and which crowdfunding platforms you can use to succeed.
Crowdfunding uses the power of the people to raise critical funds for your mission. These campaigns ask donors to give towards a specific goal and use tools such as donor walls and goal thermometers to show social proof and promote the urgency behind reaching that goal by the deadline.
Crowdfunding campaigns work best when they have set start and end dates – like Giving Tuesday. They are ideal when funding specific program or project needs, as well as for capital or year-end fundraising campaigns. This type of campaign is also highly shareable, encouraging your supporters to tell their friends and family about your cause and broadening your reach.
If you’re ready to hold a crowdfunding campaign, you must start with a fundraising goal and program or project to fund. Once you’ve decided on that, you can choose an online platform and create a crowdfunding page to add to your website and promote via email and social media.
Once you’re ready to start the campaign, send an email that gives a starting and end date for your campaign along with your fundraising goal. You’ll also want to explain how funds will be used and find compelling stories to show the program’s potential impact.
Throughout your campaign, share how the campaign is going with the rest of your supporters. Take time to publicly thank those who’ve donated or helped spread the word, and invite others to share with their networks.
Crowdfunding sites can help your organization reach more individuals and raise more funds. Finding the right tool to help your organization depends on your fundraising goals and campaign needs. Read on to learn how each platform compares and how to choose the right one for you.
Donorbox offers several ways for individuals and nonprofits to raise funds online, from crowdfunding to peer-to-peer to donation kiosks to event ticketing, and beyond.
The crowdfunding feature lets you create a campaign in minutes. Build customizable donation pages and forms, add images and enticing stories, and send regular updates to donors and volunteers via email and social media. Donors can also subscribe to your campaign and automatically receive updates without any extra work for you.
To get the most out of your crowdfunding campaign, Donorbox also offers the following:
Donors are automatically added to your database along with contact details and information about their gift. You can add other demographic details and schedule notifications to further the relationship and turn them into long-term supporters.
Donorbox is free to set up. A 1.75% platform fee and an additional processing fee will be deducted from donations, but you can encourage donors to pay these fees to ensure their full gift supports your charity’s programs. To access a 1.5% platform fee for most products, sign up for the Pro or Premium plans – learn more here.
Fundly is a crowdfunding platform for individuals, nonprofits, companies, school groups, etc. You can set up a campaign page in minutes, customize the page to match your branding, and share the campaign on social media. You can connect your Gmail, Survey Monkey, and Constant Contact accounts to email your supporters. Every campaign page also features Facebook supporters to increase views!
Other Fundly features include:
Fundly is free to set up and has a 0% platform fee. Processing fees through Stripe are 2.9% + $0.30 for each donation.
Classy is another well-known online donation processor. They offer several fundraising tools to their users, including crowdfunding. Classy is an entirely customizable platform, so you can create a crowdfunding campaign that works perfectly for you and your supporters. Just request a demo and someone from Classy will contact you!
Classy’s crowdfunding tools include:
Pricing with Classy starts at $199 a month plus an additional processing fee.
Fundrazr is another crowdfunding platform that offers individuals and nonprofits the opportunity to set up a crowdfunding campaign in minutes. Add pictures, videos, and stories to your page and immediately start raising funds. Once your campaign page is done, you can use their extensive list of social channels and text features to reach supporters worldwide.
Fundrazr offers other features, too:
Fundrazr has no setup or monthly fees. If you ask supporters for a small tip, you can access the Simply Free plan and a 0% platform fee. You will, however, still have to pay processing fees through PayPal or Stripe. Should you choose the Nearly Free or Not Free plans, you’ll pay a 5% platform fee (you can ask donors to cover these fees on the Nearly Free plan) plus processing fees.
One of the most well-known on this list, GoFundMe has helped raise over $9 billion for individuals and organizations worldwide since its start. GoFundMe makes it easy to set up a campaign, but it is more geared towards individuals raising funds for projects or charities.
Nonprofits can sign up for an account to create campaigns, but features are limited compared to other platforms. Individual users choose a charity, project, or other need to fundraise for before setting a goal and creating a campaign with pictures, videos, and compelling stories.
Other features offered by GoFundMe include:
There is no set-up fee to start your campaign with GoFundMe. There is a 2.9% + $0.30 processing fee deducted from every donation.
CauseVox helps nonprofits create targeted appeals to encourage more excitement. You can also tell your organization’s story with featured videos and images. Use CauseVox to share crowdfunding campaigns on Facebook, Twitter, and via email and track donations as they come in.
CauseVox users can also benefit from these additional crowdfunding features:
CauseVox’s basic plan offers unlimited crowdfunding pages for a 0% platform fee (they do ask for tips from your donors). If you’re looking for more fundraising features, they also offer Standard and Plus packages.
Givebutter lets nonprofits create custom fundraising pages with an interactive supporter feed that lets you share quick updates. The platform also offers users several other fundraising tools you can combine with your crowdfunding campaigns or use on their own!
Givebutter’s crowdfunding features include:
Givebutter has no setup or monthly fees. A 2.9% + $0.30 processing fee will be deducted from donations. Givebutter lets users add an optional 3% tip to their fundraising pages to cover platform and processing fees – if you choose to disable tips, you will be charged between a 1% and 5% platform fee, depending on the tool.
Donately is another online fundraising tool that offers custom forms, fundraising pages, and donor management. Organizations that choose this crowdfunding platform can also contact supporters via text.
Donately’s crowdfunding platform includes the following features:
Donately has a Do It Yourself plan that allows peer-to-peer and team fundraising for a 4% platform and processing fees. They do offer paid packages if you’re interested in more features.
Chuffed is a crowdfunding platform for social development organizations. It was created to make it simple for passionate supporters to fundraise for their favorite charity. Nonprofits can create their custom donation page, and promote their campaign via email and social media.
Chuffed offers the following features:
Chuffed offers entirely free crowdfunding to nonprofits. There is a 0% platform fee, and donors can choose to pay your processing fees as well.
Handbid’s website includes a section on peer-to-peer fundraising which can be used for your organization’s crowdfunding campaigns. Since Handbid is primarily a charity auction platform, nonprofits can combine crowdfunding with their annual fundraising events, online or off. Individual or team supporters can create their own crowdfunding pages to raise funds and spread the word about your organization and event.
Handbid’s features include:
Handbid offers a low credit card processing fee of 3.5% + $0.30 and customizable packages for all nonprofits.
A successful crowdfunding campaign depends on your organization’s willingness to think outside the box. Compelling programs and projects will encourage donors to give, but crowdfunding platforms that offer additional tools like goal meters and matching gifts will add a level of urgency to your campaign and help you raise more funds. Other features like recurring donations and text-to-give will help increase your campaign’s reach and long-term impact.
Most nonprofits need a variety of donation tools to raise enough revenue. Depending on your organization’s fundraising strategy, it’s best to combine crowdfunding with other donation tools like event ticketing and auctions.
Finally, crowdfunding campaigns need to reach more people. Platforms that offer more ways to connect with supporters through email, text, and social media accounts will help you reach your fundraising goals.
Crowdfunding can be beneficial by itself or combined with other campaigns and events. For the best results, you must be clear about your organization’s fundraising goals and the impact donations will have on your beneficiaries.
As you learn more about the different crowdfunding platforms, compare costs and features to ensure you choose the right one for your nonprofit. Visit our website to see how Donorbox can help with crowdfunding and other types of fundraising, including peer-to-peer, text-to-give, donation kiosks, event ticketing, memberships, and much more.
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Kristine Ensor is a freelance writer with over a decade of experience working with local and international nonprofits. As a nonprofit professional she has specialized in fundraising, marketing, event planning, volunteer management, and board development.
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Kristine Ensor