Donations made during Ramadan are returned as blessings upon the giver, making this season the perfect time for your masjid or charity to fundraise. Read on to learn 11 fantastic ways to raise more this Ramadan!
As one of the five pillars of Islam, fasting during Ramadan is accompanied by increased spiritual reflection, worship, and acts of charity.
In this article, we provide 10 unique ways your organization can reach out to people during this special time of giving back to the community.
It’s useful to elaborate on the concept of zakat. Zakat is similar to the concept of tithing for Christians and refers to compulsory charitable donations. Zakat requires Muslims to pay 2.5% of their qualifying wealth to “the poor and needy.”
Because of the multiplied blessings of giving during the Holy Month, 69% of Muslims give zakat during Ramadan. This means you have a significant opportunity to raise more for your cause – and do more good! – during this time.
Read on for 10 excellent ways to raise more during Ramadan. For a more in-depth look at Ramadan donation types, check out this blog post!
Having a donation landing page dedicated specifically to your Ramadan fundraising campaign will increase the chances of reaching your fundraising goals.
When your supporters land on your site, your donation page should convince them that they should give to your organization this Ramadan. This page should be simple, compelling, and branded, with a clear call to action. Set up sharing links so anyone can easily share the page with their friends and family on their social media profiles.
With Donorbox, you can easily sign up and create unlimited fundraising pages to fit your brand and needs. This page comes with a donor-friendly, fast donation form that you can customize to match your branding. You can also add a goal meter, donor wall, social media buttons, campaign content, images, videos, and more!
Check out this example of a Ramadan fundraising page created on Donorbox by Qalam Education Fund. They’ve raised over $1 million for their Ramadan campaign.
Start a Ramadan Fundraising Campaign
Zakat is a duty of every Muslim if their personal wealth is above the nisab or the threshold, which is based on the current value of gold or silver.
To increase the number of donations you receive this Ramadan, make it easy for your donors to donate by embedding or linking a zakat calculator on your donation page.
To go the extra mile, you can link specific program outcomes to different giving levels.
For example: “$250 can help a family in the Philippines start a small business” or “$50 will provide 10 girls with a month’s worth of sanitary products”
Pro tip: Your online Ramadan donation is likely to be seen by people who are not looking to make a zakat donation. They just want to donate generally. Make these potential supporters feel like they can also easily make a non-zakat donation in response to an appeal.
Look at this zakat online campaign from IslamIreland.ie that urges people to come forward and pay their zakat. The campaign content also precisely explains the calculation of the nisab, making it easy to understand a complex topic.
During Ramadan, many are keen to volunteer their time – especially since it helps pass the hours until sunset (when Muslims around the world break their fasting).
Sadaqah, or charity, can also be an act, and giving your volunteers the opportunity to donate their time during the Holy Month can help multiply their blessings.
Consider hosting an event related to your cause or serving the community around your mosque. Volunteers can bring passion and fresh energy to your cause. They can also share expertise that you don’t have on staff, so consider Ramadan a great time to benefit from talented individuals who want to support you.
Iftar is one of the religious observances of Ramadan and is often done as a community, with people gathering to break their fast together. Iftar is taken just after the call to prayer Maghrib, which is around sunset. Being such a community tradition, iftars are perfect for fundraising.
Organize a community iftar at a venue of your choice. Depending on the size of your organization, choose either something small and local, or go big and festive.
Prepare a tasty menu, offering options for all dietary choices and requirements. Invite your donors, supporters, partners, volunteers, and staff to break the fast together or simply celebrate the spirit of Ramadan.
There are many ways you could raise additional funds during your iftar event. Selling tickets is an easy way to both raise funds for your cause and ensure you know how many guests will be attending your iftar – which simplifies planning!
We love how the Muslim Association of Puget Sound made selling tickets to their women’s iftar easy with Donorbox Events. In addition to iftar, they included a thought-provoking discussion to encourage attendance.
In addition to charging for entry, you could set up donation kiosks throughout the venue where donors can make additional donations using a debit or credit card, or even their preferred digital wallet.
Set Up Your Iftar Fundraising Tools
Ramadan is all about reflection, generosity, and spiritual cleansing. Invite your supporters to participate by donating items needed by those in your community.
Encourage closet cleanouts and collect donations of coats or warm clothes for those struggling with poverty during the winter months. Or ask supporters to clean out their pantries to share canned goods – which is another sacred requirement of Ramadan!
You can also ask for financial donations to help you reach certain goals. A crowdfunding campaign is a great way to ask your community to come together for a greater cause.
This organization ran a Ramadan meal drive for vulnerable families in their communities. They raised a significant amount of funds with a specific goal, and utilized the updates feature to announce an exciting partnership.
Peer-to-peer fundraising is one of the best Ramadan fundraising ideas to get new donors and boost donations. Not only are your supporters reaching out to people you might not otherwise have reached, but their campaigns have social proof. Since their friends and family know your fundraisers, they are more likely to donate to them than directly to your organization.
Ramadan is the ideal time to encourage your best supporters, including donors and volunteers, to help you raise more money. Enable them to create their own fundraising pages and reach out to their networks. It’s a great way to boost donations and make your supporters feel more involved in your cause.
Choose an online tool like Donorbox Peer-to-Peer to streamline this process. Simply invite your volunteers from your Donorbox account and help them fundraise with their own customized fundraising pages. Peer-to-peer fundraising ensures that your campaign outreach is multiplied through your volunteers’ networks and that you receive more donations through their support.
Check out this example – International Aid Charity raised more than $300,000 with their campaign, enabling peer-to-peer to boost their reach and bring in more crucial donations.
Islamic charities or mosques should set up a donation kiosk at their location or events. It makes in-person giving convenient for people who don’t carry cash during Ramadan. Having a portable donation kiosk at your location makes accepting cashless donations easier than ever!
The Donorbox Live™ Kiosk app turns your iPad or Android tablet and card reader into a donation magnet. Donors can give with a dip, tap, or swipe of a credit or debit card, or a digital wallet. Donors have the option of sharing their contact information, meaning you can build lasting relationships for years to come.
Sign Up for Donorbox Live™ Kiosk
Matching gift campaigns significantly multiply your impact during Ramadan. Seek out community partners or sponsors who are interested in supporting your cause and see if they’re willing to put up a matching gift incentive to drive donations.
Additionally, employers often offer their employees a matching gift incentive to encourage charitable giving. Sometimes, they even extend their matching program to include donations made by an employee’s spouse or retired employees.
Donorbox partnered with Double the Donation, the leading corporate matching company, to give your donors the best employer-matching experience. Enable donation matching for a campaign and add the search widget to your donation form so donors can easily search for their employers. If they’re eligible for a matching gift, they’ll receive an email with instructions to claim their match.
Donation-matching campaigns help multiply the impact of your Ramadan campaign.
Video appeals or storytelling videos are an incredibly powerful tool for fundraising and driving traffic to your campaigns. 95% of marketers agree that video content engages audiences better than other types of content, creating more opportunities for connection.
Create a video that will show your donors who they’ll be helping and what their money will be going towards. Storytelling works best with videos. If you have the resources, hire a professional videographer to create one including your beneficiaries.
Creating a good video and distributing it on social media amplifies your return on investment. To maximize the impact of video, use it as an ongoing means of communication, not just a one-off project.
Check out this live example of a crowdfunding campaign on Donorbox, which includes a touching video of people who require support.
Contribution request letters can be an exceptionally effective tactic for Ramadan fundraising. Make sure to research prospects before reaching out so your outreach is as effective as possible.
Make your contribution request letters personal and meaningful and try to write them by hand, if possible. Handwritten letters show your potential donors that you appreciate them enough to invest time in them. In cases when it’s not realistic to handwrite every single letter, reproduce the handwritten letter and then distribute it.
Consider sending letters to businesses and corporations in addition to individuals These letters are generally referred to as sponsorship request letters, and can help you develop or form important partnerships in your community.
Watch our webinar with Sarah Ali, Executive Director of the Muslim Philanthropy Network, to discover key fundraising strategies to help you double your donations this Ramadan. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for fresh fundraising tips and ideas!
In addition to fulfilling their religious duty by fasting, Muslims are looking to do good in their communities during Ramadan. Giving zakat or sadaqah is a crucial part of practicing Islam, and the Holy Month of Ramadan multiplies blessings upon those who give.
This presents an invaluable opportunity to raise more funds, champion your mission, and increase your positive impact. We hope our Ramadan fundraising ideas and insights will help you bring in more donations during this month and beyond.
Donorbox is here to simplify your journey with our powerful fundraising and donor management features. Learn more on our website and sign up for free to start fundraising right away!
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Raviraj heads the sales and marketing team at Donorbox. His growth-hacking abilities have helped Donorbox boost fundraising efforts for thousands of nonprofit organizations.
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Raj