How to market a successful campaign
Realising that crowdfunding is not a quick fix or a standalone form of funding. Prepare to be busy but if you create a realistic time-plan and have a good team of people around you to deliver against it.
✓ Develop an attractive campaign that will appeal to others
Test your campaign ideas first if you can't get your existing ‘friends’ excited about your project pre-launch, then that will be a good indicator that you will struggle to engage a wider community of funders.
Appealing campaigns story that people can relate to and connect with. A ‘good’ cause that makes them donate.
Justify your funding target by breaking it down into meaningful segments that are attributed to clear needs.
✓ Create a community around your campaign long before you launch
Doing work on engaging potential funders to get them interested in your campaign before launching can significantly improve your chances of success. Indeed, campaigns that 'cold start' and don't do any engagement or marketing before the first day of launching often struggle to reach their funding goal.
Create interest around your project before launching using flyers, posters, e- newsletters, blogging and other social media platforms, weeks even months before you go live! Taking time to cultivate your crowd and influencers BEFORE you launch because if you don’t tell people about your campaign no one will see it!
✓ Get commitment from your club committee and members
Tapping in to your existing network of club members, parents, supporters and friends can help create the first buzz around your project.
The value of having an existing community of potential funders to tap into on day one of your campaign is best illustrated by when people with an existing fan base venture into crowdfunding.
✓ Make a plan of who’s doing what, when and how
Have a communication plan & keep communicating.
Know your crowd - committee, club members, family, friends, partners, local companies – who they are and what they can do to help you.
A good way of getting people engaged before launching campaign is including them in the ideas and design of what is being proposed, e.g.; colour of the swings on a playground you want to raise funding for. Get as many people involved remember this is Crowdfunding and you’re only as good as your crowd!
✓ Pictures and video help bring the campaign to life
Take time to prepare photos, video if possible and use this to get people involved in the campaign preparation.
A promotional video works well as people like to view video’s these days and it can be a quick way to explain and show people what your campaign is all about. Happy faces, people enjoying themselves, appeals to people and makes them donate.
Campaign planning process - 4D ’s
Define;
✓ What is the real campaign objective?
✓ What is the minimum viable amount we need for success? ✓ Defining the key objectives.
Design;
✓ How will we achieve our objectives?
✓ This is the agreed approach and methodology behind a campaign.
Develop;
✓ Advocacy & engagement.
✓ This usually involves networking and online marketing tactics to ensure campaign uptake.
Deliver;
✓ The campaign go-live – the final step in delivering the agreed strategy is to launch the campaign and execute pre-agreed activities.
What Doesn ’t Work Well
✓ Spending money on general PR in blind faith that it will actually make a major difference.
✓ Maybe you think your product is so great that it can’t fail? Oh yes it can. The hard work is done before you go live. Take short-cuts and fail.
✓ Creating a beautiful campaign video but leaving people scratching their heads as to what you want them to do as a result of watching it. Again, an epically re-occurring theme, before you sign off the video test it on your friends and family. You must make sure there is a clear message and a call to action - share and donate!!
✓ Not asking people to donate money - some people ‘don’t like to ask for money’. You need to decide how important the project is to you and how else will you be able to get the funding you need if not via crowdfunding. Your fans, supporters, friends and family are the most likely people to support your project initially and set an example for others to follow. You are not asking for large sums of money just a small amount from lots of people - the crowd! Every little helps! After the campaign
✓ Crowdfunding is usually the start of a great online journey for a small charity, not an end in itself
✓ Thank people & send them good regular updates aka donor development
✓ Celebrate & recognise your champions
✓ Review, learn & build on your success
✓ Seize other opportunities for incentivizing your donors – e.g. match funding
✓ Keep everyone NETWORKED & INSPIRED
✓ Keep them warm for next time!
Social Media – General tips
• Using Facebook and Twitter is probably the more obvious two platforms for the type of people you will be communicating your campaign with – 30-49 yr olds
• For pictures use Instagram and Snap Chat for geo-filters – 13 – 24 yr olds.
• Engage and interact with others on social media – talk to people
• Two messages – Donate and Share
• #Hour – find out about your local networking on twitter join and tell people about your campaign (Campaigner or CSP’s could create your own #Hour)
• Schedule on Facebook & Tweet deck - planned approach and saves time (Facebook don’t like you using Hootsuite to send planned posts)
• Video on Facebook and Periscope on Twitter – better ranking (try not to use YouTube)
• Profile picture on Facebook & Twitter us as advertising space
• It is ok to ask people to share your posts and re-tweet your tweets
• Always use pictures and video when possible on all platforms. Facebook posts - tips
• Facebook profile v’s Facebook page - Benefits of Page are they only require ‘like’ to start new relationships. Facebook Insights and Facebook Ads functionatlity.
• Should be story driven and newsy – tell people what’s happening short piece and link to website blog
• Use live streaming, carousels and slideshows to rank higher on Facebook and Twitter, greater reach and makes your timeline more interesting.
• Once link added to Facebook post highlight and remove it (Facebook prefers this)
Tweets - tips
• Limited amount of characters to get message across to need to use link (bilty.com)
• Short snappy messages work best and add a clear call to action (donate, support, RT)
• Using popular # can help in driving traffic LinkedIn - tips
• To talk to companies this platform the most useful and valuable
• Use angle of Corporate social responsibility / Corporation tax
• Staff Fundraise money doing sponsored events / give money to your campaign / company match what they raise
Snap Chat and Instagram – tips
• Instant interaction with pictures and videos as well as stories you can put together
• Launches and events can use his platform to engage excitement and interest
• Events can be streamed live
• Geo- filters are special overlays that communicate the ‘where and when’ can be used to advertise an event launch etc. to an audience in a certain area. Your crowd Do you have Content
Club Committee A good idea Call to action
Club members A compelling message Great quotes
Friends and family An engaged crowd Statistics
Employer(s) A communication plan Infographics
Schools Lots of engaging content Case studies
Other (sports) clubs Help; teams and volunteers Photos
Internet influencers Fundraising champions Videos
National Governing Body A follow up plan Live streaming
County Sports Association
Other sports organisations
Other non-sports organisations Town / Parish/ County Councils Anyone else you can think of
For more information please contact us
Podium Partners
T: 07917236619
E: [email protected] W: www.podiumpartners.org