Fundraising Toolkit Fundraise For Mercy Ships Since 1978 Mercy Ships has used hospital ships to deliver free surgeries and medical training to the world’s poorest people. Mercy Ships has worked in more than 70 coun- tries, providing services valued at more than $1 billion with more than 2.5 million direct beneficiaries. Each year more than 1,200 volunteers from over 40 nations volunteer their time, money and professional skills to the Mercy Ships mission. Supported by these ex- traordinary individuals and generous donors, Mercy Ships seeks to become the face of love in action, bringing hope and healing to those in need. Fundraising Toolkit Contents Getting Started..............................pg 3 Setting A Goal................................pg 4 Choosing Your Fundraiser.............pg 5 Creating Your Fundraising Page...pg 6-7 Tips & Tricks: Telling Your Story...pg 8 Tips & Tricks: Promoting Your Campaign......................................pg 9 Tips & Tricks: Thanking Your Donors ....... ....................................................... pg 10 Fundraising Resources.................pg 11-12 Contact Us.................................... pg 13 2 Welcome Aboard! Thanks for joining us! Check out the infographic below to see an overview of creating your fundraiser, then keep reading for more information. If at any point in you have questions, need assistance or just want to chat, give us a call - we’re here to help! 3 Setting a Goal Without goals and plans to reach them you are like a ship that has set sail with no desintation. Fitzhugh Dodson Setting a goal gives your supporters a clear idea of what you are wanting to achieve, and can help create an urgency that will inspire them to help you. Make your goal ambitious, but realistic – attainable but still challenging. The more you care about the cause you are fundraising for, the more your supporters will care too, and the more motivated they will be to help you get there. You being motivated to reach your goal will inspire your supporters. When setting your goal also think about your network and potential contributors. Carefully consider how much your audience can afford to give and how many people you think you will be able to inspire to help you. 4 Choosing Your Fundraiser Pick a fundraiser from the list or create your own. If you have any questions or The possibilities are truly limitless when you are thinking about what you want want to brainstorm with a fundraising pro, call Jane at 1-866-900-7447 to do to raise money. Read through our most popular fundraising ideas, or create your own. Think carefully about what kind of fundraiser you want to do - how The Holidays much time do you have to commit to planning and executing your event? Do the 33% of all donations are given during the holiday months. Consider giving up a gift and ask for math - will your plan put you on track to reach your goal? And most importantly donations to Mercy Ships instead! - will you have fun doing whatever you choose? Birthdays We all have so much compared to others. Why not give up your gifts and ask for donations to Mercy Ships instead? Make this year special - celebrate your birthday and a great cause at the same time! In Honour of... Celebrate the memory of a friend or loved one by raising funds for Mercy Ships. The transformation of lives is a wonderful and lasting tribute to this special person. Sports Whether you are running a marathon, skydiving for the first time or anything in between use your next sporting opportunity to change lives, families and communities. Be Creative Create your own a-thon and do it for a cause. Dance all day, read all weekend, go for a polar bear swim - get creative! Host an Event Organize an event for Mercy Ships. Recruit your friends and sell tickets to concerts, a dinner party, golf tournaments, races, socials and more! 5 Creating Your Fundraising Page Creating your fundraising page is easy! Just follow the steps below and before you know it you will be saving lives. Remember if you have any trouble along the way you can give us a call at 1-866-900-7447. 1. Go to: http://mercyships.ca/fundraise/ 2. Click “Fundraise Today”and complete the Fundraising Registration form 3. After completing the Fundraising Registration form you will be contacted by Jane, our Fundraising Coordinator, who will help you set up your online fundraising page! Though you are fundraising for Mercy Ships, your fundraising page will be built through an online website called Canada Helps. By registering on our website first, we know that you are wanting to start a fundriaser and will help you build your page and get started on your journey to save lives! 4. Once you hear from Jane, you are ready to start building your own fundraising page! Go to Canada Helps and click the “Create your fundraiser now” button. 5. Login or create an account 6. Search and add “Mercy Ships Canada” as the charity you want to fundraise for 7. Choose which program you would like to fundraise for - choosing “General” will allocate your funds to where help is most needed. 6 8. Select your type of fundraiser 9. Enter the title of your fundraiser 10. Set the start and end dates of your fundraiser 11. Set your fundraising goal 12. Enter the name of the page owner - enter your name if you are fundraising as an individual or the name of your group or organization. 13. Write your fundraising story to inspire your friends, family and co-workers. Keep your story short and sweet, making sure you tell them not just about Mercy Ships but why the cause is important to you. (Check out our “Tips and Tricks”on page 8 for help!) 14. Click “Create Fundraising Page” 15. Choose photos and videos from our Mercy Ships Media Library and upload them to your fundraising page. 16. Now your fundraising page is ready to go! Before you close the page, click on the Facebook and Twitter icons to share your page on your social media. Keep doing this through- out your campaign, the more you share it the more people will see! 17. Now email the link to your friends, family and corworkers. Not sure what to say? Email templates can be found in your welcome email. 7 Tips & Tricks Telling Your Story Make sure your fundraising page tells your story - who are you? What are you doing that people should be interested in? Why are you fundraising for Mercy Ships? When does your campaign start and end? Whether you write it down, upload a video or use pictures, telling your donors about your connection to the cause will make them feel connected too! Share your story on as many platforms as possible - use social media, local media outlets, email, letters, whatever works best for you. A 7.5 kg tumour had been a growing symbol of shame for Sambany for 19 years. When he heard Mercy Ships was coming to Madagascar, he walked 3 days to get to the ship. His tumour was the largest our volunteer doctors had ever seen -if it was not removed, it would have killed him. Thanks to donors and volunteers, Sambany’s surgery was a success! We have a mission to bring hope and healing to many more people like Sambany. His story and others like it inspire us - what inspires you? 8 Tips & Tricks Promoting Your Campaign Promoting your fundraiser is an important part of your success - people can’t support you if they don’t know what you are doing! After you have emailed your network, share your story on every type of social media you can think of, and promote to anyone who will listen. Don’t ask for donations in every post - share pictures, stories and videos that inspire you in your mission – chances are this will inspire others too! Not social media savvy? No worries! Old-school promotion can also be incredibely effective. Posters, flyers and good-old word of mouth are great ways to promote your fundraiser. Keep in mind your donor demographic - if you are having a school dance-a-thon, posters around your school will be one of the best ways of promoting your fundraiser. If you are asking friends from around the country to donate to your campaign in lieu of birthday gifts, email and social media may be the best way to get the word out. Whatever works for you! Take a look at the Mercy Ships Canada Facebook and Twitter pages to get ideas, or updates to repost. Also if you are in need of cards, posters or any other material for your fundraising give Jane a call at 1-866-900-7447 or email her at [email protected] - we have lots of materials availible to help you! 9 Tips & Tricks Thanking Your Donors In addition to using your social media to update your followers and ask for help to meet your goals, also make sure you use your Facebook and Twitter accounts to tag and thank the people you have donated to your campaign. Not only is it important to show gratitude to your supporters, but when you tag someone your post gets shared in multiple activity feeds, expanding awareness for your campaign and encouraging more people to help. Even if you aren’t on social media, thanking your supporters should still be an important part of your Thank you!campaign. Sending an Your support changes lives. Because of your generosity, children in Africa will be given a free surgery andemail, a bright letter future. or even making a phone call will Thank you! make your donors feel good, encourage them to support you again in the future and even recruit their friends to help you.