7 Fundraising Ideas for Social Media to Drive Donations

Social media is one of your greatest tools when it comes to running a successful fundraiser. You can create a social media post anywhere at any time—all you need is a phone, computer, or tablet. GoFundMe’s research shows that fundraisers shared more than six times within the first few days are three times as likely to raise more donations. Make your online fundraiser a hit with these fundraising ideas for social media, all while inspiring your online audience to donate.

Start a fundraiser

Fundraising as an individual or fundraising for a nonprofit might seem daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Follow the social media fundraiser ideas below, and see how easy it is to spread awareness about your fundraiser and raise more money—all while having fun in the process.

A cell phone with different social media apps

1. Share your fundraiser on different social media platforms

Getting more people to see your fundraiser can increase the chances of you getting to your goal. We recommend sharing within the first 10 hours of creating your fundraiser and frequently sharing your fundraiser on new social media channels such as TikTok, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Nextdoor. Additionally, consider asking a friend who’s active on social media to post your fundraiser. Your donors also care about your success so you can invite them to share your fundraiser as well.

2. Tag friends on social media

Tagging friends, family, and teammates makes it easier for them to re-share your posts and reach more people. On the other hand, you can also ask people to tag you on social media. When someone shares your fundraiser and tags you in their post, it can encourage more people to visit your fundraiser and make a donation.

A person recording a video on their phone

3. Show up on video

It’s no secret that a fundraising video is a powerful tool to help increase donations. Videos make it easy for potential donors to quickly connect to you and your cause, making it more likely that they will donate. Most major social media platforms—like Facebook and Instagram—support video, making it easier than ever to personally connect with your donors. Talk about your fundraiser on Instagram and Facebook stories, and consider using the live feature to have a real-time conversation with your audience about your fundraising efforts.

4. Collect photo submissions

You can get your followers involved in your social media fundraising strategy by collecting photo submissions. This fundraising tip is a great way to grow your online channels, and if you feature your followers’ content, they will be more likely to share yours. That means more followers for you, which in turn means more eyes on your fundraiser. To persuade others to donate to your fundraiser, you can ask people who submit photos to include a blurb about why it’s important to give back.

5. Choose a theme for your profile

If your organization or nonprofit is looking to spice things up on social media, try a unique fundraising idea like creating a social media theme. Among the top fundraising ideas for social media, this strategy can work on any social media platform, yet performs best on Instagram. Whether you post pictures with an overlay of your brand’s color, or only cute pictures of your shelter animals, social media themes will help keep your content brand-aligned and recognizable. Keep each photo that you share relevant to your fundraiser, and remember to always link back to your fundraiser page in your bio.

6. Reach out personally

There’s no substitute for reaching out and connecting with any type of donor individually, whether a relative or someone from the community who shares your same interests. You can even shorten fundraising email templates to use as inspiration for sending direct messages through social media.

7. Thank your supporters in a social media post

It’s crucial to thank your donors for helping you with your fundraising efforts, especially if they’ve helped you reach milestones. You can easily do this by creating a social media post expressing your gratitude. People like being recognized and thanked publicly, and your message might inspire others to give, too.

Use social media to drive donations

Now that you have a few social media fundraising ideas to jumpstart your crowdfunding efforts, you’re on your way to hosting a successful fundraiser. Check out our top social media fundraising tips for even more ways to reach your fundraising goals. For other ways to share your fundraiser without using social media, read our blog on online fundraising without social media. Start your fundraiser today.