How To: Set Up A Donation Page to Raise Money for a Cause You Care About
If you’ve decided to dive into the world of crowdfunding, you might be wondering how to create a donation page that will inspire others to give. Maybe you want to get help with the cost of living. Maybe you want to raise money for charity. Whatever your cause, it’s crucial to set up a donation page that is compelling and tells your unique story.
Since every new venture is easier with some solid advice, we’ve put our top fundraising tips together to get you started.
Which crowdfunding platform is best for your donation page?
With the rising popularity of online fundraising, there are many websites to choose from. So how do you know which platform is right for you and your cause?
The best sites don’t just offer fundraising and a simple set-up process, they’ll also throw in some great extras. A user-friendly mobile app, seven-day customer support, fast mobile payments from all major currencies or via PayPal, Google Pay and Apple Pay are all features to look for.
If you’re still not sure how to choose a platform for your personal donation website, have a look at our Why GoFundMe page to find out what else makes us stand out from the crowd.
Start with a fantastic title for your donation page
The first step in knowing how to set up a donation page for yourself, someone else, your community or a charity is choosing a good title which tells the story of your page. Your fundraiser title should attract the attention of potential supporters on social media channels, in emails and in text messages. A memorable title that instantly conveys what you’re raising funds for will encourage people to click your link and read your story. For more ideas about how to choose the best title for your page, see our blog post Tips for Creating a Fundraiser Title that will Drive Donations. This blog by HubSpot is also full of tips about how to make headlines as compelling as possible.
Write a story that makes people want to donate
The key to the story is authenticity. Explain why you are fundraising and what the reason is why people should donate. It’s also important to make sure people are aware of how the money will be used if you are fundraising for someone else. Even if you’re fundraising for a charity, it’s a good chance to explain what a donation will allow that organisation to do.
Your fundraiser description length should be at least 400 words in length and it should cover the who, what, when, why and how of your situation. Here are the most important questions your story should answer:
- Who is benefitting from your fundraiser? Describe the beneficiary as honestly and completely as you can. Explain why this person, family or organisation is so deserving of financial help. If the fundraiser is for yourself, don’t be afraid to open up and explain why support from others would make a big difference in your life.
- What is the main obstacle? Tell potential donors what problems you, the charity or your beneficiary are facing.
- When do you need the funds by? It’s important to tell your supporters when the funds are needed by so that they understand the urgency of your appeal.
- Why do you or the beneficiary need help? Tell people why their contributions are critical. Give them a reason not just to donate, but to donate at this moment.
- How can donors help? List specific expenses that you or the beneficiary need help in paying. These details help people understand exactly what impact their donations will have. If it’s for a charity, explain the impact of donations on the lives of people you’re fundraiisng for.
Add photos and videos to bring your donation page to life
Visual content can help tell your story in a powerful way. Adding photos and videos will liven up your donation page and make people want to find out more about your cause. Remember you can also use photos and videos when updating the story.
If you’re struggling to think about what photo to add, think about images and visual aids that can help tell the story of what you’re fundraising for. This could be a picture of yourself, the person you’re fundraising for or an image of the activity you’re taking part in to fundraise. You can also add a video of yourself explaining in your words why it is you’re fundraising. This can be an engaging feature that helps potential donors.
Choose a fundraising goal that makes sense
When you’re deciding what your fundraising goal should be, it’s best to start small and increase it as necessary. Why is it best to start small? Reasonable fundraising goals may encourage people to give, while overly ambitious goals might make people feel like their donation won’t count for anything in the bigger scheme of things.
Remember that you can increase your fundraising goal whenever you like. You can also keep all of the donations you receive, even if you don’t meet your fundraising goal.
Share with your close circle of friends and family first
The first few hours or days of a fundraiser can have a big impact on its longer term success. Before you start promoting your fundraiser left, right and centre, it’s best to share it with a few close friends and ask for their feedback. Since people are more likely to give if others have already donated, a launch strategy will ensure that you have a few solid donations before you share your fundraiser with everyone else over social media.
One way many people start fundraising is by emailing the link to close friends and relatives with a personal message . This will help bring in a few initial donations even before you share your fundraiser link on social media.
Fine tune your sharing plan
Sharing is perhaps one of the most important aspects of running a fundraiser. Sharing your donation page far and wide helps raise awareness for your cause and encourages your network of friends and family to support you.
Using social media to promote your fundraiser is one of the easiest and most effective methods to let people know about your cause. You can use Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and Tiktok to spread awareness in a low-pressure way. Another way to encourage people to share your cause is to create a fundraiser hashtag. A hashtag makes it easy for people to find your social media posts and interact with them.
Of course, you can also share your fundraiser via email, text message and phone calls. You can also contact celebrities or influencers who may be interested in sharing your fundraiser. Make a list of people with larger followings who live locally to you, or who have been affected by the issues discussed in the fundraiser and ask them to share.
Show gratitude to your supporters
When you’re busy setting up and running a donation page, it’s sometimes easy to forget to thank your donors. But showing gratitude is important. After all, without the generosity of donors, your fundraiser wouldn’t be possible. You can use the dashboard in your GoFundMe to thank each donor individually. It might be a good idea to write a personalised message or email to your donors to make them feel really special.
Don’t forget to post fundraiser updates!
Updates are a simple way to keep your donors in the loop while also letting them know that you might still need their continued support. And if your fundraiser stalls, updates can help it build up momentum again. They are automatically emailed to all of your donors and those who have already donated can be prompted to share the fund to their social media again. It’s also a good way to make your donors feel like they are part of a community.
Successful Fundraisers
If you’re in need of any more inspiration to start a donation page for that good cause, take a look at these fundraisers.
Poetry publisher Salmon Poems opened the Salmon Bookshop in 2012. They hosted over 100 events at the shop in Clare, but in March 2023 the owners of the building they leased decided they wanted to use the premises themselves, so the Salmon Bookshop needed to find a new home. They struggled to find new premises but luckily managed to grab a new space, but needed funds to secure it. They turned to GoFundMe so their supporters could help – and managed to raise more than €60k towards their new home. They wrote in an update on the page: “So, one more Big Thank You All. We could not have done this without you! See you in The Salmon Bookshop and Literary Centre, Main Street, Ennistymon!”
Running a mile a day, a month for mental health
Marcus Skeet, AKA The Hull Boy, decided to test his physical fitness AND raise money for a good cause by running a mile every day in April for Mind. He managed to raise more than £7,000, beating his original target of £5k. And he was inspired to continue the amazing work, training for a marathon and continuing to raise money for Mind whilst doing so. He wrote on his page: “Having lost friends to the battle, having family struggle with it as well struggling with depression myself- It’s always been a mission of mine to spread as much awareness for mental health as possible and try help others out.”
Stop the far right – emergency unity fund
Stand Up To Racism started this emergency unity fund in response to the riots taking place in August. They managed to raise a massive £60k to help support their work in promoting unity.
Save Salford Lads and Girls Club
Salford Lads and Girls Club is an iconic youth club in Salford. In 2024, they needed financial support to stay running – and fast. The Manchester Evening News came to the rescue and started a GoFundMe with a goal to raise £250,000 so that they could stay open and providing vital services for young people in Salford. With some celebrity support, they managed to reach the target and the club stayed open.
Pride of Britain fundraiser for superstar Florrie
Florrie Bark is just eight years old and has already faced so much in her short life. She’s battled cancer and recovered, but is now dealing with a chronic lung condition caused by the treatment and needs a transplant. But Florrie’s positivity has always shone through – and her attitude in helping others is what earned her the Child of Courage award at the Pride of Britain. Florrie gained followers on social media after using her platform to explain to other children what she was going through, so those in her position wouldn’t feel as scared. Florrie also started charity BeMoreFab to continue this. A surprise fundraiser was started for her, which has raised nearly £100k.
Fundraising Tips
Once you’ve started your donation page, there are a few things you can do to really get the dial moving on your fundraising journey. Take a look at our tips below for some inspiration.
- Host a fundraising event: Hosting a fundraising event to go alongside your donation page is a brilliant way to raise money for that good cause. You don’t need to overthink it – do something simple like a bake sale at your place of work, local school, children’s play group or even just amongst friends.
- Take on a fitness challenge: A really good way to inspire people to donate is to take on a fitness challenge. It doesn’t need to be an ultra marathon or triathlon – you can make it work for you. Commit to doing yoga every week, or dancing, or take up something new that you’ve always wanted to try like climbing.
- Host a virtual concert: We might be well past the days of Covid-19, but utilising video calling / meeting platforms hasn’t gone away. Why not ask around in your community to see who has a budding talent and put on a concert, asking for a small donation to join? It’s a great way to build community, nurture talent and give people a fun thing to do with little effort.
- Have a clear out! Charity starts at home – why not have a clear out of those clothes, books, toys, ornaments etc that you aren’t using any more and host a sale for friends. Ask for a small donation to either enter or per item and watch people get joy out of the things you no longer need. You could even encourage others to take part too.
Are you ready to get started? Create a donation page today
Now that you have the tools for successful fundraising at your fingertips and you know how to set up a GoFundMe, all that’s left to do is create your donation page! Start your fundraiser today and begin raising money for what’s most important to you.
It’s free to start a GoFundMe and there’s a team of people working around the clock to make sure your money gets where it needs to be in a fast, safe and secure way. Get going today!