Fundraising Tips from David Adler
David Adler, our current top fundraiser for the Virtual Ride for Resilience, shared a few of his favorite fundraising tips with us! Take a read and see what inspires you!
Photo by Elizabeth Griffin
The Fundraising Mindset
Think of this ride like the Tour de France--a cycling stage race, not just a one day event. Each day is a new stage and an opportunity to reach out to people and let them know about Love Your Brain and our goals for this event. While raising money is a goal, reaching out to people and expanding our network of friends is also important. People can join the Ride for Resilience at any time during May.
If you’re the competitive type, make it a game. Set your goal and have fun working to get there. When you let people know your goal, they may want to help you reach it.
Email as a Fundraising Tool
Sending personal emails is the most effective tool. Posting and sharing on social media sites is useful for raising awareness, but personal emails often raise the most donations.
Send emails to more people than you think will donate. Over the years I’ve been surprised that it’s the acquaintances that support me as much, if not more, than close family and friends.
Send emails to people you have supported in the past with their fundraisers.
Send emails to people that you support in business like the car mechanic that you have spent a lot of $ with, the plumber, or a company that you buy supplies or services from.
Lean into Communication:
I know it can feel uncomfortable to send the 1st email, and the 2nd one. However, the reality is it takes at least 3 emails to get people's attention and maybe even a contribution.
Your subject line will get people to open the email. Most emails don’t get opened when the subject line is asking for a donation. Subject lines that ask questions or create urgency have a better chance of being opened. Examples: “What’s your favorite kind of bike?” “Want to join me on this?" Or “Only 10 days left to get me to the finish line”
Make your fundraising page personal. While the standard page is workable, it’s much better when you can tell your story and why you are involved with Love Your Brain. (See how David has personalized his fundraising page!)
Help Your Donors Know What You’re Supporting
We are raising $ for LYB. The money is not going in our pockets and a lot of times that’s how it feels when you are asking others to donate to “you”. I’ve found that by reminding myself that the request I’m making is to support Love Your Brain, not me personally, that makes it easier to “ask” whether it’s in person or an email.
Tell them where the $ goes - All proceeds will support LoveYourBrain, the nonprofit on a mission to improve the quality of life of people affected by TBI!
Looking for more fundraising inspiration? Check out our Virtual Ride for Resilience Participant Guide, with creative and fun ideas for how to ask for funds!