2009 America’s Giving Challenge

Jeff Stanger — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:43:32 +0000

Facebook’s Causes Exchange is helping nonprofits leverage social media to participate in this year’s America’s Giving Challenge.

The competition is sponsored by the Case Foundation and Parade magazine and it launches October 7th.

Nonprofits can compete for awards of up to $50,000. More details can be found on the Case Foundation Blog and in the October 11th issue of Parade.

Causes Exchange has provided several useful tips to help nonprofits be more competitive:

Gather together your best videos, pictures, and links so you can start your Giving Challenge campaign with a clear case for the importance of your work. Since we redesigned the Media Board about six weeks ago, we’ve seen a tremendous increase in the number of daily media views.

Draft milestone and progress reports you’ll send to your cause members: Raised $500? Hit the 100 people donated mark? Highlight the individual contributions of your super cause members when the cause as a whole reaches a goal or milestone.

Think about the kinds of clear and compelling messages you will send to your cause members. Educate them about the nonprofit you support and be specific about how the organization uses the money they donate.

Visit Causes Exchange for their complete list of tips for successful Giving Challenge campaign.

Facebook Causes Top $10,000,000

Jeff Stanger — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 13:00:02 +0000

Facebook Causes has topped $10,000,000 in funds raised in just 2 years. Surprisingly, half of that came in the past 6 months. Despite the lousy economy, people are still giving and an increasing number are giving via Facebook.

Consider these numbers from the Causes blog:

26,000 Causes have received a donation
$25 median donation
$5,000,000 donated in 2009
$1.4 million donated via the Birthday Wish feature

The Birthday Wish feature is of particular interest because it has raised so much money in such a short time. It’s a very simple app that allows a user to donate their birthday to their favorite cause. This is a Facebook twist on the peer-to-peer campaign that makes it simple for you to ask friends to make a donation to your favorite cause in lieu of a birthday present. The success of which, you can’t afford to overlook as a fundraiser.

With the $10,000,000 mark reached, more nonprofits will be creating Facebook Causes. If you haven’t created one, keep in mind the fundamentals of fundraising before you do. You still have to make a strong case for support and you have to present a clear call to action. These still apply whether your online or meeting a donor face-to-face.

Blue Trolley Press » Facebook

2009 America’s Giving Challenge

Facebook Causes Top $10,000,000