An organization in need of funding via a fundraising campaign is not in a position to waste money marketing; yet, effective marketing is fundamental to the success of fundraising campaigns. Fundraiser marketing is the only way to let volunteers, sellers, and customers know that you have a need and you have a way to fill it.

The good news is that fundraiser marketing can be done economically; there are many options for fundraiser marketing that an organization can design and implement on their own, and even more that are provided for little or no cost by companies and community organizations.

Community Press Coverage

Coverage by local media like newspapers and television stations (depending on the size or angle of your campaign) has the most wide-reaching, free impact.
One way to achieve this is to send local newspapers and television stations, including local-access cable channels, a press release that briefly explains the event. If space permits, most papers will happily include local fundraising events in their publication. Many will also include releases on their website.

Another way to gain local media coverage is to inform newspapers and TV stations of the event with a call or an email, and invite them to cover it. Photos and articles can greatly boost the bottom line of a fundraiser.

Community coverage should be extended to include any school or community newsletters that list local events; events should be submitted to online community websites and organization websites as well.

Websites

Designing a website, even a temporary one, for fundraising events creates a central informational resource for fundraising events that supporters and volunteers can access to learn more, donate, and volunteer. Advertising-supported websites are available free of charge, and sites without advertising can be had for less than $10 a month. (Related article “Create A Website“.)

Be sure to collect e-mail addresses through your website! Assure your supporters that their e-mail addresses won’t be shared with anyone and that you won’t spam them.

Printables

Printing marketing materials is easy with a little help from a volunteer and a word processing program. Printed materials give clear and accurate information, and can be easily distributed. (Even though printed materials are relatively cheap, it still pays to be environmentally conscious and try to limit flyers, signs, etc.)

Some printables worth the small money and effort include:

• Flyers and posters
• Brochures
• Letters, mailings
• Marketing materials
• Order forms
• Business cards
• Information for marketers and volunteers

Often, fundraising companies will provide these types of materials free of charge as part of a fundraising kit, or offer printable downloads from their website. Before putting great effort into designing printed fundraising materials, company offerings should be explored.

Printed fundraiser marketing materials can also be used to set up an information table during other group or community events to maximize outreach.

One of the most effective marketing tools costs nothing at all: marketing by word-of-mouth reaches supporters and volunteers at the heart of an organization’s outreach; talking up the need and the fundraising plan shows supporters that members are committed to their group, and are an organization worth their financial support. With this and other low- and no-cost fundraiser marketing tools, any fundraising campaign, big or small, can reach their goals.

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