THE CRAFT OF WRITING SUCCESSFUL CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGNS
Crowdfunding is a convenient and efficient option for people who want to build a network, audience, and a strong financial backbone for their cause. The concept of crowdfunding in Islam is only starting to gain recognition. Donation-based crowdfunding is a crowd-funding model that Sadaqah took and upgraded into a global outreach platform. So, Muslims or people who want to donate out of their good-will can do so without even leaving their houses.
If you’re on the other end of the line, which means you have an important cause you want to raise funds for – it will take more than just a few clicks to get to your goal. It’s not a big feat to convince people, especially people who are willing to donate for a good cause. However, the way you present and conduct the fundraiser plays a huge part in the outcome of it.
Know Your Goals
When you’re preparing for a fundraising campaign, it’s important to know where the finish line is. It’s like writing a story, you have to know the end and then start working backward from that. So, outline your objectives, do your research, and anticipate challenges you might have to face. This will all come in handy when you actually get to put together a campaign on platforms like Sadaqah.
Understand Your Audience
The only way you can effectively get your message across is by communicating with your audience. Identify your target audience and build your fundraiser around their understanding of your goal. The best way to do that is by research. Conduct surveys, ask people around you – observe and implement.
Use Simple Language
Problems are complicated. But your words shouldn’t be. When you’re preparing your fundraiser campaign on Sadaqah, make sure you can get your message across as clearly as possible. Do not write long paragraphs worth of information no one will bother to read, write smartly. Information only relevant to your cause should be on a campaign page.
Give Your Cause a Background
Your research will come in handy here. After you state your objectives about the fundraiser, you need to back it up with facts and information like the root of the problem. Background information and origin stories resonate with potential donors and help them put the cause into perspective. For example, if you’re raising funds for a town struck by the flood, you may give it context by sharing the daily lives of people in the town and how the flood has severely disrupted it. The problems that people and communities face every day are very real and grounding – use the power of words to convey that.
Highlight the Stakes
The most important question that goes through a donor’s head when they’re reading about a fundraiser is, “Why should I donate to this particular cause?”. Your job is to answer that. After adding the objectives and background information, it’s time to mention the stakes. What happens next? What will happen if the problem goes unattended? What will involvement and funds achieve? These are just some of the questions whose answers you can embed into your fundraiser campaign. Doing this will further amplify the reality of the cause and prompt donors to donate.
Format and Personalize
In the end, it’s your passion and dedication that will get you to your fund goals but the only way you can showcase that is by perfecting the look and feel of the campaign.
Add pictures and videos that are relevant and convey the message you’re trying to get across. Videos that show the plain truth and reality of the situation will give the story you have crafted a sense of authenticity. Furthermore, the way you format and align all the information in the campaign also plays an integral part in the process. The campaign should be crafted like a story – with a beginning, middle, and end. So, however you decide to format it, don’t forget that you have to take the reader on a journey and at the same time, make them understand your message.
These are just the basics of writing a successful crowdfunding campaign. If you can get these right, the campaign will turn out to be as effective as you want.