There are many easy things that you can do to promote your nonprofit.
You can go on social media, share content, attend local gatherings, and blast your message to everyone on your contact list.
It’s simple and easy to do, but is it effective?
You’ll find scores of articles online telling you how to raise money on Facebook or other sites, but they don’t address the root problem of getting donations.
All too often, you’ll share the link to your nonprofit on social media, talk enthusiastically about your cause at a party, but still fail to attract donors.
That’s because there’s a secret behind getting someone to give money to your charity and in this article, I’m going to reveal it to you.
Trick Increased Volunteers From 29% to 77.3%
Communication scientists San Bolkan and Peter Andersen conducted an experiment where they went up to random people on the street and asked for help with a survey.
As you might imagine, they didn’t get very far. No one wants to take time out of their busy day to stop and do a survey. Right? Only 29% of those who stopped were willing to help out.
However, then something changed that shot that number up to 77.3%.
The researchers “pre-framed” the ask to help. When they stopped someone in public, they first asked “Do you consider yourself to be a helpful person?”
As you’d expect, most people answered yes.
Right after that answer, the researcher then asked for them to help out with the survey. This time, 77.3% volunteered to help.
I’ve put together a new GUIDE that’s packed with science-backed nonprofit fundraising methods, resources, strategies, and killer marketing methods.
You should check it out if you want to get more donations and you want to fast-track the entire process.
Same Trick Increased Participants from 33% to 75.7%
Now, hearing that first finding, you might think that it’s just luck. Maybe there was some bias in the scientific experiment.
Hear me out!
In another study conducted by San Bolkan and Peter Andersen, the scientists went out and asked random people if they’d be willing to try a new soft drink. All they had to do was provide an email address to get a free sample.
Most people who were stopped were reluctant to provide personal information to try the new soft drink. Only 33% volunteer to try it.
But, the researches then did something that increased compliance to 75.7%!
Before asking for the person’s contact information or even mentioning the free soft drink, they asked “Do you consider yourself to be somebody who is adventurous and likes to try new things?
As you might guess, most people said yes. When asked to give their email, 75.7% were willing to give it to try the new soft drink.
By pre-framing the core “ask,” these researchers were able to dramatically increase the number of people who said yes.
Easy Way to Make Your Cause Stand Out
In his book, Pre-Suasion, Robert Cialdini underscores how the brain mistakes attention for importance.
“Anything that draws focused attention to itself can lead observers to overestimate its importance. Nothing in life is as important as you think it is while you think about it.”
As a nonprofit, you must convince potential donors that your cause is important. You’re competing with so many other nonprofits that also have worthy causes. How can you stand out?
Let me tell you a quick story about the summer of 2000 when a pipe bomb exploded at the main train station in Dusseldorf, Germany. This incited a flurry of news stories that covered the victims of this horrible event.
After this incident, a poll was taken showing that 35% of people viewed right-wing extremism as the most important issue that needed solving. Before this event, the topic had never come up. Shortly after, this percentage went back to 0%.
The event that happened and was spread via the news captured the attention and focus of the nation, which led them to believe that it was an important political issue at the time. However, once this event was out of their mind, they no longer viewed it to be a political issue.
What does this have to do with getting a donation as a nonprofit? Simple. Before you get a donation, you must first grab someone’s sustained attention.
That puts them in the frame of mind to BELIEVE that your cause is the most important one out there.
This is where the value of social media comes into play. You can put out content that draws a donor’s attention the problem experienced by your target demographic.
Through video, images, and stories, you can continue to hammer on that problem and why it’s an important cause. They’ll begin to see your updates again and again in their Facebook feed.
Soon, they’ll not only have awareness of that problem, but also emotionally FEEL how horrible it must be for the people affected by that problem.
How to Unlock Donations
After you’ve taken donors through this process of being exposed to the problem or cause repeatedly, you can then employ some of the question-based techniques that we covered earlier.
This could be in the form of an email or a simple social media update saying,
“So, do consider yourself to be someone who wants to improve the world?
Do you think what’s been happening has been horrible for ____?
You can get involved by…”
If you had asked them earlier to donate money, they probably would just ignore you.
However, at this moment in time, they’ve been successfully pre-framed. They’re in the right stage of mind to donate. They’re ready to get involved and will be more receptive to a donation request.
Make no mistake, this is a powerful technique! It’s a surefire way to get people to rate your nonprofit’s cause as IMPORTANT and worthy of their time and money.
I’ve put together a new GUIDE that’s packed with science-backed nonprofit fundraising methods, resources, strategies, and killer marketing methods.
You should check it out if you want to get more donations and you want to fast-track the entire process.
In my other article, I uncovered the scientific reason that causes people to give money online. If you liked this article, you’re gonna like that one. Guaranteed!
You can subscribe to be notified of my upcoming book if you’d like more tips like this from me (and how to apply these findings to your own nonprofit).
