Table of Contents

The Empowered Structure

Setting Up Your Account

Fundraising With Empowered.org

Creating a Personal Fundraising Page

Adding Volunteer Activities

Maximizing Your Results

THE EMPOWERED STRUCTURE

The Empowered Structure

TERMINOLOGY

ORGANIZATION [N]: the overarching institution

[ex. Global Brigades]

PROGRAMS [N]: sectors within the institution that are categorized by a common theme

[ex. Medical Brigades within Global Brigades]

CHAPTER [N]: geographically based branches of a program

[ex. Medical Brigades at the University of Southern California]

The Empowered Structure

FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN [N]: campaigns initiated by members of a chapter [ex. John Smith’s fundraising campaign]

VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES [N]: chapter initiatives for which members and/or non-members are recruited as participants [ex. University of Southern California’s Medical Brigade Trip to Honduras]

EVENTS [N]: all other non-fundraising and non-volunteer chapter initiatives open to the chapter’s guests [ ex. University of Southern California Medical Brigade’s End of Year Celebration]

The Empowered Structure

SETTING UP YOUR ACCOUNT

Setting Up Your Account Once your Organization Administrator has set up your school’s

group page, go to Empowered.org and click “Join” in the upper right corner to register for an account

Setting Up Your Account After you have created your account, access your university

chapter’s page by searching for your university.

Once you have located your school’s group, find the corresponding “Volunteer Activity” that you will be taking part in. Click the orange “Volunteer With Us” button on the Volunteer Activity page

Once you are a part of the Volunteer Activity, you will be able to personalize your fundraising page to collect donations.

NOTE: if you only “Become a Chapter Member”, you will be a member of the group, but you will not be signed up as a volunteer. To be given a personal donation page, you must take part in the Volunteer Activity as well].

FUNDRAISING WITH EMPOWERED.ORG

Fundraising with Empowered.org

Log into your Empowered.org account, and go to your homepage dashboard by clicking on your name at the top right-hand corner

Under “Upcoming Activity”, click “See My Fundraising Page”. Direct donors here to make a donation by clicking on the “Donate” button.

Donors can also access your page by searching for your name, and scrolling down your profile to click on “My Fundraising Page”.

CREATING A PERSONAL FUNDRAISING PAGE

Creating a Personal Fundraising Page

Under your name in the top right hand corner, click “Settings”.

Update your personal information and include a photo of yourself

Creating a Personal Fundraising Page  

Go to “Manage Fundraising Pages” to view current activities. Also update “My Message”, which will be viewed by supporters.

Click “Tell Friends” to share your personal fundraising page with friends and family via Facebook, email, and Twitter.

ADDING VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES

Adding Volunteer Activities  

If you are a chapter administrator, go to your Chapter Home and click “Create a Volunteer Activity”

Adding Volunteer Activities  

Set the title of the activity, description, and the date

Enable fundraising and set the volunteer goal

If you want volunteers to be accepted without needing the approval of an admin, check the box.

Upload a photo after inputting the activity information

Adding Volunteer Activities  

Add volunteers: you can import your contacts, from gmail, msn, yahoo, etc. – and include a personal message. Send the link to your group members so they can volunteer for the activity

Adding Volunteer Activities  

Get the word out! One of the last steps in creating a campaign on Empowered.org is to share your page via Facebook, email, Twitter, and by posting a link to the campaign on your website.

MAXIMIZING YOUR RESULTS

Maximizing Your Results  

You’ve set up your Empowered.org Account, created a fundraising campaign, and maybe even set up a few volunteer initiatives for your chapter. Now what? This next section is dedicated to 10 tips and tricks that can help you get the most out of your Empowered.org experience.

Tell a Story

Everybody enjoys a good story- which makes it valuable. Make sure you not only tell donors why you need funding, but also the story behind what led you to begin your endeavor. Consider creating a blog to expand your story beyond what donors can see on your Empowered.org page. This is especially relevant if you or have photos of past experiences that relate to the cause, or documentation of ongoing fundraising activities and events.    

Push Social Media Outreach

Generally, Twitter and Facebook are the most effective social media platforms to push your fundraising page- but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t share your Empowered.org page link on every outlet possible (Instagram, Youtube, Tumblr- you name it)! That being said, creating fundraising graphics that you, your organization, and your friends can use for profile pictures and cover photos can be particularly effective. The longer these graphics are on display, and the greater the amount of people who display them, the more effective they will be.

Push Social Media Outreach

 Creating Facebook groups or events to publicize your Empowered.org fundraiser is a common practice. If you choose to do so, including a specific monetary goal in the name of your event (Ex. Help Joe raise $1000 for Medical Brigades!) can be a great idea by encouraging people to help you reach a definitive goal.

Make sure to include the link to your Empowered.org fundraising page in all social media posts, as well as in any graphics that your organization creates. Lastly, don’t just post once and expect huge results- post frequently and regularly!

Launch a $1.00 Campaign

 In today’s social media age, each member of your organization has hundreds, if not thousands of contacts that they can access instantly. Imagine the impact it would make if each of them donated only $1.00 to your campaign. A quick and effective fundraising strategy can be just that: asking each member of your organization to reach out to say, 100 contacts, for a minimal donation amount. Usually, people are much more receptive to a request for a small and specific donation rather than a general request for an unnamed sum.

Offer Incentives

 Whether you’re a college student or an established business, it’s easy to offer donors some form of reward for achieving a certain donation level. This can be movie tickets, gift baskets, etc., but the best rewards will be relevant to your fundraising cause. If budget is an issue, not to worry. Something as simple as a signed photograph from your event can serve as an incentive. There’s lots of room for creativity, and the possibilities are endless!

Interact With Your Donors

It’s easy to attribute all your fundraising efforts to the online world, but don’t count out your face-to-face interactions with your family, friends, and peers. Before heading out the door each morning, put some cards with your Empowered.org fundraising page link written on it. That way, whenever you find yourself talking about your cause (which is hopefully often!), it’ll be easy to bring up your fundraising efforts and slip the person a card.

Film a Video If a picture is worth a thousand words, then think about how much a video is worth. Videos are one of the best ways to showcase your cause, and bring donors on board. Many people are put off by this idea because they think it will be time and budget intensive. However, new apps for phones and tablets have simplified that process immensely. Those who are uncomfortable with the filming process can check out apps for stop motion videos, which are created by taking a series of photographs (ex. iMotion HD). Whatever route you decide to take, remember to include the link to your Empowered.org fundraising page in the video, preferably at both the beginning and the end.

Obtain Press Coverage Local newspapers and student publications on university campuses are often open to featuring articles about organizations who are making a positive impact, or trying to attain a goal for a good cause. If a publication is willing to feature your cause, make sure you provide the background story behind your fundraising efforts, as well as a request for readers to join in through Empowered.org. Don’t know where to start? A quick Google search of the publication you had in mind and their contact information is a good way to start. Many publications also have submission information for interested guest contributors on their websites.

Mobilize your Network’s Networks

 Chances are, someone you or your organization knows owns their own website, blog, or has an online presence. Some may even have access to the websites of other organizations that they are a part of. Find out who these people are, and ask them if they would be willing to feature your Empowered.org page on their site. This strategy has the greatest chance of success if you find people with site content that is relevant to your cause.

Set a Quantitative Deadline

This tip applies specifically to the end of your fundraising campaign. When your are nearing your goal, it’s time to make one last big push. Let your supporters know exactly how close you are to your goal, and how many days there are left to make it happen (ex. Only $50 away from our $1500 goal, and 4 days to go!). With the pressure of an impending deadline, supporters are more likely to pitch in the last bit and pull you through the home stretch.

Follow Up    

Once your fundraising campaign ends, it’s important to follow up with all your donors and thank them for contributing to your cause. This not only lets them know that they are appreciated, but encourages them to support you again in your future Empowered.org fundraisers. For small donor bases, a personal thank-you card is best; for large donor bases, thank you emails may be more practical. Lastly, it’s good practice to let your donors know how the initiative that they supported went (photos are a plus), so that they can see what their money made possible.

The End.

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