10 most unique & effective fundraising ideas for NGOs

THE process of approaching individuals, companies, and foundations for donations through a variety of digital and traditional communication methods for charitable causes is called nonprofit fundraising. Charity organisations would not have any incoming revenue without offline and online fundraising. We know that choosing the right fundraising idea for a nonprofit can be challenging. There are a lot of factors to consider: budget and time constraints, human resources available, the audience, and more. Fundraising is the key to success for all NGOs hence, many have turned to unique fundraising ideas. One thing that is clear is, generally, unique fundraising ideas work in any format. 

In this blog, we outline our favourite ideas for different nonprofits. Let’s dive into our hand-picked and effective fundraising ideas for nonprofits.

Effective fundraising ideas for NGOs in India

Here, we list a few best fundraising ideas that can help get you off to a great start on the journey to raise funds for charity

1. Online Donations

NGOs raise funds for charity through several conventional means. But it is by leveraging the digital medium that they are able to reach the maximum number of people to raise funds. One of the ways is through raising funds on India’s leading fundraising website. Fundraising through online crowdfunding websites could be for meeting business needs, urgent medical expenses, upliftment of women, education of the poor and infirm, etc. NGOs’ fundraising activities could also be for various social and religious activities. The sheer convenience of access that online fundraisers offer, makes it one of the most popular ways to raise money for charitable organisations in recent times. Donors from anywhere in the world can learn about donations and contribute. Also, since the entire process is digital and hence automated, hosting online fundraising activity requires minimal work once set up. Accepting and processing donations is all that remains to be done.

2. Corporate Giving

This simple, yet effective high school fundraising idea often gets overlooked. A corporate giving program is an initiative where companies give their time, money, or resources to a charity, foundation, or NGO. Corporate giving programmes are organised when companies commit to take on more social giving and give back to their communities, beyond their corporate social responsibility initiatives. Through these charitable programmes, corporate organisations make donations of money, expertise, volunteer hours, or equipment to NGOs. This is done usually in conjunction with their employees. This fundraising idea is a great way to encourage giving thanks and spread the word about the nonprofit. Matching gift programs, volunteer grant programs and cause marketing campaigns are a few of the unique fundraising ideas adopted by NGOs to drum up the generous support of the corporate. 

3. Student Volunteering

Students volunteer to be of service, make a meaningful difference and to give back to the communities they care about. Retaining volunteers is as important as is the task of building your volunteer network. Keep volunteers interested and committed to your fundraisers, whether they spend an hour answering phone calls or weeks helping with organising fundraiser events and activities, thank them for their service. Letting your volunteers know how their time served a noble mission and impacted lives, is what keeps people engaged and coming back to help some more.

4. Employee Engagement Initiatives

Employee engagement helps boost productivity, profitability, and retention rates at your company. When employees are engaged at their company, they have an emotional investment in the work they do and the work your business does overall. Focusing your efforts on corporate philanthropy is a great way to boost morale among your employees and keep them invested in the work you do. Automatic payroll deductions, annual giving drives and weekly volunteer days are some of the creative fundraising ideas for your social cause. To make it more exciting, corporates can have their employees compete – individually or as teams. Whoever raises the most funds, wins.

5. Festivals/Awareness Days

There are many occasions throughout the calendar year that can form the theme for your crowdfunding fundraiser. Festivals like Diwali and Christmas, national holidays such as Independence Day and Republic Day, and social awareness days such as World AIDS Day, Kisan Diwas (Farmers’ Day) and National Girl Child Day, are a few such opportunities. Once you’ve zeroed in on the day, make your supporters aware of the specific cause, talk about the virtues of festival giving, and establish linkages between a national holiday and the purpose of your fundraiser. Invite them to contribute to your fundraiser, and perhaps you could even urge them to leverage their own networks via social media, spreading awareness and raising more funds with this quick fundraising idea.

6. Marathons, Walkathons & Other Wellness Events

Marathons and walkathons are popular events to fundraise for social causes. People participating in a marathon usually run along a long, predetermined distance to support and raise awareness on a cause close to their heart, or the specific cause of that fundraiser event. A variation of this is the walkathon. Nonprofits either organise these events independently or in collaboration with other organisations to build a stronger foundation for giving to their cause. In recent times, bakethons, yogathons, readathons and bikeathons are helping fundraisers step up the excitement and engagement quotient to optimise support and raise more money. These fundraising ideas based wellness events encourage more participation within organisations and are a healthy way to build stronger communities. Hosting marathons, walkathons & other wellness events is one of the best fundraising ideas.

7. Auctions

Tap your volunteer network, select an appropriate venue, draw up a guest list of high net worth individuals and supporters with a high giving potential, contact artists, manufacturers and businesses that agree to donate items for bidding or sponsor your event, and put on your best suit to play auctioneer. Your fundraiser auction could either be the main event of the evening or you could combine it with some other event, such as an award ceremony or a gala dinner. The thrill of winning the bid at an auction and hearing the auctioneer shout, “Sold!”, is sure to have your guests and supporters enjoy the event while bidding for a noble cause. This event based fundraising idea is simple, yet effective.

8. E-commerce

To kick start an e-commerce fundraiser for your cause, list what you have on sale. These items could range from artwork and apparel, to merchandise and mementoes. Reach out to your supporters and donor network via social media and share your fundraiser link. Invite them to support the fundraiser by purchasing items and sharing the link with their own networks. An online store is a strategic way to increase your nonprofit’s visibility as it helps spread information about your cause and work. As people purchase branded products, you build brand awareness across many communities. This is an incredibly easy fundraising idea. 

9. Talent Contests & Variety Shows

A great idea for fundraising is to host a talent show, like ‘India’s Got Talent’. Your fundraising event could be held at a school hall, and invite local schools to sign up and participate. This gives their students a novel chance to show off their talents for a good cause. Once you have listed a line-up of performers, focus on advertising your show in your local area – the more tickets you sell, the more funds you raise. This could be organised independently or you could consider reaching out to potential sponsors. Add in a judging panel, exciting prizes, and make a fun contest of it. 

10. Product Sales

Fundraising through product sales might stack up as ‘old school’ against the rest of our list, but if this one doesn’t work then we wouldn’t see folk setting up their lemonade and cookie counters for a cause. Since the process of raising funds comes with myriad challenges, a mix of traditional and modern efforts can prove to be the smartest way to reach a wider network. Slogan t-shirts, customised candles, organic soaps, reusable water bottles – the options are plenty. Get creative and add your branding to the items, so that even long after your fundraiser is closed, your donors passively keep promoting your cause. 

10. Fundraising for NGOs in India 

But the effort of raising funds as per one’s target can be an uphill task, especially for individuals. This is because people are hesitant to donate to individuals or even groups online. But over a period of time, with various types of fundraising ideas that can attract people, this can be achieved. Trust is at the core of raising funds for nonprofits in India. And the NGOs and the people raising funds for them can do this only with enough work on the ground.

Why raise funds on Give

Anybody can start their own free fundraising on the Give, India’s largest and most trusted fundraising platform and it is free. You can raise funds now.

a) Give charges 0% fees for all fundraisers/crowdfunding on the fundraising platform. With just a few clicks, you can set up a fundraiser. 

b) Funds raised on the Give platform are disbursed to the beneficiary NGO or the hospital at the earliest. 

c) Give also helps individuals and organisations set up their fundraisers on the platform and guides on the marketing and advertising to the crowdfunding initiative a success.

How to raise funds for NGOs on Give?

You can start your fundraising for NGOs journey with the Fundraisers page on Give.  

1. Once you are on the Give page, select raise Funds for NGO or Medical.
2. If you want to raise funds for an NGO, click on NGO tab which takes you to the Program Listing
3. Here you can select the cause or NGO of your choice and you are ready to set up the fundraiser. Just come up with a name. Fundraising Is Selfless – Just Do It!. 

FAQs:

1. What is the most successful type of fundraising Idea?

• The most profitable fundraising ideas require little to no investment and minimal fees. While choosing your fundraising ideas, be sure to consider campaigns that match your team’s fundraising budget. Fundraisers, like galas and charity auctions, can be more costly to plan and host but turn in a sizable profit. Do check 5 Creative Fundraising Campaigns ideas here.

2. What is the easiest type of fundraiser?

Easy fundraising ideas mean spending less time fundraising and more time doing what you love. Choose an easy fundraiser, run your campaign, and then spend your time pursuing a philanthropic cause you love.  Donation jars, sports tournaments, talent shows, social media challenges, and book sales are some of the easiest fundraising ideas. These can be done for groups of all sizes, particularly community groups and organizations.

3. How much of my donation reaches to NGO that I wish to support?

Give charges 0% fees for all fundraisers/crowdfunding campaigns on Give Fundraisers. However, all online donations are subject to a small payment processing fee (~3%) to cover third-party and bank charges and ensure that our payment partners process your donations securely.

4. What is peer-to-peer fundraising and how can one participate?

Any individual supporting a particular cause, program, and/or non-profit can start a campaign on Give Fundraisers. However, funds raised for a nonprofit will be disbursed only to the registered bank account of the nonprofit and not to the campaigner. 

5. Are there any rules on the limit of raising funds for an NGO?

There are no limits on the number of projects an NGO can post on the Give platform and raise funds. 

Explore fundraisers on Give.do here!

This blog was updated in December 2023.

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Give’s mission is to “make giving bigger and better.” Give is the most trusted donation platform in India for fundraisers and crowdfunding campaigns. Through our technology solutions, we enable individuals and organisations to fundraise and donate to a cause, charity or NGO with trust and convenience. Give’s community of 2.7M+ individual donors and 300+ organisations supports 3,000+ verified nonprofits with 80G deduction and serves 15M+ people across India. Find a fundraiser today!