As PTAs/PTOs, we need to communicate our school fundraiser’s goal in a certain way and use specific means to increase the possibility of getting support from donors, students, and non-profits.
How do we communicate the school fundraiser goal?
- Make short videos. Because of the versatility of videos, they are an ideal medium for communicating school fundraisers. Teachers and student groups can work together to make short videos communicating the details of the school fundraiser goal.
After making these short videos, they can then share and promote on social media, on email subscriber lists, on blogs, on YouTube, on billboards, among other media. These short videos are easy to make today with the availability of cheap video editing technology.
We don’t have to go to a video recording studio to have our videos made. We can use the free video editing software on our mobile phone apps to crop, trim, create transitions, add text, and other great features to our videos.
As part of the video-making process, prepare short scripts for maximum audience engagement as long as two minutes. Make sure to cover the WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, HOW, and the WHY of our school fundraising campaigns in the video.
And always conclude the school fundraising short videos with strong Calls-To-Action (CTA) directing people to make their donations and encouraging them to show their support by sharing the videos with their friends, classmates, associations, and family.
According to Digiday, 85% of videos on Facebook are watched without sound. We need to include subtitles in our short videos.
Publicly thank our donors. As parents and members of PTAs/ PTOs, we need to publicly recognize donors for their contributions to our school fundraising campaigns. We need to do this so that others who have not yet contributed to our school fundraisers will be encouraged to donate too.
We can use school notice boards and signs to publicly thank donors so that parents/guardians who pick up and drop off their students to and from school get a constant reminder about the need to support their schools.
This kind of social evidence will encourage new donors to contribute when they see their friends, colleagues, and community members doing the same. It can create subtle peer pressure and that is not a bad thing.
We can edit image templates and post them on the school’s social media and blog to display sponsors’ names and amounts whenever a donation is made. Doing this will help keep the campaign engaging to many people as we communicate about our different school fundraisers.
The LeanStream platform has this attribution feature built-in. When donors contribute to a fundraising project, they can choose to have their name placed on the contributor board. This creates a little competition and that is helpful for fundraising.
Communicate the school fundraising goals using LCD digital signage towers. The LCD digital signage towers are simple, thoughtful, and versatile tools ideal for communicating about school fundraisers.
We can install and position these LCD digital signage towers in and around high-access areas at school, sports events, drama performances, front offices, school canteens, and during various school fundraising events. This will increase the exposure of our school fundraising goals.
The LCD digital signage towers come with a commercial-grade LCD panel, offering heightened brightness and contrast. They are great for displaying fundraiser videos, running sums of money raised, and recent campaign donors.
Write enticing press releases. PTAs/PTOs can communicate our school fundraiser goals using enticing press releases. The press release should be kept short and engaging. It should not exceed one page in length and should focus on the WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, and WHY of your school fundraising campaign.
After including all the campaign details in the press release, ensure that you include incentives for people to attend or donate. If it is an event, mention the guest of honor or other attendees. Will there be a celebrity? Will there be free food and drinks? Will there be bounce houses or other entertainment?
Don’t forget to include a minimum of two quotes from key figures participating in the school fundraiser. These figures can be school principals, campaign ambassadors, parents, community leaders, or ideally, students. Do this to give the press release a human element and highlight the school fundraiser’s purpose and why it is vital to your school.
Conclude the press release with a strong Call-To-Action inviting people to attend or participate in your school fundraising event. You can also provide links and information on how donations can be made.
It would be best if you included some high-resolution images to accompany the press release. Note, the less work journalists must do, the more likely they are to run a story about your school fundraiser. Wrap it up with a bow for them to increase the chance of getting published. It really works!
Indicate case studies or testimonials of our school fundraising beneficiaries. The point here is to humanize your school’s fundraising campaign by giving it a face and a voice. Always remember that our donors relate to humans and not posters. Use kids and students when appropriate and possible. Donors especially love children’s voices.
When fundraising for school trips, we need to invite students sponsored for last year’s trips to speak at the school fundraising events. We can take brief snippets from all these stories and post them on social media school fundraising campaigns. The snippets should be accompanied by a photo and a link to the fundraising page for a more significant impact.
- Let’s be a bit mysterious when communicating about the school fundraising campaigns. We can do this in our school fundraiser campaign messaging feature. Here, we don’t expose every detail in the lead-up communication. Instead, we can create some intrigue and play with people’s curiosity.
We can hint at celebrity appearances and performances without explicitly mentioning their names. We can announce that rides will be free for one hour without mentioning the starting time.
Note: We need to remain truthful and not exaggerate to avoid disappointments.
Conclusion
There are various techniques we can use when communicating our school fundraiser goals. Integrate them into your next fundraising campaign and multiply your opportunities for success. These techniques help us attract more participants to our school fundraisers. LeanStream is next-generation fundraising for next-generation schools, PTAs/PTOs, band boosters, teachers, athletic programs, and the rest of the school family. It has built-in communication tools, donor recognition features, and the ability to accommodate short videos explaining fundraising projects. Whether you use the LeanStream platform to fundraise for your schools or choose to fundraise in other ways, stay safe, have fun, and live generously!
