Can Crowd Funding Work in Higher Ed?

Blackbaud Enterprise Customer Summit
THE RISE OF CROWDFUNDING:
Can it work in Higher Education?
Presented by:
Sarah Davis, Blackbaud Solutions Consultant

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ARE YOU…

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• In September 2013, Academic Impressions conducted an informal
survey of 140 higher education fundraisers asking:
“Do you expect to use a crowdfunding tool to raiser dollars at your
institution in the next year?”
• 67% said “no”
• 33% said “yes”
ARE YOU…

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WHY WAS CASSIE SUCCESSFUL?
• She motivated her donors & supporters
- People want to believe that their donations matter
- Feedback loops – people wanted to follow her success
- Specific and Individual Goal
- Reciprocal Relationships
- Time Sensitive
• She generated social media buzz which captured the attention of local
and national networks
• She leveraged her networks

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CROWDFUNDING DEFINED

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The practice of funding a project or
venture by raising many small
amounts of money from a large
number of people, typically via the
Internet.
Per the Oxford Dictionaries
Syllabification: crowd—fund—ing
Pronunciation: /ˈkroudˌfəndiNG /

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Beginning of human
civilization
Faith
1852
The
Salvation
Army
1938
March
of
Dimes
1999
P2P
Online
Event
Tools
2006
Crowd
Funding
coined
2008
Pres.
Election
2009
Kickstarter
Kicked off
2004
Facebook

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50 SHADES OF CROWDFUNDING

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ANOTHER INTERPRETATION OF
CROWDFUNDING
• Any form of online donation forms
• A Day of Giving:
• 24-hour campaign targeted at increasing unrestricted gifts to the annual fund
• Utilization of email solicitation, social media, and peer-to-peer fundraising
• A Micro-Campaign
• 48 – 72 hours (sometimes up to a week or a month) often focused on raising funds
for a specific cause
• Often matching gifts involved
• Same techniques as a Day of Giving
• Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
• Leverages a supporters network to raise money and support from their social
networks through email and social media
• Common examples are traditional Run Walk Ride events, Class Giving,
Memorial/Tribute Gifts, Challenges
• Crowdfunding
• The use of a unique crowdfunding platform (distinct from organization’s online
giving site) to fund institutionally-approved projects
• Typically project owners are given autonomy to reach out to their personal networks
– can bring in donors outside of alumni base

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SUCCESSFUL “CROWDFUNDING” CAMPAIGNS

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DECIDING HOW CROWDFUNDING CAN WORK
FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION

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CROWDFUNDING IN HIGHER EDUCATION CAN:
• Engage your donors
• Help drive alumni participation rates
• Broaden fundraising constituency bases
• Serve as a lead generation and data capture
tool
• Educate students and your alumni about the
impact of philanthropy
• Provide a seamless experience for newly
acquired donors as they transition to be
major gift donors

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BUT THERE ARE SOME CONSIDERATIONS
• Less control over message
• The dangers of third-party sites
• Hard credit vs. soft credit vs. no credit
• Loss of brand control
• Donor cultivation
• Proliferation of start-ups
• Oversaturation of constituency
• Crowdfunding does not replace traditional annual giving strategies
• And finally

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CROWDFUNDING (FUNDRAISING) IS HARD WORK

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KNOW WHO YOU ARE
Define Needs & Timeframe
Program Expectations:
• Revenue potential
• Program costs
• Program and Constituent Support
Benefits
• Less affected by economic state
• Expanded reach for the organization
• Building stronger, more loyal
supporters
Make it Part of
Your Culture
•It starts at the
top; executive
buy in
•Staff buy in
Constituents:
What is your
comfort level?
Business Plan

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MARKETING, MARKETING, MARKETING
• Promote program in donor
welcome series email
campaign - encourage donors
to get more involved.
• Use it as an opportunity to
engage board members and
major donors and to tap into
their personal networks
• Connect with lapsed donors
GET THE WORD OUT
• Make it an option to support
your organization.
• Consider picking a few key
dates to rally supporters
• Feature successful fundraisers
– both individuals & activities
in: website, e-newsletters and
printed materials.
• Show diversity in ways to get
involved
• Donation vs. Participation
Acquire & Recruit

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WE LIKE YOU AND WE LIKE WHAT YOU DO
• Personal Customer Service
• Organization Fact Sheet
• Approved Logos and Letters of Support
• “Ask” and Press Release Templates
• Basics of Fundraising
• Basics of Hosting an Event
• Online Tools for invitations,
communication, and money collection
• Instructions for Online Tools
• Recognition & Thanks
YOUR
FUNDRAISERS:
• Care
• Are Motivated
• Volunteer
and are asking
and in need of
guidance
Educate, Empower and Encourage

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MEASURE PERFORMANCE
• Number and Date of registered
fundraisers or events
• Number of participants
• Conversion & completion rate
• Number of repeat vs. new
• Number of donors
• Overall fundraising revenue
• Fundraising amount per
participant
• Number of donations per
participant
HOW WILL YOU TRACK
PERFORMANCE?
WHAT DOES SUCCESS
LOOK LIKE?
Measuring Success

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QUESTIONS?

Can Crowd Funding Work in Higher Ed?

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