Nonprofit Blog Carnival: Social Fundraising Tips and Best Practices

If you are planning to launch a social fundraising campaign or looking to raise even more money for your next social fundraiser, this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival has you covered. We asked our favorite nonprofit fundraisers and social media campaigners to share their favorite tips on social fundraising and crowd-funding to foster community, spread nonprofit missions, and empower supporters to raise money on behalf of inspiring organizations who are creating social change. Let’s begin.

• Over on Convio’s blog, Cheryl Black discusses practical tips for newbies to get started with social fundraising.

• Are Nonprofits Raising Money Via Social Networks? Isn’t that the $1M dollar question? Check out my analysis of the 2011 Nonprofit Social Network Benchmark Report, which provides some incredible data on how 11K+ nonprofits are using social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and others. And then head over to John Haydon’s great post on Care2’s Frogloop blog where he asks “Is Facebook Good for Fundraising?” Haydon says Facebook stinks for collecting donations but is awesome for raising money. Haydon says you can’t make a value judgment on Facebook based only on donations. It’s about building relationships first!

• The inspiring nonprofit Witness has done some of the most innovative campaigns and videos around human rights issues. They have also tested a variety of strategies to raise money online including utlilizing social media. Check out Miyoko Brunner’s post on "Choosing Timing, Outreach and Platforms for Successful Online Fundraising."

• Frank Barry over at Blackbaud’s blog has a fantastic infographic that illustrates the "Power of Social Fundraising and Friends Asking Friends."

• Lori Halley of Wild Apricot explores some of her favorite examples of social fundraising campaigns in her post" Raising Awareness and Funds With Social Fundraising."

Examples include:

• Raising the Rhythm - a University of Toronto student and her friends raised about $8K for CFTC through a dance / fashion gala in Toronto
• Kilimanjaro Climb - Anastassia Ferdman climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and raised $2,600
• Hungry for Change – through this initiative, which is in its fifth year, CFTC is the Canadian Electrical Industry's charity of choice; for whom they've raised about $1million
•  Heidi Massey highlights her experiences for raising money for Citizen Gulf and how she will be applying lessons learned to Twive and Receive, social fundraisier to raise money for Open Books who focuses on literacy.

• Does your Executive Director ever knock on your door, and ask “how can we find new donors through social media?” Geoff Livingston over at Razoo has some great advice to share on this very topic. 

• And speaking of ROI, check Care2.com’s Justin Perkin’s popular social networking calculator and find out if your investment in these types of campaigns is really worth it.

What are some of your favorite social fundraising tips or social fundraisng campaigns? Tell us here in the comments.

What topic will the Nonprofit Blog Carnival being exploring in May? Lori Halley of Wild Apricot is hosting and exploring the best strategies to mobilize supporters.