What should you pay for an online fundraising platform?
It’s a simple question with no simple answer, but I’m not sure it’s the “right” question to ask.
It’s not as much about price as it is return on investment (ROI).
You might decide to use a low-cost service and discover the cost was still too high because the results were poor.
That would be a high-cost crowdfunding platform no matter how little they charge.
Or, you might hire a company that costs more but provides better services to ensure you get the results you need. Twelve months later, you will have realized some really good fundraising results, become better known to a new circle of donors, and have expanded your market share.
It shouldn’t matter if you’re paying more – as long as you’re GETTING MORE.
Let’s take a look at one real-life example:
Organization “P” ran a campaign with an online fundraising platform that, at first glance, appeared to be successful. The organization raised $502,762 from five fundraising teams who inspired 590 donors.
The next year, “P” ran a campaign with CauseMatch. They raised $1,067,119. This campaign enlisted 117 teams and reached 1,755 donors.
There’s no question that “P” could have continued their efforts with a lower-cost peer-to-peer fundraising platform. They may have even been satisfied with the amount they raised. But why settle for satisfied when you can be ecstatic? Is it worthwhile to save a few dollars when it means missing out on hundreds of thousands of dollars? Just think of how many more people your organization can help if you raise even a few thousand dollars more.
Let’s look at 12 other examples in bulk. This graph charts how many donors gave to 12 real organizations that used a cheaper option before turning to CauseMatch for their crowdfunding needs.
Ten of the 12 organizations received donations from more donors with CauseMatch. One of them (Org 8) more than DOUBLED the amount of donors to their campaign.
But number of donors is only side of the equation. The other side is about the dollars. How did these 12 organizations fair with CauseMatch?
Even the organizations that saw a reduction in the number of donors raised more money with CauseMatch. Four of them (Orgs 3, 7, 8, and 12) doubled the amount they raised, and one of them (Org 2) TRIPLED their total.
The bottom line is: when it comes to fundraising, it’s okay to pay more if it means you’ll raise more. Saving $1,000 on your fundraising platform but missing out on $5,000 or $10,000 of donations because the platform isn’t as robust, is, quite literally, saving a penny to spend a pound.