One of our clients told me something yesterday that stopped me in my tracks.
He told me that during his last campaign, his two biggest donations came from people that he would never have thought to call.
The largest gift came from someone he had met before but wasn’t on his radar as a major donor or as someone who cared about this particular cause.
The second largest gift came from someone he had never heard of. Someone not in the database. A total stranger, for all intents and purposes.
I asked this client “Well, you must have done something right. What did you do to attract these people to your campaign?”
His response: “That’s the power of peer-to-peer fundraising.”
His fundraising ambassadors reached out to their contacts. When the right person makes the right ask at the right time for the right amount (hat tip to Bini Maryles for that one!), donors respond.
Even though I live and breathe crowdfunding, every once in a while, I need a reminder of its impact.
“That’s the power of peer-to-peer fundraising.”
It was like an electric bolt of energy through my system.
I know it’s hard to embark on a fundraising campaign when you can’t control the details.
You don’t know who is going to sign up to become a Fundraising Ambassador. You don’t know who is going to donate to your campaign. You don’t know exactly how you will reach your goal.
But if you believe in your cause… if you believe in your supporters… if you believe in the power of peer-to-peer fundraising, then you will succeed.
You may not be able to see the future, but that doesn’t mean it’s not beautiful.