Text-message fundraising has found tremendous success in recent years through cause marketing efforts and booming media coverage. Whether the
Haiti Relief effort that boasted over $20M in donations or the recent
9/11 Memorial remembrance campaign, the scale and response-rate of these fundraising programs is remarkable.
To begin, we’ll take a look at some examples. It’s not a foreign concept and certainly there are many others that can be added to this list. To name a few:
○
Colorado State utilized $5 texts to help support their athletic scholarships.
○ North Carolina Central launched a
$10 texting campaign to help cover athletic scholarship expenses.
In general, these campaigns are relatively low-cost and require minimal effort to launch. As noted by
Taylor Wood in an ADF post, text-messaging platforms need volume to be cost-effective, and these services are not suited for all athletic departments. The good news is that technologies continue to improve and prices for these services will continue to decrease. Check out companies like
MGive,
GivebyCell or
Text-to-Pledge for more information.
The Mobile Giving Foundation is another interesting group to look into.
The critical question remains, “Do micro-donations make a big enough impact and are they worth the concerted effort and time involvement?” This varies by school, staff size, fan base, and a host of other variables. But with many departments cutting positions and shrinking budgets, perhaps more focus needs to be put on this creative tool. The following are four suggestions to help drive impact for your next text-fundraiser.
1. Focus on niche-sports, special circumstances (such as surprise postseason expenses), memorial funds or other specific causes. -A $10 text campaign towards the general scholarship fund is hardly exciting.
2. Build text campaigns around ‘matching gifts’ from larger donors or sponsors. If certain milestones are reached, gifts will double, triple, etc.
-Brings a gaming element to the campaign.3. Involve athletes. Whether on center court during a timeout, or marketing collateral that promotes the campaign. Student-athletes bring excitement. -Might have to check with the compliance team first!
4. Reward participants who donate. Incorporate a sponsor-driven coupon or promotion as an instant “thank-you” for each donation. -It will increase interest, it is good stewardship and it offers a unique opportunity for a department sponsor.
Overall, I believe text-campaigns can make an impact when done creatively and micro-donations should have a role in the effortsof many athletic departments. Hopefully, this discussion sparked some interest or brought to mind a successful example you’ve seen. Are schools doing enough with mobile donations? Is it becoming oversaturated? Are micro-donations even worth pursuing?
Love to hear your opinion and I’m excited to see technology’s role grow in athletic fundraising!
David Carter
This article was contributed by David Carter, Founder & CEO of Digital Edge Sports, LLC, (
www.digitaledgesports.com)
and former Asst. Director of Development for the Ohio Bobcat Club.
