3 Keys to Successful Social-Media Fundraising Campaigns

Until recently, people were not used to having true, two-way conversations with their fundraisers. Social media has changed all of that. It's also made mobilizing supporters to act on organizations' behalf easier than ever.

Here, David Neff, creator, co-found and director of Lights. Camera. Help. and senior digital strategist at Ridgewood Ingenious Communication Strategies, offers three keys to social-media fundraising success.

1. Repeat, especially on crowded mediums like Twitter and Facebook. "Obviously, you have to judge your audience," Neff says. "The same message three times a day might not work. But the same message on your Facebook page twice a week might be perfect depending on your audience. The way people use Twitter, they see all of these messages tumbling down, and Facebook they see all of these updates tumbling down, so you have to repeat to get that message in front of them."
2. React to campaigns. "People who've done a great job with that — the Red Cross around disaster relief; the Humane Society did something around Michael Vick when that first happened," Neff says. "You need to react to things happening in the environment not within weeks, not after you've run it by your board of directors, but you have to react to things as they happen."
3. Run campaigns that are on a deadline. "We need $10 and you to ask 10 friends by Dec. 10; go! Give them a deadline, and push them toward that deadline," Neff says. "We need $10 from 10 people in the next 48 hours. Things like that. People want to react quickly, and people want to have timeliness, deadlines set around their fundraising campaigns."