It’s no secret that the past couple of years have been tough for Canadian charities that raise money through peer-to-peer fundraising.
In 2015, fundraising revenue for Canada’s 30 largest peer-to-peer programs dropped by 8.6 percent, according to Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Canada’s annual Top 30 Benchmarking Survey. And that decline followed a 6-percent drop in 2014.
But while these numbers serve as a wake-up call for many of Canada’s biggest charities, we’ve been encouraged to see that many nonprofits aren’t stepping back from P2P. In fact, many organizations are seriously examining their initiatives, investing in new programs, and overhauling existing programs.
In this series of three articles we are looking at some approaches Canadian nonprofits are taking to ensure that their peer-to-peer programs remain strong, even with the recent declines. I the first two parts of this series we looked reframing existing events and investing in new approaches. Here is strategy number three:
Doubling Down
In the face of declining revenues for its signature P2P programs like MS Walk and MS Bike, the MS Society of Canada is deciding to double down on these programs — choosing to view them less as massive revenue opportunities and more as a way to begin relationships with donors that will span decades.
“MS Walk exists to raise money, but it also exists to introduce people to the MS Society,” said Becky Mitts, MS Society of Canada’s Senior Manager, National Event Strategy. “It’s the first time a lot of people interact with us.”
This concept is changing the way the organization thinks about the campaign — and is resetting its expectations.
Rather than using it solely as an opportunity to raise money, the MS Society is changing the way it communicates with participants. It is positioning the money raised through MS Walk as an investment in an organization that is making an impact.
By doing so, it hopes to engage P2P fundraisers in a relationship that extends well beyond the event itself and leads to greater donations and support in the future. This shift is allowing the organization to focus on the walk not as a single event, but as the first step in a path of engagement with the MS Society.
“We’re mapping out what are the opportunities to get them engaged with the organization as a whole,” Mitts says. “It pushes us to tell our story better. If you’re going to fundraise on our behalf, we’re going to tell you what we’re doing with your investment.”
The takeaway from each of these approaches is straightforward — you can’t expect to be successful with P2P fundraising unless you’re willing to adapt and change.
Even the most successful campaigns need to constantly evolve. Otherwise they will fall behind.
David Hessekiel is founder and president of Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Canada, which hosts ongoing programming, produces research, and offers advice to peer-to-peer fundraising professionals throughout Canada.
