Tips for Engaging Volunteers in Charity Fundraising Initiatives

9th September 2023

When you host a charity fundraiser event, you need volunteers. Naturally, the more engaged and enthusiastic your volunteers are, the better. This is because their enthusiasm will rub off on donors and encourage them to contribute to your cause, which is exactly what you want.

So, here’s the important question: How can you engage your charity fundraiser volunteers? Thankfully, this guide is here to provide you with a handful of tips that’ll help you to maximize volunteer engagement and achieve your fundraising goals.

As soon as you’re ready, let’s get started.

Firstly, Organise an Exciting Fundraiser

Before anything else, it’s important that you organise an exciting fundraiser. This way, you’ll be able to attract more volunteers, as it’s something they’ll be eager to help with. Don’t worry if you’re short on fundraising ideas, though, as you can take a look at the Macmillan fundraising ideas. Once you see a fundraiser idea that you like, you can then start organising it.

Provide Volunteers with Branded Merchandise

Volunteers want to feel part of your team and cause, so providing them with branded merchandise is a great idea. This way, they’ll look more professional when they’re out promoting your fundraiser and trying to raise as much money as possible. Plus, the branded merchandise (e.g., t-shirts and hats) will boost the awareness of your charity or specific fundraising event.

Have a Variety of Roles Available

From social media marketing to street fundraising, make sure there are a variety of roles available for your volunteers to choose from. Remember, each individual will have different strengths and preferences.

For example, offer the opportunity for a volunteer to create promotional social media content for the fundraiser. This will attract many potential volunteers from universities and colleges studying marketing.

Having a team leadership program in place is also a good idea. Any volunteer looking to develop their leadership and management skills will jump at the opportunity to participate in this, which is excellent if you’re looking to attract enthusiastic volunteers.

Provide Training

Some of your volunteering roles will require training.

With this in mind, ensure all volunteers are provided with the training (and training resources) they need to prosper. Remember, the training that volunteers receive will also equip them with skills that they can use later in life, which is something that will be appreciated.

The great thing about this is that most training can be provided online these days. As a result, you don’t need to worry as much about providing in-person training, although (if you want to) you can still do this.

Offer References

A big motivation for charity fundraiser volunteers is the opportunity to get a reference at the end of it all. For instance, this is very common with university and college students who are looking to boost their résumés and show future employees that they’re trustworthy.

So, when you advertise your volunteer vacancies, make sure you make it clear that volunteers will receive references at the end of the fundraising campaign. You should find that this makes volunteers more engaged when they come on board, as they’ll ultimately want you to give them a great reference.

 

Author bio:

This is a guest post by Steve Conway, a passionate traveler who explores the globe in pursuit of adventure, sun soaked beaches and azure waters.