5 Nonprofit Campaign Examples To Teach You Funding Success

Table of Contents

Nonprofit campaigns can increase visibility and inform people about nonprofits, their causes, and specific campaign objectives. Storytelling, engaging content, and a cohesive brand message all show why a campaign matters to prospective donors – as the nonprofit campaign examples we discuss later will prove.

Even a tiny advertising budget can significantly increase visibility, especially through digital channels, allowing precise targeting based on interests, location, and demographics.

According to ‘Double the Donation,’ 32% of donors were inspired to donate through social media, and 30% by email.

Even if you assume social media virality plays a role, the fact that 30% of donations can come through curated emails should push all nonprofits toward marketing.

With TV and radio ads accounting for just 3% of donations, it is also safe to say that marketing should focus heavily on the digital space.

Nonprofit marketing campaigns can take many forms, including social media campaigns, email newsletters, fundraising drives, and public service announcements.

What is a nonprofit campaign?

Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay

A marketing campaign usually promotes a product or highlights a new offer. Something manufactured or a special discount.

A nonprofit marketing campaign does not sell a product but rather seeks to engage a community and inspire members to donate.

Essentially, people don’t ‘buy’ from a nonprofit marketing campaign. They ‘give’. So, that informs all the actions of a nonprofit marketing campaign.

Key elements often include compelling storytelling, highlighting the organization’s impact, sharing personal stories of those helped by the nonprofit, and clear calls-to-action.

The common goals are:

Fundraising
Awareness about the nonprofit
Advocacy for a cause
Community Engagement

But we shall look into each type of nonprofit marketing campaign in detail below, along with what that campaign is trying to achieve.

Types of nonprofit campaigns

All campaigns for a nonprofit have overlapping goals, and the ultimate goal always remains the same – raise funds andspread awareness among specific target audiences. So what is the difference between these various campaigns? The difference boils down to what specific action that targeted audiences should take.

Depending on that, we can divide a nonprofit marketing campaign into 9 categories. They are:

Awareness campaign:

An organized effort to increase public understanding about a specific cause, issue, or the nonprofit organization itself.

Action: Raising awareness about the cause or the nonprofit by sharing information using all available channels.

Engagement campaign:

Unlike awareness campaigns, which primarily focus on spreading information, engagement campaigns aim to foster ongoing interaction, commitment, and community building.

Action: Use interactive formats (polls, quizzes, challenges, and live events) and clear, easy-to-follow ‘Call to Actions’ that invite active participation rather than passive consumption.

Fundraising campaign:

Image by Owensart from Pixabay

Fundraising campaigns often include a mix of online and offline activities and are designed to inspire donations by highlighting the urgency, impact, and benefits of contributing to the cause. They can be short-term (such as a single event) or ongoing, depending on the organization’s needs.

There are several unique sub-categories, that only work for nonprofit marketing:

Peer-to-Peer: This is when your supporters raise funds for you among their own friends and peers. This can be done the old fashioned way (just by calling and asking), or you can even have unique webpages for each supporter to share on their personal accounts.

For example, Meta allows personal peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns using your Facebook or Instagram account. It says it has raised $5 billion for nonprofits since 2015..

Major gifts: 88% of all donations given to a nonprofit organization come from just 12% of the donors. This alone proves the value of ‘major gifts’ to a nonprofit. So this requires specific and targeted campaigns to high-value donors, who will donate based on how well the goals and impact of the nonprofit aligns with their own ideals.

Legacy donors: 6.2% of the money spent by an average nonprofit goes to securing legacy donors, but the returns are enormous. Returns on legacy donor acquisition are almost 15 times the investment. This basically requires a specific appeal to people to leave behind something for your nonprofit in their will.

This can be immovable property, donations of materials, or just the proceeds of a trust or the entire wealth a person had at the time of their death. As the term implies, your appeal is that donors leave behind a charitable ‘legacy,’ which you promise to uphold.

Friendraising: Friendraising is getting your friends onboard to raise funds for an organization. Similar to peer-to-peer fundraising or relational organizing, friendraising taps into the personal networks of employees, volunteers, and supporters to gather more supporters and funds.

Action: For all kinds of fundraising, a nonprofit has to offer an easy solution to actually donate. This ranges from well-made donation pages, offering multiple options to make payment and giving different scales to donate. On the larger side, you need to provide legal help and paperwork assistance.

Year-end giving campaign:

Nearly 31% of annual giving occurs in December, with 12% of all donations made in the last three days of the year, driven by year-end tax benefits and the holiday spirit.

The data demonstrates that year-end campaigns are one of the most effective fundraising strategies, allowing nonprofits to finish the year strong and start the next year with vital resources.

Action: Nonprofits that optimize year-end campaigns for mobile and offer diverse payment options (like PayPal, credit cards, and digital wallets) see significantly higher donation rates. So make sure your ‘text to donate’ and mass messaging is on point.

Direct mail campaign

A direct mail campaign is a traditional fundraising method where nonprofits send physical mail—letters, postcards, brochures, or other printed materials. Direct mail remains a valuable tool in nonprofit fundraising, especially when targeting established donors who appreciate the tangible connection and personal touch.

Nearly 61% of donors over 45 prefer to give through direct mail, making it ideal for reaching an older, loyal donor base.

Action: Build or purchase a mailing list tailored to the campaign, often segmented by donor history, interests, or geographic location. Addressing donors by name, acknowledging past donations, and tailoring messages to their giving history makes the outreach feel genuine and personalized. Think hand-written notes.

Giving Tuesday campaign:

Image: Promotional campaign for Giving Tuesday 2023. Source: IEEE Foundation

In 2022, Giving Tuesday raised over $3.1 billion in the U.S., marking a 15% increase over 2021, despite economic concerns. This shows that the day continues to grow in importance and generosity. All nonprofits should make special campaigns for that day every year.

Effective Giving Tuesday campaigns leverage the day’s momentum, encouraging donations, social sharing, and active involvement from supporters. Nonprofits begin promoting Giving Tuesday weeks or even months in advance.

Action: Nearly 43% of Giving Tuesday donors engage through social media and make digital payments, which serves as a critical platform for visibility and engagement. Campaigns that use hashtags like #GivingTuesday or create their own see an increase in social shares and donations.

Online fundraising

28% of donors now prefer to give online, with an average online gift amount of $204 – a substantial figure compared to traditional donation methods. Though you can technically donate from anything, online fundraising specifically means campaigns that drive donors to the nonprofits website or donation page.

Action: Nonprofits that optimize donation pages for mobile report up to a 34% increase in conversion rates for mobile users. Allow donors to give via text message, which simplifies the process and allows for spontaneous giving, especially during live events or social media campaigns.

Expert tip: Nonprofits with recurring giving options retain donors at a 90% rate, compared to around 45% retention for one-time donors. So make sure that ‘checkbox’ is there on your donation page.

Fundraising event:

Events can range from traditional galas and auctions to walkathons, virtual gatherings, and peer-to-peer fundraisers, each tailored to the organization’s needs and audience.

Action: Offer prizes for top fundraisers, or set team-based goals. Partner with businesses to cover event costs (venue, food, etc.) or provide matching gifts. Companies appreciate the visibility and community involvement that sponsoring a nonprofit event offers.

Crowdfunding campaign

Image: Slow Down For Otters campaign. Source: UK wild otter trust

The crowdfunding market is expected to reach $300 billion globally by 2025. Nonprofits using crowdfunding platforms raise an average of $9,237 per campaign. Additionally, 62% of donors report that they are more likely to give to a nonprofit that they learned about through a crowdfunding campaign.

You can do this on various platforms (who will charge a fee) and then be promoted across social media, where it will (hopefully) go viral.

Action: Select a crowdfunding platform that aligns with your mission and audience. Popular options for nonprofits include GoFundMe, Kickstarter (for creative projects), Indiegogo, Classy, and Fundly.

5 Brilliant nonprofit campaign examples everyone should learn from

Ice Bucket Challenge

What they did: People posted vidoes on social media after dumping ice cold water on themselves, to mimic the conditions that patients with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) suffer. Once soaked, they named a friend or peer to take up the challenge.

Why we love it: It was both funny and eye-catching, inspiring almost everyone who watched the video for the first time to ask “Why are they doing that?”. This increased donations to the ALS Association for research by 187%!

Takeaway: Find a way to connect your cause with making people laugh or engaging their curiosity, and you will have a winner.

Earth Hour

What they did: World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) launched Earth Hour in 2007 – an online campaign that called for everyone to switch off their lights for one hour. This has since evolved into a ‘Give an hour to Earth,’ in which people (including superstars and politicians) do something that helps nature for an hour every year on March 25.

Why we love it: From convincing millions of people in 19 countries to switch off their lights to shifting to more ambitious goals like forest planting, this is a great example of ‘engagement’ – something that causes action for the cause.

Takeaway: Evolve with times to increase engagement. You can start with one idea, but as you reach the potential of that engagement, dynamically change the goals. This keeps engagement levels high over the years.

Charity: Water Quiz Fundraiser

What they did: This campaign features a quiz titled “How Much Do You Know About the Water Crisis?” designed to raise awareness about the critical facts surrounding the global water crisis. Participants take the quiz and then share it with their friends and family, helping to spread knowledge.

Why we love it: Its sheer impact. Started by Scott Harrison after he felt his life of parties and boozing was pointless, it has raised an eye-boggling $300 million since 2006, funding nearly 30,000 water projects in 26 countries worldwide.

Takeaway: Fundraising is beyond ‘give me money’. Sometimes, just making people aware of the issue and then guiding them to an easy way to make a difference can turn you into a fundraising powerhouse.

Bethany Health Center’s Letter

What they did: In an era where we wildy underestimate the power of paper letters delivered to homes, Bethany Health Center renewed faith in letters through their quarantine request. Sent during lockdown, the letter was honest, direct, and spoke to the moment. It admitted that the letter was almost not sent, but then the fate of their patients, now doubly trapped in the hospice, pushed them to make the effort.

‍

Why we love it: By directly speaking the truth of the times, and making people see the true difference their help can make, this simple letter jumped donations by 296%.

Takeaway: Speak your truth, and speak it well. Then, no matter what medium you use to make your appeal, you will move hearts and minds. Try all channels. Don’t get stuck on ‘Facebook’ and obsess about going ‘viral’.

Who owns the story?

Image: The pack made by the recipients. Source: Amref Health Africa

What they did: This is actually a study, but it has helped charities increase their crowdfunding donations by 30%. This study tested a simple theory. Do people donate more when an organization writes a formal report, along with professional photos? Or should the appeal come from the actual recipient of the aid, told in their own words with photos they have taken themselves? The latter raised 30% more money than the former.

Why we love it: Crowdfunding is all the rage. Billions of dollars are being raised by GoFundMe and other similar platforms. And yet, charity donations are actually down in 2023 and 2024. One reason could be that people are tired of those pre-packed ‘donate to these starving kids’ advertising campaigns. They see crowdfunding as something ‘we the people’ do. And they prove it by donating more to the ones who say the money is for them, instead of an organization.

Takeaway: When you crowdfund, make sure the story is told by the people most affected by your cause, and not by your organization putting a press pack together. You will hit your goals faster.

In the end, effectively marketing a nonprofit requires a strategic blend of storytelling, community engagement, and leveraging digital platforms to amplify your mission. By understanding your audience, crafting compelling narratives, and utilizing diverse channels—such as social media, email marketing, and partnerships—you can create a strong presence that resonates with supporters. Remember, consistency and authenticity are key to building trust and loyalty within your community.