Promoting Your Cause: Strategies for Success with iGive
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Consistent and strategic communication is key to building awareness and understanding of your cause. Leveraging multiple channels such as websites, social media, events, public relations, and more can help you effectively promote your organization and its use of iGive. Here are some practical ways to promote your cause and maximize your fundraising potential through iGive.
Websites
Your website is often the first place potential donors, participants, and members learn about your cause. Make sure your site clearly communicates your mission and how supporters can contribute through iGive. Highlight success stories, display easy-to-find links to iGive, and provide clear instructions on how to join and support your cause through online shopping.
Learn more about how to promote your cause on your website.
Social Media
Social media is one of the most effective ways to connect with large audiences. Use platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn to share your mission, impact stories, and the benefits of supporting your cause through iGive. Regularly post engaging content, such as testimonials from beneficiaries, updates on projects, and calls to action. Experiment with different types of posts, including images, videos, and live streams, to see what resonates most with your audience.
Learn more about how to use social media to promote your cause.
Events
Events offer ideal opportunities to promote your cause within the community. Whether hosting virtual or in-person events, make sure to incorporate information about iGive. This could be through presentations, brochures, or Q&A sessions. Events such as charity runs, bake sales, or webinars can also be used to encourage participants to support your cause through iGive.
Learn more about how to promote your cause through events.
Public Relations
Public relations can strengthen your community’s understanding of your cause and the positive difference you make. Work with local media to gain visibility, whether through press releases, interviews, or feature stories. Highlight how your partnership with iGive helps fund your initiatives. Building relationships with journalists and media outlets can lead to more coverage and increased awareness.
Learn more about how to use public relations to promote your cause.
Speaking Engagements
Speaking engagements are powerful tools to increase understanding and support for your cause. Whether speaking at local community meetings, conferences, or online webinars, make sure to include information about how easy it is to support your cause through iGive. Share personal stories and successes that highlight the impact of your work and the difference supporters can make through their everyday shopping.
Learn more about how to use speaking engagements to promote your cause.
Partnerships
Amplify your impact by collaborating with other local organizations. Partnerships can enhance your reach and credibility. Use iGive’s customizable logo templates to show your affiliation with partners and to co-brand your promotional materials. Joint events and campaigns can attract a broader audience and generate more support.
Learn more about how to build partnerships to promote your cause.
Advertising
Advertising can reach people who may not be familiar with your cause. Utilize print and digital ads, as well as audio clips and videos, to promote your organization and its partnership with iGive. Highlight the ease and benefits of supporting your cause through everyday shopping. Target your ads to demographics that align with your supporter base to maximize effectiveness.
Learn more about how to use advertising to promote your cause.
Merchandise
Wearing and using branded merchandise can strengthen your cause’s visibility and identity. Customize items with your logo and the iGive branding to create a cohesive image. Merchandise such as t-shirts, mugs, and tote bags can be used as promotional items at events or sold to raise additional funds.
Learn more about how to use merchandise to promote your cause.
Conclusion
Promoting your cause effectively requires a multi-faceted approach. By utilizing websites, social media, events, public relations, speaking engagements, partnerships, advertising, and merchandise, you can build a strong presence and increase support through iGive. Each channel offers unique opportunities to share your mission, engage supporters, and highlight the positive impact of their contributions. Consistent and strategic communication will help you reach your fundraising goals and make a lasting difference in your community.
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Frequently Asked Questions
A shopper starts shopping online by first going to iGive.com.
The shopper, your supporter, identifies your cause as the one they support. If your cause is not already on our list of causes either they or you can add it. This tells us where to send the donation. This only has to be done once unless the shopper wants to stop or change causes.
The shopper then identifies the merchant where they want to shop that day from our categorized list of over 1700 merchants. Once they click on that merchant, they are finished for the day with iGive and taken directly to the merchant’s website. If they have shopped there before, they begin shopping. If it is their first time shopping at this merchant’s website, they will have to follow the merchant’s instructions for registering there by providing their name, delivery address, payment method, email address, and perhaps some other information depending on the merchant.
When they are finished shopping, they check out as usual. They are done and only have to wait for their order to be sent to them.
Meanwhile, back at iGive, a message is received from the merchant which documents the transaction. Periodically the merchant adds up what they owe iGive in the way of commission and sends iGive the money. This sometimes takes a month or more after the shopping trip because the merchants want to take into account returns, exchanges or other modifications to the total amount they collect.
iGive then adds up all of the commissions that they have received that are designated to be shared with your cause and sends you the accumulated portion for your cause. This is usually added up on a monthly basis for the period since the last donation to your cause.
There is no cost to the shopper or to your cause.
iGive works with all types of causes — big or small, local or national, and regardless of whether they are a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit or not.
Merchants pay iGive a commission from the shopper’s purchase because iGive referred the customer to them. They want customers to shop at their store, and shoppers with iGive want to shop at stores that support their cause. iGive utilizes that commission to facilitate a donation to your cause on behalf of the shopper.
The money sent to your cause is the incentive iGive offers shoppers to use iGive.com as the entry to online shopping at our 1700+ affiliated stores.
This is different from when a cashier asks if the shopper wants to round up or add a dollar to donate when the shopper checks out — in that case, the shopper is paying slightly more to donate to the store’s chosen cause—not the shopper’s. With iGive, the shopper pays the same amount they would if they didn’t use iGive. Your cause receives a donation from iGive for all of your supporters who use iGive.
The amount the cause receives depends on how many of your supporters use iGive and the amount of money they spend shopping online. You can increase the amount of the donation by encouraging your supporters to use iGive.com when shopping online. Your cause does not pay iGive anything.
iGive has a wide range of participating stores. These are listed at iGive.com either by category of merchandise or a comprehensive list of all merchant affiliates. This includes popular online retailers in categories such as clothing, electronics, travel, and more. See the list of affiliated stores here.