If you want to have a fruitful fundraising campaign, make sure you allocate some time and resources to the design of marketing material. Having well-designed and well-articulated marketing material reflects better on your organization and attracts more attention.
Continue readingHave a Storytelling Plan
Compile one or more stories that best highlight the work your organization does and then showcase them to your community. For example, what story can you think of that best demonstrates how your Masjid has helped Muslim kids learn and apply the Quran?
Continue readingPrepare your Online and Offline Premises
Prepare both your online and offline premises ahead of the campaign. How are you accepting online donations? How will your homepage reflect the campaign theme? How will your social media pages reflect the campaign?
As for as your offline preparation, what do you want people to see when they first set foot in your Masjid (or musallah)?
Continue readingForm an Ambassador Team
Not only does having core members and volunteers of your Masjid organization reach out to their contacts result in generous donations, it is a very practical way of widening your donor base.
Continue readingCoordinate Collections from Large Gatherings
There is no doubt that one of the most effective fundraising techniques in the Muslim community is to bring them under one roof, soften their hearts with some hadiths, ayahs, and stories of their pious predecessors, and then ask them to donate. We see this happening at fundraising galas very successfully, Alhamdulillah. So, why not utilize that same technique during times when the Muslim community is naturally gathering in large numbers, such as for Jumuah prayer, Taraweeh prayer, and Eid prayer?
Continue readingDevise a Comprehensive Marketing Plan
A good duration for a fundraising campaign is about a month. There are lots of things you can do as a Masjid organization during a campaign. But what are the things that you MUST do? After doing all your pre-campaign homework as described in the previous steps, how can you maximize your returns?
Continue readingProvide Services
A Masjid is more than just a place to pray. In addition to offering daily prayers, a Masjid should provide services that the local community needs. These services should encompass their social and spiritual needs, with special attention given to the youth.
Continue readingShowcase the Great Work you Do Through Storytelling
Storytelling is the main technique used to trigger an emotional response from a target audience to solicit donations. Have you ever thought about the personal stories of the various people benefiting from a Masjid? Whether they are regular musallees, or reverts who took their shahadah at the Masjid, they all have a unique story that links them to the Masjid.
Continue readingProvide Donor Stewardship
Once someone makes a donation to your Masjid, what happens next? Do you thank them? Do you communicate to them regularly providing updates on the Masjid project? Have you ever looked at your donor database to determine how many of your donors are repeat donors?
Continue readingThe Power of Repeat Donors
This is a case study that shows just how important repeat donors are to a Masjid organization, particularly in Ramadan! It also shows how critical it is to keep a record of donors.
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