When medical bills pile up, more and more people in Australia are turning to fundraising in order to pay for medication and healing procedures. Moreover, the added out-of-pocket costs, and the need for domestic care add up to the costs and represent a major burden to these families and their budget.

People tend more and more often to refer to medical platforms for fundraising from friends and acquaintances, but also from other generous people who are touched by these stories. As an example, in 2012 an estimated $2.8 billion was raised by all types of crowdfunding websites.

However, still many of the crowdfunding campaigns which are launched do not meet the pledged amount, and what is even more, in such cases some of the donations may be given back to investors. That is why you need to plan well and advance, set the goals and activities in order to have a successful fundraises. Here are the ten inevitable steps for effective crowdfunding that will help you reach your goal.

1) Create a team

Even before you start planning your campaign, you will need help in planning and executing the campaign. In order to reach to more people you will need the joint help of those close to you. The reality is that no person can efficiently run a campaign by themselves, so we recommend getting a small team together to assist you throughout the process. You will need to gather people which are committed to your cause, and these can be family, a few very close friends or even a combination of friends and family.

2) Set up your goal

Before you launch your campaign, plan your outreach or activities, you must know what you are aiming for. Calculating how much money, medicine or care is needed in advance will help you both plan the intensity of activities, your target audience, whether these will be companies, people around your etc. Therefore, we strongly recommend before starting to make a detailed plan on the expenditure and we advise you to think of all costs, so you can have a realistic goal. Apart from goal set on fundraising, you can also set up your own milestones on people reached, companies contacted, articles published in order to evaluate the successfulness of your campaign in every stage of the fundraising.

3) Prepare the campaign

When planning you also will also have to set a date when you plan to reach your fundraising goal. This is very important for two things. Firstly, everyone who contributes will want to know the scheduled dates for the medical procedures that they are helping to finance, also creating a sense of urgency is an essential aspect of all fundraising campaigns, and letting people know the date of the next procedure will give them a firm deadline for making a donation. Secondly, in terms of planning, once you have set this deadline you can prepare a detailed week to week plan and write down the daily tasks for each team member so you can efficiently run your campaign. You must also plan the channels you will use for your campaign, whether the campaign will be based on internet only, or you will contact media, distribute leaflets, engage local companies etc.

4) Gather information, pictures, videos

Before you go public with your campaign make sure that you have all prepared the initial texts that describe your story, the illness, required procedures and compilation of pictures and videos, which will make your campaign unique. People are more motivated to donate to a face and a story they can relate to or feel compassionate about.

5) Explain your cause

The more transparent you are about your fundraiser, the more likely you are to meet or exceed your goal. There are some specific issues that you should address on your medical fundraising page if you want to be successful. You should start with what are you raising money for, than the nature of the illness, the treatment itself, the deadline by which it should be reached. By telling people all of the different things that your goal amount will pay for will make them feel more inclined to get involved by making a contribution.

6) Choose a fundraiser webpage

You will need a base for your internet campaign and one place for all the information as well as a platform for gathering funds. The concept of online crowdfunding is fairly new, but there are many websites that will help you reach out to others to raise money. Some sites, such as GoFundMe and FundRazr, raise money for anything, while others, are focused more closely on health and medical issues. It’s crucial to know how sites operate before picking one to work with.

7) Use the power of social media

If you aim for great outreach social media is a must in your campaign. The power of social media in sharing is immense, and if used properly can really add up to your campaign. You can use it simply to share the fundraiser you have created, or you can go step forward and create a cause on Facebook on which you can share links, updates and communicate with your followers. When combined with the viral power of social media tools like Facebook and Twitter, medical fundraising websites can raise upwards of $5,000, $10,000, or even $100,000 in a few weeks.

8) Contact local media

With social media in hand people tend to forget the power of the traditional media such as newspapers and magazines, television and radio stations. These tools can also be used to help you spread the word on your fundraiser. Prepare a simple press release with information on your story, details on the illness and the treatment costs as well as how interested people can donate, and share it with media. Some of them will publish the news and some will offer interviews, however the word will be out.

9) Engage the community

Once you have targeted the people in your surroundings and more, if needed you can also contact local business to help and donate to your cause. You can suggest to them to mention them as supporters to your cause in return to their generosity.

10) Communicate with your supporters

If possible, every person who makes a donation to your campaign should receive a personalized thank you letter or email. This is important because it will make people feel like their contribution was truly appreciated, and it will also make them more inclined to donate again in the future. After all, you might need to ask the same people for additional support if you are unable to meet your goal, so you need them to feel satisfied with the results of their first donation.

References:

1) 10 Tips for a successful crowdfunding campaign: http://www.crowdmapped.com/10-tips-for-a-successful-crowdfunding-campaign/

2) ‘Crowdfunding’ sites pay medical bills, raise hopes: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/01/11/crowdfunding-medical-expenses-fundraising/1786039/

3) When Medical Bills Pile Up, Can You Crowdfund Your Health Care?: http://www.nextavenue.org/article/2013-04/when-medical-bills-pile-can-you-crowdfund-your-health-care