Tips & Tricks for Volunteers
FUNDRAISING
If you haven’t yet, please begin the process by becoming a volunteer fundraiser for DM4D. Follow this link to Zeffy, and then click “Become a fundraiser today!” We use Zeffy because they have no fees, so every dollar raised by your efforts goes to support our cause. Continue through the steps on Zeffy until the process is complete.
FIRST: Become a volunteer fundraiser
Once you have officially signed up as a volunteer fundraiser, please feel free to leverage the below resources to make as large of an impact as possible. Our tips are divided into two sections: the Basics, which will likely apply to everyone who becomes a fundraiser, and the Specifics, which will help you brainstorm non-exclusive ways to fundraise.
NEXT: Use our tips and tricks below!
Are you a fundraiser who has had particular success with a fundraising effort? We’d love to hear from you!
1. Tell everyone. The first rule of fundraising is Tell Everyone. That includes Nana, the dog, and the mailman. You’re raising for a good cause, so tell everyone about it! Do they care about democracy? Democracy itself isn’t political. For the past 248 years we have lived in a democratic republic, we simply want to keep it that way. Text the group chat. Text the fam chat.
2. Tell everyone. The second rule of fundraising is Tell Everyone. This goes beyond Nan and the dogs. GET ONLINE AND SPREAD THE WORD ON SOCIAL. We’re talking Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, X/Twitter, Reddit, you name it. Wherever you have an online presence is an OK place to let people know you’re raising for a good cause and to ask for their support.
3. Tell everyone. See, we don’t mind being annoying, so why should you? GO TELL EVERYONE. Work in an office? See if they’ll let you make an announcement. Use a free QR code generator, like the ones from Adobe or Canva, and drop them off at people’s desks, or in the lobby. Have a favorite coffee shop or bookstore (I think I saw one last year)? Ask if they will let you spread the word and leave your QR code to raise funds for democracy.
GO. TELL. EVERYONE.
Fundraising: the Basics
Ok, here’s where things get serious. You’ve officially told everyone you know (and don’t know) in every way you can about your fundraising efforts. The low-hanging fruit has been picked. Here are some (non-exclusive) ways to go about attracting additional funds for your fundraising drive:
1. Movie night. This is one of our favorites. Host a movie night! Invite anyone you feel comfortable (and maybe a +1 or +2) to a movie night. Let them know that a donation is required for entry. You set the amount. Provide food and drinks and a comfortable setting. Need ideas for movies? We recommend: The Edge of Democracy, Get Me Roger Stone, On The Basis of Sex, 13th, Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom, The Square, The Great Hack, Knock Down the House, Under The Sun, and Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press, all on Netflix.
2. Game night. Turn your favorite game, or just trivia, into a fundraising opportunity! For example, you could charge entry to participate, donate the entry fees to DM4D, and provide the winner with a prize, such as a pie, free dinner, or a gift certificate.
3. Get active. Walk, run, bike, swim, whatever your desire. But do it for a cause! You can use our Zeffy form to sign up and create your own challenge to share with friends, family, coworkers, classmates, etc. Many marathons and other popular options like Tough Mudder, allow you to fundraise using your platform of choice (in this case, Zeffy). Or, you can choose to do a Spartan Race which uses only GoFundraise, a platform we are also on.
4. Bake sales. We know it’s a bit old-fashioned, but these things WORK. Bake your favorite bake (cookies, brownies, pain au chocolat [anyone?]) and bring them to work or school and sell them. Talk about DM4D and why it’s important to make sure we continue to live in a democracy, so that you and your audience are represented well by the people we choose to represent us. And if they don’t do that? They get fired.
5. Get clean. Feeling that spring urge to declutter a little early? Or notice a lot of dusty old vehicles riding around town lately? Turn a garage sale or local car wash into a tax deduction by giving all or a portion of your earnings to DM4D!
Fundraising: the Specifics