10 years in the past, somebody determined to run a half marathon…however with a catch.
Additionally they wished to surrender alcohol to enhance their coaching and really feel higher within the month main as much as the race.
What got here from this was a complete lot of curiosity, questions, and some inquisitive appears.
However finally, the consequence was far larger than a half marathon private file. This initiative grew into the viral sensation often known as Dry January® – the month-long, alcohol-free fundraising marketing campaign.
The charity behind it’s Alcohol Change UK. At Fundraising In all places’s Members Convention 2023, we talked with Neighborhood & Problem Occasions Supervisor, Robin Plowman, on how his group achieved their greatest 12 months ever and proceed to keep up fundraising momentum.
Learn on for the important thing classes your charity can use to construct your model and lift more cash.
Leap to a piece
Who’s Alcohol Change UK?
Whereas the Dry January® initiative is a decade within the works, Alcohol Change UK as a charity is pretty new, popping out of a two-charity merger in 2018.
And whereas fundraising is an enormous a part of their actions, the charity’s mission centres on driving key adjustments for a world free from alcohol hurt.
Their targets embrace:
- Bettering data in alcohol hurt
- Higher insurance policies and remedy
- Shifting cultural norms and consuming behaviours.
Robin illustrates how Dry January® falls into this, as a significant initiative serving to the charity advance a change in consuming behaviours.
“It’s not a fundraising-driven marketing campaign. It’s a part of our charity-driven aims, it’s about help and serving to individuals.”
Robin Plowman, Alcohol Change UK
Let’s take a look at a few of Robin’s high suggestions for sustaining momentum for the thriving marketing campaign, ten years on and going sturdy.
Prime suggestions from a decade of Dry January®
For members, Dry January® is easy: hand over alcohol for 31 days.
However for the charity, there’s a transparent technique.
What began as a two-person fundraising group is now a group of 10.
And this small group takes satisfaction in a easy observe each charity can use to develop and enhance: consistently testing, optimising, and studying what works greatest.
Maintain your mission entrance and centre.
The Dry January® marketing campaign raised over £19,000 with a slick, customised JustGiving microsite in 2023, creating an unforgettable expertise for supporters.
That is one thing you are able to do in your fundraisers too, with JustGiving Website Builder™!
However how did it get there?
Robin says, “It’s not fundraising-first, however we work with our comms group to verify we’ve at all times received the fundraising messaging there and fundraisers doing the marketing campaign.”
It’s not a fundraising marketing campaign for the sake of fundraising. It’s a behaviour change marketing campaign, which ties proper into the charity’s core mission.
Make it as private as doable.
Robin stresses to go the additional mile with personalisation and to leverage the nuggets of data you will discover out about individuals.
If you realize somebody’s elevating cash in reminiscence of a liked one, you may sensitively examine in with them. Or in the event that they’re doing a health occasion, see how their coaching’s going.
You would possibly already find out about the facility of JustGiving’s optimised fundraisers e-mail journey. Alcohol Change UK expanded on it by constructing a customized journey of their very own.
“We begin by encouraging them to get their web page activated in Week 1. We tailor our emails in Week 2 and three primarily based on whether or not they’ve obtained a donation or not. From there, they go into the primary journey to maintain everybody on board collectively.”
Robin Plowman, Alcohol Change UK
Right here’s what Alcohol Change UK’s stewardship timeline appears like main as much as Dry January®:
Take a look at and study to keep up momentum.
Robin and the group at Alcohol Change UK are consistently testing completely different methods, leading to a number of small tweaks to Dry January® because it started.
One in every of these is with the sensible methods they talk with supporters. Listed here are a couple of techniques they’ve launched:
- Drop leaflets on individuals’s doorsteps. Theirs contains a number of info and is strategically scheduled for late December to maximise participation.
- Launch particular incentives for fundraisers. Getting individuals to begin fundraising is without doubt one of the most essential items. Everybody who indicators up will get a welcome letter and a wristband. However the group take this additional with items primarily based on donation milestones. Fundraisers can earn a pin badge for 10 donations, a t-shirt for 15, and a mug for 20.
- Create one thing enjoyable. Alcohol Change UK constructed a customized app for his or her supporters to encourage the behaviour change and get fundraisers extra concerned. But when this isn’t an possibility, there’s a lot extra you might do to gamify your supporters’ expertise! For instance, may you create digital badges to ship them for fundraising milestones, or encourage wholesome competitors by calling out your fundraising leaderboard?
Strive in-person occasions to help your marketing campaign
In case your marketing campaign is already centred round an occasion, you’ve received it made.
However when you’ve got a digital marketing campaign (like Dry January®), why not check having an in-person meetup to construct connections and increase fundraising much more?
The charity did this for the primary time in 2023 with Shoreditch Dry. It was an thrilling fundraising meetup that welcomed individuals all the way down to London for an in-person, enjoyable, and “dry” occasion, full with an alcohol-free bar, raffle, and dance music!
Make a number of streams of earnings
Alcohol Change UK works with a number of companions that match their charity’s model.
Enter stage, alcohol-free drinks!
They’ve additionally succeeded with social media advertising and marketing segmentation. The group would publish one set of adverts round fundraising, and one other on the advantages of the marketing campaign basically. On this case, the fundraising-specific advert included a private story and carried out higher than the campaign-specific advert.
Key takeaways for the most important affect doable
Robin says the techniques the charity goes again to 12 months after 12 months are:
- A central donation and fundraising hub the place individuals can go to fundraise, donate, and study every thing they should find out about your marketing campaign. The quickest manner is with Marketing campaign Pages, which will get you a spot to share your charity’s story (together with movies and livestreams), select a collective fundraising goal, showcase your fundraising, and get particular person donations. Or you can also make an extra-special tailor-made expertise in your supporters with Website Builder!
- Utilizing incentives to encourage individuals to get their web page activated.
- Testing and holding what works.
The three issues which have had the most important affect for Dry January® are:
- The affiliation between the marketing campaign and the charity. When you’ve gotten a marketing campaign as well-known as Dry January®, it’s important individuals know your charity is behind it. Alcohol Change UK did this by embedding their charity title within the Dry January® brand, then ran adverts to advertise and strengthen this additional.
- Encourage fast begin fundraising. They inspired individuals to create their web page earlier, which led to these fundraisers getting their first donation sooner. At JustGiving, we all know it is a key behaviour that sees fundraisers go on to lift extra.
- Get extra individuals concerned. Alcohol Change UK focussed on changing individuals from merely collaborating in Dry January® to fundraising in it. From there, fundraisers have been entered into the e-mail journey so the charity may join with them additional.
ACCESS THE FULL SESSION
Enormous due to Robin and the group at Alcohol Change UK for his or her experience and for sharing their suggestions with us! We hope these classes from 10 years working Dry January® assist your charity higher join along with your supporters and lift more cash out of your subsequent occasion.
The total interview with Robin is on the market to Fundraising In all places members solely. Discover out extra and take a look at different occasions on their web site.
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