Why Sweepstakes Fundraising Works for Nonprofits — Donors Love It!
It’s as simple as that.
And when donors love a fundraising model, it works — really well — for the nonprofit. After all, donor interest level is really the life blood of an organization; keeping donors engaged, excited and involved is key for nonprofit fundraising success.
Galas, silent auctions and paddle raises are great fundraisers. But sweepstakes have the advantage of getting more people excited and continuously engaged over a longer period of time. That means more individual donors can support your cause at a dollar level that is comfortable for them, plus get a chance to win an amazing prize. That’s what we call the win-win!
Let’s look at sweepstakes fundraising through perhaps the most important lens of all: the donor’s perspective.
“Entering a sweepstakes fundraiser means I’ll have a chance to win an amazing prize – that might even change my life!”
How would your life be different if you found out you won a new Corvette? Or a luxury family vacation to Hawaii? Or a pair of actual, solid gold nuggets?
These kinds of prizes can be life-changing for the winners. Like Stephen W., who won a Shelby Mustang GT350R in a 2019 sweepstakes run by The Shelby American Collection car museum.
His story is really special: one day he decided that he wanted a Mustang. Even though he wasn’t in a position to buy one, he went to dealerships, took a test drive, and fell in love with the car.
Then he went online and searched for something like “Mustang giveaways.” He found the TapKat site, and entered a few TapKat sweepstakes that were giving away Mustangs. Each time he entered he felt great about it because his donation supported various nonprofits across the U.S. and he could dream about driving that Mustang.
Stephen W. won this Shelby Mustang GT350R and gained a whole new group of Mustang friends.
And then... Stephen W. won!
When The Shelby American Collection called to tell him he was driving home in his very own, brand new Shelby Mustang GT350R, he was absolutely thrilled — his big dream had come true!
Now, he drives that Mustang everywhere. Even to the grocery store. His social media account is filled with photos of him cruising all over California in his Shelby Mustang GT350R. The Shelby American Collection gets texts from him every once in a while, just checking in, maybe to share a fun Mustang story.
He recently described how, since winning, he’s gotten involved in a local Mustang Club where he met a new group of friends. He wrote, “It’s changed my life. The car makes friends for me!”
It’s so cool to watch someone’s life change for the better — and not only that, but every donation he made to enter those sweepstakes went toward incredible causes at nonprofits he now cares about.
“I’m new to this nonprofit, but I like what they are doing… and, wow, I really want to win that prize.”
Sweepstakes fundraisers attract new donors — especially when the prize that’s up for grabs comes with a built-in audience.
Think of it this way: if your prize is a brand new pair of high-end skis, you will attract the interest of skiers around the world, many of whom are outside the sphere of your current donor base.
The same idea goes for trips, vehicles, and experiences. This is why choosing a great prize is so important. When the prize comes with a built-in, highly interested audience and you let those folks know about it by promoting your sweepstakes, it allows you to educate lots of new people about your cause.
In fact, 99% of TapKat sweepstakes attract new donors. Nonprofits who run sweepstakes on our platform are sure to grow their list of donors, when they regularly promote their sweepstakes (don’t worry, we’ll walk you through how to promote your fundraiser, in another post!)
“I was a little tired of being asked to donate, but now that I could win a cool prize, I’m in!”
Donor fatigue is real. But TapKat sweepstakes fundraisers help you turn donor fatigue into lapsed donor activation.
Many nonprofits have experienced their donor base growing cold after years of asking for money. Donors get tired of the same appeals for donations, the yearly gala, another silent auction, same old, same old… After a while, they tune out.
Sweepstakes fundraisers turn a list full of lapsed donors into active, interested donors very quickly. Essentially, sweepstakes is a form of incentivized giving but without the logistics of mailing out all those branded water bottles, tote bags and other swag. Sweepstakes are much easier to manage since you only need to source and deliver one prize. And TapKat automates all the details of running a sweepstakes so you can concentrate on the fundraising.
A sweepstakes is just plain fun, so it keeps your audience engaged and participating. They’ll get excited when they see your email in their inbox, because your update gives them a chance to enter the sweepstakes again (the more you enter, the better your chances!). Plus, they can keep track of your fundraising progress.
“This sweepstakes prize is so awesome I’m going to enter again!”
Donor retention is a hallmark of TapKat sweepstakes.
Stephen W., and about 20% of donors like him, entered the Mustang sweepstakes more than once over the course of the fundraiser. People like Stephen have their eyes on the prize because winning could change their lives! While a brand new Mustang may not be in their budget, donating to a nonprofit to enter a sweepstakes multiple times for multiple chances to win, certainly feels affordable and worthwhile.
Plus, it’s something new that’s fun and exciting – so a lot of your donors will contribute multiple times to your sweepstakes. How many other fundraisers can you say that about! Not only that, but your participating donors also tend to stay closely engaged with the sweepstakes. They’ll check in on your TapKat sweepstakes site to see how much money has been raised. They’ll watch for your emails and social media posts. And, they’ll tune in, fingers-crossed, when you draw the winner to see if they’ve got the lucky ticket number. How cool is that?
And here’s the kicker: as soon as you announce your sweepstakes winner, your donors will start to eagerly anticipate your next sweepstakes. In fact, the Shelby American Collection reports that as soon as they draw a winner for one sweepstakes, they start getting phone calls, messages on social media and emails inquiring as to when the next sweepstakes will go live. The donors are just that excited for another chance to participate in your next sweepstakes fundraiser and get another chance to win while supporting your nonprofit.
Can you imagine people getting this excited if the reward on the other end is… a tote bag?
“Now that I know about this nonprofit and the great work they are doing, this cause really speaks to my heart.”
Once you bring in new donors with a great sweepstakes prize, you have the chance to turn them into regular donors by showing them the incredible work your nonprofit does with the funds they contribute.
The average TapKat sweepstakes donation is over $54. When your sweepstakes attracts hundreds, even thousands, of new $50+ individual donors to your nonprofit, you capture those donors in your database giving you the opportunity to cultivate a good percentage of them into engaged, mid-level supporters.
Chances are, when you do a good job of emailing your donor list throughout the duration of your sweepstakes, many will donate again. Use the power of email to show them how their entries are helping make a difference for your cause. Before you know it, you’ll have created an army of dedicated donors who not only are bonkers for the fantastic prize you’re giving away each year, but they are also going to be passionate supporters of your nonprofit.
Learn More About TapKat Sweepstakes Fundraising
Sweepstakes are a new and exciting way to engage your donor base, activate lapsed donors, retain current donors, and attract new donors to build your base. If you want to learn more about what this might look like for your nonprofit, let’s talk. We’re excited to show you exactly how this new fundraising model can be a winner for your nonprofit!
