6 Ways Fundraisers Can Use Social Media in Peer-to-Peer Campaigns (+ a Template)

When a post hits social media, it can reach a broad audience and even go viral. This can be good or bad. But, in the case of peer-to-peer fundraising, it’s great! 

Since 29% of people said they consider social media the communication tool that most inspires giving, peer-to-peer fundraisers’ social media posts have tremendous potential to encourage their networks to donate. 

So, how can P2P fundraisers tap into the power of social media to make their campaign a rousing success? In this article, we’ll share six ways to get creative with social media and a social media post template that nonprofits can share with their fundraisers.

6 Ways for P2P Fundraisers to Use Social Media

Social media is an incredible avenue for boosting your peer-to-peer campaign’s reach, and your activities don’t have to be limited to your organization’s feed. As a nonprofit, you can equip your fundraisers to share social media posts on their accounts to raise awareness (and more funds) within their network. 

Here are a few ideas for fundraiser social media posts!

1. Share Their Story in Their Stories

While social media posts are great for broad reach, Stories on platforms like Instagram and Facebook are an increasingly popular way for people to connect with their followers in a direct, interactive, and engaging way. 

That makes using them a great method for fundraisers to share the “why” behind their participation in a P2P campaign. Social media users commonly post themselves speaking directly to the camera on Stories, which feels more personal than an in-feed graphic post. When you encourage your participants to post to their Stories, remind them to use captions and include a link to their fundraising page (on platforms where that’s possible)!

2. Highlight Milestones and Supporters

Another way to use fundraiser social media posts is to encourage participants to celebrate special moments and people throughout the campaign. 

For example, P2P fundraisers can post each time they hit one of their big fundraising milestones: “Thanks to your generosity and support, we reached the $5,000 mark today! Only $3,000 left to hit my goal. Will you join me?”

Social media is also a great place to start thanking supporters. Encourage your fundraisers to highlight their supporters and call out the impact their donations will make. Posts like these can even inspire others to give!

3. DM Outreach

Peer-to-peer fundraising participants can use social media to—sparingly and discerningly—reach out to potential donors via direct message (DM). 

By using DMs for outreach, fundraisers are issuing a personal invitation for someone to support the campaign and drawing attention to their fundraising efforts in a straightforward way.

We don’t recommend sending DMs far and wide, but DM outreach can be a great strategy for fundraisers to reach out to people they know personally, especially if they don’t have their email address to send an ask email.

4. Pose a Challenge

While social media can serve a few other purposes, these platforms are ultimately intended to be social and fun. This makes social media the perfect place for fundraisers to issue fun challenges to people who want to support the cause.

Social media users log in looking for connection, and joining a challenge that raises money for a great cause can be an exciting way to connect with others. The possibilities are practically endless, and fundraisers can get really creative here. 

Photo challenges, donation matching, art inspired by your mission, social media takeovers, or a fitness challenge (imagine a participant says they’ll walk or run if donors will give a certain amount per mile they complete) are just a few ways to leverage social media to increase engagement and build more community around your cause. 

5. Expand Reach with Tags, Comments, and Shares

One advantage of social media is the ability to quickly reach a lot of people by posting shareable content. Fundraisers can reach more people on social media and get more eyes on their fundraising page by simply being social!

Encourage your participants to take steps to build visibility for their social media posts. Try challenging them to tag five people in a post about the campaign, encouraging them to tag five more people in a comment, or asking their followers to repost their content or share it with someone via DM.

6. Utilize Time-Saving Templates

How can nonprofits help ensure that their participants are spreading the word about your campaign on ever-important social media platforms? By handing fundraisers the tools they need to do it!

Your fundraisers lead busy lives outside of participating in your P2P campaign. Providing them with social media templates (including pre-written captions and branded graphics) makes sharing online quicker and easier for them.

Providing templates for fundraiser social media posts also helps maintain consistent branding everywhere people are talking about your event. Your templates will guide fundraisers while they share their personal ties to the mission and make them better equipped and more confident while sharing your campaign.

In the next section, we’ll share what makes a great fundraiser social media post and a template you can provide to your P2P fundraisers.

Key Elements of Great Fundraiser Social Media Posts

Engaging social media posts that are clear about the cause and the ask can make all the difference in a peer-to-peer campaign. When you create social media templates to provide to fundraisers, they should balance being on-brand for your campaign with the ability for fundraisers to add personal anecdotes.

Every fundraiser social media post template you create should include:

• A clear summary of the cause: Share your campaign’s purpose and leave space for fundraisers to insert details about why it matters to them.
• A concise explanation of campaign goals: Briefly communicate the impact that donors will have and allow fundraisers to share their personal fundraising goal.
• A direct call to action (CTA): Always include a clear and direct CTA that creates urgency, tells people exactly what you want them to do, and drives them to your participant’s fundraising page.

Including all necessary details without making a caption too long is a delicate balance. Keep in mind that your templates should be short, skimmable, and actionable.

A Peer-to-Peer Social Media Template

Feel free to customize the template below and share it with your fundraisers! Where the text is green, insert the needed details about your specific campaign. Your fundraisers will fill in the spaces with blue text.

I’m fundraising for [Nonprofit Name]’s [Campaign Name] campaign, and I’d love your support! Their mission means a lot to me because [insert personal reason for supporting the cause]. 

Every donation of every size makes a huge difference and helps [insert a brief summary of the campaign’s purpose]. Will you help me hit my $[goal amount] goal by donating today? You can donate by visiting my fundraising page here: [insert fundraising page link]

Example

Once you’ve filled in your part of the template, it should look something like this:

I’m fundraising for Agloe Research Center’s Golf for Good campaign, and I’d love your support! Their mission means a lot to me because [insert personal reason for supporting the cause].

Every donation of every size makes a huge difference and helps advance cancer research and enhance the lives of those affected. Will you help me hit my $[goal amount] goal by donating today? You can donate by visiting my fundraising page here: [insert fundraising page link]

When you provide your fundraisers with social media post templates like this one, you’re equipping and empowering them to fundraise confidently and increase their impact. Social media can be a powerful tool in peer-to-peer fundraising, and templates will help participants use it to its fullest potential.

A Comprehensive Guide for More Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Tips

Creating fundraiser social media post templates is an excellent first step to set your fundraisers up for success. But there’s even more you can do to make your next peer-to-peer campaign the best it can be!

Dive deeper into peer-to-peer fundraising best practices, strategies, and tips with this detailed guide. In this comprehensive article on everything to know about P2P, you’ll find insights on how to recruit fundraisers, do more with less, choose the best fundraising platform, and more!