What’s the foundation of every successful movement? Human connection. And in today’s world, building that connection starts on mobile devices. With attention spans shrinking and inboxes overflowing, how can your organization ensure its message reaches supporters effectively?
One powerful tool that has gained significant traction in recent years is texting. Texting, when done right, can cut through the noise and deliver your message directly into the hands of your audience. Whether you’re gearing up for a GivingTuesday campaign, planning your End-of-Year fundraising, or building momentum year-round, this guide is your key to creating effective SMS outreach that inspires action.
Why text messaging is an effective fundraising strategy
Text messaging has become one of the most reliable communication channels for nonprofit organizations and advocacy movements to connect with current and new donors. SMS outreach has far outperformed other common techniques like email campaigns, social media posts, and direct mail.
With 90% of messages read in the first three minutes and a 45% response rate, SMS is the perfect channel to deliver high engagement and timely campaigns. And for high-stakes, time-sensitive, campaigns like Giving Tuesday or year-end appeals, texting ensures your calls to action don’t get lost in the shuffle of the holiday season and other movement’s campaigns.
How to leverage text messages for maximum impact
With the right tools by your side, texting can become a versatile option to amplify your messages throughout the giving season. To keep your supporters and potential donor’s attention while you have it, it's important to offer direct links that make fundraising appeals quick and accessible. You can use texting to invite supporters to events, send personalized follow-up thank-you messages, or run interactive polls to gather feedback and build stronger connections. Consider sharing stories of impact or updates to show donors how their contributions are making a difference.
With NationBuilder's people and fundraising software paired with their digital communication suite, texting becomes a dynamic way to amplify your campaigns and drive action. Send text blasts to share mass messages to your supporter base for urgent updates or calls to action while tracking your engagement with shortened URLs–an invaluable feature that lets you see who clicked the link in your text message but didn’t complete an action, like donating. This insight allows you to follow up strategically with tailored messages to encourage conversions.
Send 1:1 texts, personalized to the individuals within your donor base and access the ability to reply to incoming messages from a text blast. Let your engagement flow with cheeky keyword campaigns like texting GIVE for a direct link to your donation page or an online donation form or JOIN to RSVP to an upcoming event. By integrating these strategies, your organization can maximize donor engagement, enhance the giving experience, and build lasting relationships, one message at a time.
Setting up your text-to-give campaign in 5 essential steps
Before you begin texting, you will need to set the stage for success with these five steps:
- Set up your virtual phone number, which will be used to send messages to your supporters.
- Register for Application-to-Person (A2P) 10DLC. If texting U.S. numbers, register your long code to ensure better delivery rates and avoid spam filters. Start early—registration can take a few weeks!
- Adjust your texting settings. If you’re using programs like NationBuilder, you’ll want to choose whether to collect supporter info, assign tags, and track engagement with paths.
- Identify your opted-In supporters. Respecting supporter preferences is crucial, not only for compliance, but also for maintaining trust. Make sure your audience is expecting to be contacted and that your outreach aligns with their communication preferences to create a positive and engaging experience.
- Leverage timing for maximum impact. Schedule your messages strategically, such as morning reminders for events or last-chance donation prompts on GivingTuesday evening.
Best practices for crafting impactful text messages
Successful fundraising campaigns using text messages should feel purposeful, not intrusive. Be sure to incorporate timely alerts into your planning to announce milestones, achievements, and endorsements from major donors throughout your campaign. And, of course, to celebrate when you reach your fundraising goal! Encourage the attendance of in-person or online events and webinars by sending invitations, reminders, and day-of updates to your attendees. You can even create urgency around your campaigns to notify supporters of last minute opportunities and needs.
Some tips to keep in mind while planning your next text campaign is to be intentional with your outreach. Test your donation page’s functionality on various mobile devices to ensure your supporters will have a seamless donor experience. Each message should be direct and have a clear call to action. Keep your messages brief using short sentences and link shorteners to save space and ensure your messages get read completely. Engage responsively by monitoring your replies and following up in real-time to keep your connection the priority.
Keep an eye on your texting metrics to ensure your messages are resonating with your audience. If the data doesn’t align with your goals, adjust your strategy and test new approaches to connect with your supporters more effectively. Don’t forget to track keyword performance. NationBuilder’s reporting tools allow you to measure donor engagement with your keywords, helping you assess the success of your campaign. And lastly, clean up your database list often. Be sure to remove unresponsive numbers to maintain a healthy texting audience.
With texting, you can break through the digital clutter, deliver timely messages, and inspire immediate action. Whether you’re rallying volunteers, driving donations, working toward donor retention or mobilizing advocacy efforts, NationBuilder’s tools can help you create meaningful connections that lead to measurable results.
Ready to take your GivingTuesday and end-of-year fundraising campaigns to the next level? Learn more about NationBuilder’s suite of tools by connecting with our team and get ready to start building stronger relationships with your supporters. Or try it out now with a 14-day free trial and see the difference for yourself!