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Thursday, August 21, 2025

Find out how to Create a Fundraising Toolkit for Occasion Volunteers


Volunteers are the heartbeat of your nonprofit’s occasions. They test folks in with a welcoming smile, rally donors to offer generously, and are absolutely purchased into your mission. However right here’s the problem: many well-meaning volunteers present up for occasions like charity golf tournaments or galas with nothing however enthusiasm and perhaps branded t-shirts.

Merely put, they want greater than that. That’s the place your fundraising toolkit is available in. 

A strong volunteer toolkit ought to embrace all the pieces your volunteers have to characterize your group like execs. It ought to set expectations, remove confusion, and assist everybody keep on-message and on-mission, all whereas making fundraising really feel approachable. 

This information will stroll you thru constructing an A-to-Z volunteer fundraising toolkit from scratch, together with what to incorporate, the right way to share it together with your group of helpers, and the right way to make it even higher over time. Better of all? It’s simpler (and extra enjoyable) than you would possibly assume. Let’s dive in! 

Why Making a Fundraising Toolkit Issues

Your volunteers need to assist. However with out steerage, even essentially the most enthusiastic of helpers can really feel misplaced, overwhelmed, and uncertain. A fundraising toolkit, outlined on this information, provides them the instruments they should step into their position with confidence and readability—and to lift more cash and consciousness on your nonprofit within the course of.

Keep in mind, although, it’s not simply concerning the checklists and templates. It’s about constructing actual belief, saving time, and creating constant messaging throughout the board.

And when the mud settles and the occasion is over, it is advisable say thanks. A small present, a token of appreciation, or perhaps a handwritten thank-you word goes a good distance in exhibiting volunteers that they’re valued. When subsequent 12 months rolls round, they’ll be extra prone to settle for your invitation to volunteer once more!

Find out how to Create a Fundraising Toolkit: Greatest Apply

 

Step 1: Outline the Goal & Know Your Individuals

Earlier than you crack open your laptop and dive in, take a pause to ask your self: What’s the aim of this toolkit, and who precisely is it for? The clearer you will be about volunteers’ roles, the higher you’ll be able to equip them to succeed

Suppose by means of these inquiries to outline what volunteers will primarily assist accomplish:

  • Are your volunteers immediately fundraising on your nonprofit by accumulating donations? 
  • Are they inviting people from their circles to your occasion? 
  • Are they representing your nonprofit locally?

You must also think about volunteers’ expertise ranges and luxury zones. Are they seasoned fundraisers, first-timers who’re uncertain the place to begin, or someplace in between?

In your toolkit, play to your crew’s strengths and desires. For instance, let’s say the volunteer group on your charity golf occasion is charged with serving to drive attendance and is made up of social media-savvy Gen Zers. In that case, your toolkit and volunteer coaching may deal with visuals and templates to share on their private social channels as an alternative of printable assets.

Keep in mind to outline “success” so your volunteers have a aim to work in the direction of, such because the variety of golfers registered, donations made, or social media shares.

 

Step 2: Embody Important Fundraising Subjects, However Preserve It Gentle

Now it’s time to fill your toolkit. It needs to be filled with useful instruments, however not so overwhelming that they don’t know the place to begin or can’t discover what they want.

Listed below are some must-haves on your toolkit:

  • Occasion Overview: Embody the date, location, objectives, pertinent contact information, and the “why” behind the occasion. Preserve it snappy however informative.
  • Fundraising How-Tos. Present directions for managing the occasion web site, sharing donation hyperlinks, working the occasion’s raffle, and thanking donors. Screenshots and pattern language are your mates right here!
  • Messaging Templates. Embody easy-to-copy e mail, textual content, and social media templates that volunteers can customise and ship. They need to sound pleasant, not formal.
  • Branding Supplies. Present occasion and nonprofit logos, images, hashtags, model colours, and tone-of-voice ideas so your model appears and sounds constant.
  • FAQ Sheet. Attempt to anticipate frequent normal questions, like the right way to deal with donation receipts, what to say when somebody asks about your mission, and who to contact should you want tech troubleshooting. You must also embrace information concerning the particular occasion they’re serving to with—for instance, the right way to clarify a mulligan or how ties will probably be damaged at a charity golf event.

Needless to say extra isn’t all the time higher. To stop burnout and choice fatigue, maintain the toolkit centered, direct, and simple to digest. 

 

Step 3: Make It Interactive

Let’s be actual: nobody is thrilled to learn a 10-page PDF full of partitions of textual content to prepare on your upcoming occasion. If you would like your toolkit to really be used, it must be interactive and inventive.

Listed below are some simple methods to brighten up your toolkit:

    • Embedded Movies or Tutorials. A fast two-minute video exhibiting the right way to arrange a fundraising web page or create a social media submit is far more useful than a block of textual content. Characteristic a charismatic workers member or volunteer to offer a fast elevator pitch about your mission.
    • Mini Quizzes or Data Checks. Strive a fast “Three Issues Each Donor Needs to Hear” guidelines or “Golf 101” quiz in your package. It’s a enjoyable option to reinforce key information!
    • Progress Trackers. A easy spreadsheet or on-line dashboard makes it enjoyable and simple for volunteers to trace outreach efforts or {dollars} raised. 
    • Interactive PDFs. PDFs aren’t all unhealthy—so long as they’re interactive! Make any PDFs simple for volunteers to discover, click on, and duplicate with soar hyperlinks. 
  • Microsites. A microsite devoted to volunteer information is tremendous shareable and lets them work by means of all they should know at their very own tempo.

In case your occasion has a theme (and who doesn’t love a superb theme), fold that into the toolkit to make it match. A golf fundraiser? GolfStatus suggests including golf lingo and visuals. A high-end gala? Suppose glitzy fonts and stylish design.

 

Step 4: Get It In Your Volunteers’ Palms & Make It Even Higher

You’ve put the ending touches in your toolkit—it’s good, appears nice, and is filled with fundraising goodness. Now it’s time to get it out the door and into the palms of your volunteers

Use these tricks to maintain it working arduous for you from the occasion’s begin to its end:

  • Make It Simple to Discover and Navigate. Your volunteers want to have the ability to get to your fabulous toolkit and discover the knowledge they want rapidly and simply. With that in thoughts, think about:
    • Together with a linkable desk of contents for fast jumps in digital paperwork like PDFs or Google Docs
    • Internet hosting the package in a shareable Google Drive folder or different doc sharing platform (OneDrive, Dropbox, and many others.) or on a devoted web site touchdown web page with downloadables
    • Providing mobile-optimized PDFs or different codecs for simple entry on the go (or on the occasion)
    • Printing a shorter “cheat sheet” of important info to be used at in-person occasions
  • Guarantee It’s Accessible to Everybody. All of your volunteers ought to have the ability to entry and use the package, no matter means. Use ADA-compliant formatting in your package, particularly if it’s hosted on a microsite. Suppose giant fonts, clear formatting, and alt textual content for photographs. If in case you have multilingual volunteers, make sure that it’s translatable. You’ll additionally need to take a look at the package out on telephones and tablets to verify it’s mobile-responsive. 
  • Embed It in Onboarding and Communication. Hyperlink to the toolkit in welcome emails, invites to coaching classes, volunteer dashboards, and some other volunteer communications, so it’s simple to search out each time volunteers want it. Check with it throughout webinars or in-person trainings, and encourage group leaders to remind volunteers concerning the package. Briefly, put it up for sale to volunteers each time attainable!
  • Supply Elective Reside Coaching. Host brief, partaking walkthroughs of the toolkit. In-person classes are nice for connecting with volunteers, however webinars or on-demand recordings additionally work nicely. Simply make sure that there’s an opportunity to ask questions! You may additionally provide “workplace hours” main as much as the occasion or marketing campaign. 
  • Collect Suggestions to Make It Even Higher. Your volunteers will really feel valued once you ask them what they thought concerning the occasion and your toolkit. Ask what they cherished and what fell flat, how simple it was to get to and use the toolkit, and if the content material was comprehensible and helpful. Use this suggestions to make updates and fill in any gaps for the subsequent occasion. 

 

Closing Ideas

A volunteer fundraising toolkit would possibly really feel like yet another factor in your to-do listing, however really, it’s a game-changer. With just a little upfront effort and time, you’ll be able to empower your volunteers, streamline your planning, and even enhance your fundraising within the course of.

So, as you soar into planning your nonprofit’s subsequent occasion, don’t skip this essential step. Your volunteers—and your mission—deserve it.



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