5 Crowdfunding Tips for Teachers

5 Crowdfunding Tips for Teachers

When classroom budgets are limited and time constraints prevent teachers from organizing fundraising events like fairs and sales, teachers can turn to crowdfunding to raise money. Crowdfunding is a method in which teachers make use of specific online platforms, such as DonorsChoose.org and GoFundMe.com, and/or social media sites to raise money for their projects.

Teachers can use crowdfunding to raise money for field trips, materials, resources and projects. Crowdfunding campaigns are advantageous because they:

• Are simple and easy to create. Teachers can follow the instructions on crowdfunding sites to create their campaigns with ease.
• Act as an alternative to grant writing and are not limited by any guidelines.
• Can be processed quickly and reach a large audience.

Teachers interested in using crowdfunding for their class projects can get started on their campaigns using these tips:

Project Decisions:

Before publishing a project campaign, teachers must consider the following:

• Know the rules: The first step is to find out school and district rules and regulations concerning crowdfunding. Teachers must get their crowdfunding plans reviewed and approved by the principal and school administrators before publishing a campaign.
• Dollar value: Setting an estimate cost for a project is an important factor that influences the chances of the project being funded. It has been found that campaigns set up to fund multiple small, low-priced projects have higher chances of being funded.
• Time factor: Some crowdfunding sites specify a time period within which the projects may be funded. In these cases, too, low-priced projects had an edge over higher-priced projects.
• Presenting projects: Another method to increase the likelihood of being sponsored is to tailor the project to various sponsor campaigns that are already published on site. Sponsors are more likely to choose campaigns that align with their mission.

Campaign Preparations:

When preparing project campaigns, teachers must remember to:

• Keep writing real and honest.
• State all needs in clear terms.
• Explain the purpose of the project and its benefits for student learning.
• Specify the required resources and estimate cost of the project.

Marketing:

Once the project has been published on the platform, teachers must spread the word to parents and other community groups through circulars and school newsletters. Teachers can advertise their projects by:

• Requesting that Parent-Teacher Associations actively promote their crowdfunding page with their contacts.
• Connect and post the crowdfunding page to social media accounts and request that friends share the post with others. When creating Facebook posts teachers must remember to:

– Make a concise post, stating the mission and prompting friends and contacts to donate or share on their                        network.

– Create and use hashtags in campaigns. This will allow potential sponsors to find the post and funding page.

– Link the funding page to Facebook account so that any changes or updates made to the funding page will be updated in Facebook, increasing the visibility and accuracy of the post.

• Add the URL of the crowdfunding page as a personal e-signature and send it to everyone on the contact list.

Crowdfunding Updates:

Teachers must regularly update their fundraising page as it helps inform sponsors about the progress of the project and amount collected. When creating updates, teachers can use pictures and videos as these:

• Are engaging and can grab sponsors attention.
• Can help sponsors visualize the project, as sometimes it may be difficult to clearly understand what the project is about just from reading about it.
• Can present the project from different angles
• Can help sponsors feel connected to the students and understand the impact of their contributions on student learning.

Thank Sponsors:

Always remember to thank the sponsors. Teachers can send personalized emails or encourage students to send a class email to each sponsor thanking them for their contributions. Updates to the crowdfunding platform can also include thank you notes for various sponsors. Acknowledging contributions is courtesy and modelling this behavior can encourage the same behavior in students.

Like this article for teachers?

Browse the Professional Learning Board COURSE CATALOG to find related online courses for teachers in your state. Professional Learning Board is a leading provider of online professional development classes that teachers use to renew a teaching license or renew a teaching certificate.