The State of Peer-to-Peer Fundraising 2016 Report from DonorDrive has new stats that bring four key trends to light, all of which can dramatically increase your fundraising.

DIY is on the rise

At the nonprofit conferences everyone is talking about Do It Yourself fundraising. If you’re not familiar with it, DIY gives your supporters the opportunity create their own campaigns (based on things like life events, memorials or running in a marathon) through your peer-to-peer software. It’s quickly becoming the next revenue stream in fundraising and many organizations are using it to replace lost income from waning signature events. Stats from the report show:

• DIY campaigns increased 54% in 2015 in DonorDrive.
• A DIY campaigner raises 513% more than an event participant.

For organizations that have not jumped on DIY yet, it’s important to understand that many organizations are now using it generate millions. Many of your biggest supporters want to share their passion for the cause beyond signature events and DIY is an excellent vehicle for that.

Donors are paying their own fees

Donors are looking for their money to do the most good and are willing to pay a little extra to cover the cost of fundraising and the cost of putting on an event. A look at DonorDrive stats shows that:

• 29% of event donors paid their own fees.
• 66% of campaign donors paid their own fees.

Event donors may not be aware what your organization does, but instead gave because a friend participating in your walk asked. Still, almost a third of them were willing to pay more to see that their intended amount went to the mission. The fact that two thirds gave to campaigns can be expected since a majority of these were past supporters who have a closer association with the organization. We can expect, as paying fees becomes the expected norm, that these percentages will rise by the end of the year. Incidentally a fee of 10% is reasonable to ask.

Mobile giving escalates

Phones are not only becoming our main devices, they’re becoming our preferred way to transact:

• Mobile donations in DonorDrive are up 47%.
• For every dollar raised by phablet in 2014, $5.03 was raised by phablet in 2015.
• Three-out-of-five donors arrive by mobile.

It gets easier and easier to give by phone with mobile-responsive fundraising pages and bigger screens. It’s almost alarming that more that half of your donors first visit your site and your supporter fundraising pages by mobile. This should especially shock organizations that haven’t addressed the mobile issue yet.

Social media is a key method of fundraising

While email continues to rule as the preferred peer-to-peer fundraising vehicle for making the ask, social is proving it’s real value.

• Social media plays a role in 35% of all donations.
• Donations directly from clicking a link in social media were up 24% in 2015.
• 88% of DIY participants in DonorDrive fundraised through social media.

Social is strong as the vehicle for making the ask currently, but it also continues to grow as part of the donation process. Sharing stories in an update or reminding to give via a tweet are helping to drive more revenue.

As peer-to-peer fundraising evolves at a faster and faster clip, we’re seeing many new opportunities for organizations.

The DonorDrive State of Peer-to-Peer Fundraising 2016 Report is free and can be downloaded HERE