As a nonprofit, you want to maximize donations to further your organization’s mission. You likely host fundraising events and attend conferences already, but are you leveraging your tech tools to their fullest potential?

Fundraising events are among the most effective places to make requests for support. These events not only cultivate relationships with donors but also generate revenue for your nonprofit. Implementing the right fundraising technology expands donation options and inspires greater generosity.


Let’s explore the most impactful tech solutions your organization should invest in to increase donations at your events.

Mobile Giving Tools

In 2014, less than 10% of online donations came from mobile devices. By 2021, mobile giving via smartphones grew to 28% of total donations. With mobile giving on a meteoric rise, your organization needs to be equipped with the proper technology that expands donation options and allows attendees to make gifts through their smartphones.

When researching mobile giving software, look for the following features:

  • Mobile-optimized donation pages: Make giving easy and raise funds for your mission year-round with embeddable or stand-alone donation forms. Find a fundraising solution that offers one-time and recurring gifts, matching gift capabilities, custom donation amounts, and the ability to direct donations to a designated fund or event.
  • Text-to-donate: Text-based fundraising is an important tool for nonprofits, as it helps mobilize your cause. Donors simply text a keyword to your designated number. Leverage software that supports any size audience and an entirely mobilized donation experience.
  • Secure donation collection: Having a dedicated and secure payment processor is crucial for nonprofits that want to maximize their fundraising efforts and protect their donors’ information. Before you invest in a software solution, ensure it’s PCI compliant.
  • Mobile giving challenges: Some solutions appeal to businesses with corporate philanthropy goals by enabling charity challenges employees can participate in from their phones. These gamified events inspire more giving from both corporations and individual donors.

To offer these capabilities to event attendees, look for dedicated mobile giving software or consider all-in-one event fundraising software that includes these unique features.

Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Platforms

Donors are more inclined to give if it’s easy and rewarding. Peer-to-peer fundraising motivates your most loyal supporters and ambassadors to engage their social networks and raise funds on your behalf. This practice can be incredibly helpful for reaching more donors and raising more money, especially when you have the right software to support your organization and peer-to-peer fundraisers!

According to OneCause, the top features of peer-to-peer fundraising platforms include:

  • Individual fundraising pages: The best peer-to-peer software should make it easy for your participants to create a visually appealing and informative fundraising page. From there, they can share why your mission matters to them and invite friends and family to donate.
  • Social sharing options: Peer-to-peer fundraising is an inherently social process. Your software should offer easy social sharing buttons so your participants can promote their campaigns and invite friends to join across multiple channels.
  • Gamification tools: One of the most important elements to reaching your fundraising goal is keeping your participants motivated and engaged. Gamification tools, such as leaderboards, fundraising thermometers, and milestone badges, can help!

This type of fundraising software is ideal for hosting run, walk, and ride events, auctions with a peer-to-peer component, giving days, or awareness days. Here are a few other peer-to-peer fundraising campaign ideas to get you started:

  • Corporate challenges
  • Community 5ks and walks
  • Tributes and memorials
  • Serve-a-thons
  • Dance marathons
  • Scavenger hunts
  • Fitness challenges
  • Birthday fundraisers
  • Matching gift challenges

Implementing peer-to-peer fundraising empowers your organization to increase engagement, encouraging participants to share your mission with others and garner additional exposure and donations for your nonprofit.

Event and Conference Fundraising Software

If you plan on hosting more fundraising events than campaigns, you may benefit from utilizing a more general event fundraising software. Or, if you attend several conferences and want to tap into corporate social responsibility, look into software that simplifies and incentivizes donations at conference booths.

Depending on your needs, you might look for the following features:

  • Event sites and landing pages: Offer an integrated experience so guests can register, donate, bid, and purchase items all in one place.
  • Flexible event capabilities: Guests should be able to support your mission from the ballroom or their living room! Find a solution that supports in-person, virtual, and hybrid events.
  • Check-in and check-out: Use QR codes for fast, easy check-in and automatic text messages at the end of the night to streamline item pick-up and payment processing.
  • Revenue drivers: Your fundraising solution should offer silent auction, live auction, raffle, fund-a-need, and fixed-price item capabilities.
  • Social impact sponsorships: Give conference-goers the opportunity to support your cause with live or virtual giving challenges.
  • Communication: Notify supporters by text or email when they can begin pre-event check-in, when they’ve been outbid on an item, when they need to complete check-out, and more

Event fundraising software also allows your nonprofit to access valuable data from your events. Use this information to foster continued participation among attendees or make improvements for future events.

Additionally, to strengthen your donor relationships, send out thank-you messages to all event attendees. A special acknowledgment that thanks donors for their contributions and explains how their gift will further your mission will go a long way in improving donor retention.

Wrapping Up

Robust technology has become a crucial part of fundraising. Investing in the right software will position your nonprofit to more effectively rally attendees around your cause and inspire greater generosity. From accepting mobile gifts during the event to encouraging future involvement, the proper technology will back up your nonprofit’s efforts in generating funds to power your cause.