I recently launched a project aimed to raise funds for the MPD Foundation. I chose this organization due to a personal connection, but also because it serves a set of diseases considered to be orphan class due to the small number of patients impacted. I have a blog created for this project.
I have also been an avid fundraiser and volunteer with two related charities - the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the Be the Match organization. I keep a separate blog that documents my mom's health situation and also my fundraising efforts.
-
Non Profit
I launched A Cause for Hope back in August and followed that up with an online ad campaign through Facebook. While the efforts did raise awareness and there are now 48 people listed as fans of the page, I have not yet received emails regarding donations. In the end, it cost $8.00.
I did realize that my initial attempts perhaps did not speak to the benefit to the donor. I am crafting a new message that will demonstrate the visibility donating may provide. Its important to remember that at the base of all of these efforts is the need to build relationships.
-
Non Profit
My challenge is this - how do I compel someone with no direct connection to this cause to invest their time and effort and to support this project? A Cause for Hope is a deeply personal project and has become my 'job after my job'. This project supports a strong foundation recognized for their contributions to clinical research. I can leverage the existing MPD Foundation site as the organization publicizes fundraising efforts that operate on their behalf. Beyond that exposure, my initial efforts have evolved around Facebook and LinkedIn - I will need to do more to continue to foster and grow this project. Some efforts will succeed and others will fail, but I am hopeful that this project will advance the mission of the MPD Foundation.
A Cause for Hope