Virtual events have become a key promotional tool for nonprofits to attract new supporters. However, with all the effort that goes into planning a successful event, it can be easy to forget to continue cultivating relationships after your event wraps up. While one-time attendees are appreciated, it is much more cost effective to turn these guests into repeat attendees.
Hybrid and virtual fundraising events present their own unique challenges for staying in touch. At in-person events, your donor outreach team can have one-on-one conversations with multiple guests to help start your nonprofit’s relationship with them off on the right foot. The lack of face-to-face interaction at a virtual event means your nonprofit will likely need to take a different, data-driven approach to continue engaging guests after your event’s end.
Your virtual event lays a positive foundation for your future relationship with your attendees, and you can make the most of this solid start by taking the following steps:
Each of these methods aims to take advantage of the same virtual platforms your event initially engaged supporters on. As your nonprofit further develops your relationships with guests, you can change communication methods to fit supporter preferences. However, in the beginning, a virtual approach will allow you to act quickly while your event is still fresh in attendees’ minds.
Your event doesn’t end until you’ve followed up with guests to thank them for attending. While a thank you goes a long way toward acknowledging supporters’ participation, you can drive attendance for your next event by taking a more hands-on approach than a few automated thank you emails.
Handbid’s guide to virtual galas recommends starting the follow-up process as soon as your event ends as well as how to make sure your thank you's are memorable. As you plan the follow-up stage of your event, consider:
While each thank you should have a personal touch, don’t hesitate to rely on templates or messaging tools to help write your messages. Use resources like this one as a starting point. Then, adjust each template to make specific references to your nonprofit and event. You can create additional places in your message that can be filled in with specific references such as amount donated during your event, history with your nonprofit, and other personal details.
Donor stewardship is a multi-step process that requires creating multiple touchpoints with supporters throughout their relationship with your nonprofit. Effective stewardship uses past information about supporters to identify future engagement opportunities, and previous event attendance provides plenty of information about how your guests like to interact with your nonprofit.
Sending a personal invitation can also make supporters feel acknowledged as individuals. But don’t limit your guest list to just donors. After your virtual event, consider extending invitations to your next event to:
These may seem like three distinct audiences, and while your invitations should reflect your nonprofit’s unique connections to each, they all want roughly the same thing at the end of the day. Supporters, volunteers, and sponsors all invest in your nonprofit and want to build a strong, personal connection with your organization.
You can engage guests after your events by asking them what they thought of the experience. Surveys show that you appreciate receiving feedback and that your nonprofit is making continual strides to improve each guest’s experience.
Your surveys should reflect the specific activities and content of your event and event marketing while also giving supporters the opportunity to expand their thoughts in general. For example, here are some questions you might ask in a survey following an online auction:
All of these questions are designed to help your nonprofit gain feedback to improve your event and ultimately raise more money in the long run. However, they’re all phrased to reflect a guest’s experience of what they did and didn’t like. Framing questions this way helps to engage guests by asking them to reflect on their own experiences even if they are ultimately providing insight that influences your nonprofit’s internal processes.
Virtual, in-person, and hybrid events are meant to be fun, and taking pictures of engaging activities and guests enjoying themselves will help your nonprofit’s marketing team promote your next event. You can also share these images with the guests in the photos to remind them of all the fun they had and make them feel like part of your nonprofit’s community.
Make sure you get permission from guests when they first sign up for your event to take photos that can be shared so there aren’t any hard feelings or discomfort later. Then, capture moments from your virtual event, whether it’s part of your livestream or your guests reacting to something interesting from home.
After your event, share these photos in your follow-up thank you emails as a reminder of the night for those who attended. Then post your favorites to social media so your supporters can share the ones they’re in with their friends and family, spreading the word about your nonprofit.
While your events can be dynamic, engaging, and informative, remember that they are also a
marketing tactic, and you can make the most of this introduction to your nonprofit in your follow-up. Engage your guests after your virtual events by sending personalized thank you messages and invitations to your next event, and never forget to share reminders of the experience and all the fun they had.
About the Authors
Josh Thurmond
Josh Thurmond has over 15 years of nonprofit and government management experience including a Masters in Public Administration. Before he entered the not for profit sector, he worked as a professional chef. Be sure to ask him for a recipe!
Jeff Porter
Jeff Porter, Founder & CEO of Handbid, has spent 18 years in the non-profit industry. In 2004 he founded the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Colorado where he still resides as board chair. Jeff learned early on that non-profits desperately needed better and more affordable fundraising solutions. Leveraging his software background, he built most of the tools his charities used, and in 2011 he launched Handbid at his own fundraising event. The goal was to improve the guest experience, reduce administration and increase revenue.
Handbid accomplished all of those goals, effectively doubling revenue in its debut. Nine years later, Handbid's suite of tools has delighted over a half-million guests, generated millions of bids, and helped thousands of charities raise well over $100 million.
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