At Chuffed, we support a lot of people who are crowdfunding for gender affirming surgery. As many people reading this will be all too aware...
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Every day we get a whole heap of crowdfunding pitches from non-profits and social enterprises, which vary from the very good to the very crap. We’ve seen it all, from the three-line-’people-will-get-it’ pitch to the boring-10-page-grant-application pitch (hint, both miss the point).
To make it easier for you, we’ve broken down crowdfunding pitches (and any non-profit pitch, really) into these 5 steps and given you an example from a real campaign:
| 1. Context - Set the scene Zoom right out and set the scene for your audience. Many of them will already know this, but it moves their brain into the right frame to introduce what you’re doing. | In 2010-11 Australia had 54 396 applications for refugee status, mostly from conflict-torn areas, |
| 2. Issue - Explain what the problem is in the current context
Normally there’s something broken in the current context or there’s an opportunity – whichever it is, tell people what the issue is, before you tell them how you’re going to solve (or take advantage of) it. |
But we take forever to process their applications – more than five years in some cases. This means five years in limbo with nothing meaningful to do, and five years of vulnerability, without family and friend support networks. |
| 3. Solution – What are you doing to solve the issue?
This is where you talk about what you’re going to do. Keep it simple and specific. Avoid non-profit buzzwords that no-one really understands (seriously, don’t do it). |
We are building a rooftop garden for these refugees to volunteer at. |
| 4. Impact – How will what you do change the world?
Here’s where you talk about how what you’re doing will make a difference. |
Our rooftop garden will grow more than food; it will grow opportunities. Opportunities for refugees to participate in familiar activities and grow traditional foods. Opportunities for meaningful activities during periods of uncertainty. Opportunities to increase self worth. |
| 5. Ask – How much do you need and what are you going to spend it on?
And always end with an ask. Be clear on how much you want to raise and what you’re going to spend it on. |
We need $15,000 to build the garden and we’ve got some awesome perks for those who help us raise the funds. |
And that’s it. You can use this same flow for your pitch video too. Simple.
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