#GivingTuesday 2021

Facebook fundraiser cover photo: click to view and download

Fundraising Guide

Fundraising for CFI through your personal Facebook is the most impactful way you can support our GivingTuesday efforts.

Go to www.facebook.com/fund/CFIWA to create a Facebook fundraiser for CFI hosted by your personal profile.

  • Include "GivingTuesday" in your fundraiser title

  • Set a personal fundraising goal

  • Personalize the fundraiser description with a testimonial about why CFI is worth supporting

  • Download the personal FB fundraiser cover photo here and upload it as the cover photo for your fundraiser (you can also use it on your personal profile to grab people’s attention!)

  • Invite your Facebook friends to your fundraiser

  • Share your fundraiser on your profile

"When should I set up my fundraiser?"

You can create your fundraiser at any time (even today!) but for best results, we recommend creating it on Friday 11/26.

Setting it up a few days early increases the chances your FB friends will see your fundraiser in time for GivingTuesday.

In the fundraiser description and any posts you make about it, emphasize that only donations made on 11/30 (starting at 5am Pacific) will be eligible for matching.

Count down to the big day with several posts in your fundraiser telling your friends and family what makes CFI meaningful, important, and worth supporting.

Alternate option: Single post with Donate button

FB fundraisers are especially great because you can set them up in advance and personally invite your friends (like an event) and they are easy to start - they automatically come with a generic description, in case you're having writer's block. However, if that option isn't accessible for you, you can also collect donations by adding a "donate" button to a personal post on your profile on the day-of.

On GivingTuesday, write up a post explaining why your connections should donate to CFI on that day.

While drafting the post, click the “…” in the top right corner of the box, then click “raise money”. Search for Center for Independence and select it - this will add a "donate" button to your post.

Donations collected through the post will be eligible for matching as long as they are made on 11/30.

Tag us (@CFIWA) in your post and use the hashtags #WhyGiveToCFI and #GivingTuesday2021. If applicable (i.e., staff, Board members, volunteers, and donors), you can also use the hashtag #WhyIGiveToCFI.

Tips for effective fundraising

Whether you set up a fundraiser or make a single post with a donate button...

  • Posts with personal testimonials or stories are more likely to motivate supporters to donate.

  • Posts with images are more likely to get noticed on crowded newsfeeds.

Choosing images

Start with your personal testimonial and/or story, and think about what image(s) make sense to accompany it.

Get creative! Some ideas:

  • A photo from a past CFI event

  • A photo with a friend you met through CFI

  • A photo representing something that CFI helped you achieve in some way, for example:

    • a stack of school books, or a diploma

    • the front door to your own apartment, or a special object in your home

  • Any image/object/symbol that represents independence to you

You can even use a stock photo or clipart if you don't have a photo of your own!

Unable to fundraise? Other ways you can support:

Donate what you can!

Whether $1 or $100, every bit helps us toward our goal.

To maximize your impact, donate as early in the day as you can (after 5am) on 11/30.*

*Facebook will start matching donations at 5:00 AM Pacific on 11/30. Matches are made on a first-come, first-served basis. Matching starts off at 100% (you give $10, they give $10), but after the first $2M (across all FB fundraisers) is met, matching will drop to 10% (you give $10, they give $1). Matching stops at the end of the day or when the $8M total fund is met.

Spread the word!

On 11/30, share our page's fundraiser and invite your friends to it directly.

You can also share it via other platforms (Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn) and/or personal communication.

Let people know that donations made through Facebook on 11/30 will be matched, and include the link to our page: www.facebook.com/CFIWA

Note: Folks who don't use Facebook can still contribute toward our goal by donating through our website: www.cfi-wa.org/donate