Category: Fundraising

I for India Concert

Last weekend,  Facebook  and   GiveIndia  (India’s largest giving platform) came together along with the Bollywood industry for a Fundraiser concert – a four-hour long live concert to raise funds for the India Covid Response Fund. I must say, the entire concert was a treat to watch! It had the perfect line-up of the ‘who’s who’ in Bollywood, great cameo from Hollywood stars, gratitude speeches from the organizers and donors and to top it all, recognition for some of the most engaged frontliners in the fight against COVID19 in the nation. This would probably be the first time that the Indian entertainment industry has come together through home-to-home performance, at this scale, to entertain and more importantly, to raise donations for the response fund.

The strategy for raising these funds was simple and straightforward. No glamour, no drama. The way I see it, the concert used some key fundraising strategies –

Engage – Every performer engaged with the audience with some form or the other. Everyone opted to perform a bit of their piece in a positive manner that uplifted the current spirit of the viewers instead of making us feel worse off.

Identity – Frontliners were recognized for their dedication and commitment – nurses, doctors, government entities.

Storyline – They were determined and had a common message. And they aimed to win the hearts of people.

Contribution – It was easy – and through click of a ‘Donate’ button right on the facebook screens of the viewers. Total of Rs. 52 crore (about US $7 million) funds were raised for several burdened causes due to COVID19, mainly the daily wage works and those directly affected by the crisis.

What next? An advantage with the video medium of storytelling is the ability to be showcased over and over again. Some of the performances are still echoing in my mind; so many floating around on social media feeds. Repeating footages of several of the performances certainly maintains the continuity of the message until relevant (in this case hopefully not for too long).

Overall, I would say the concert was an excellent approach to collective giving.

People watched; they were moved; they donated.

What are some other strategies you have seen as success stories?

Links to the information –
More about I for India Campaign – Click here

Highlights of the concert – Click here

Annual Gala as Fundraising – Yay or Nay?

Few weeks ago, we attended our sons’ school’s annual fundraising gala event. The evening was a feel-good factor with good food, beverages, treats as well as a combination of fundraising opportunities through treats, silent bidding, live auction and ‘raise-the-paddle’. Proceeds from the event would then be used for various school programs, enhancing existing resources and professional development for its faculty. Coming from the nonprofit world, I can see how the debate on ‘whether to gala or not’ is so prevalent, and for all the valid reasons. For one, it takes away huge amount of time and labor from the core work of the organizations. Often, there is pressure to meet set targets and the key then is really the ROI which may not be as convincing either. Dependency on the event proceeds also affects their overall operations and strategic planning.

So what makes a gala like this a success? For one, I as a donor am vested in the organization and hence have that level of connection, the bias. At the same time, here are some of the key takeaways from the way I saw the school organize and handle the event:

– A team dedicated to the event that had a mix of the school’s development team and several committed parent-volunteers. Their energy and passion really created a high prior to the event. This was key to driving the event from logistics to strategy.

– One could see the power of storytelling – one of the most inspiring forms of creating identity and engagement. This was in the form of students’ collective art work by grade, an engagement with each faculty based on their field of study (how about a round of mini golf with the PE teacher?!, and so on..), to support a common cause and thus amplify the mission of the school.

– The event created an environment to inspire giving to the school community; there were actionable items and a common narrative.

– There were no long speeches, no long video messages. Event was really designed to make it fun, lively and present the ask creatively.

In all, if done right, gala events like these are a decent ‘value for money (VfM)’ proposition through the supporters – donors, volunteers, the employees, the beneficiaries.

What are your favorite approaches to fundraising events? What are some of the Yays and nays?