The Vagina Museum demonstrates the power of crowdfunding

There are a lot of myths about vaginas out there. But one charitable museum – the world’s first – exists to dispel misinformation and celebrate all things gynecological.

From labia length to orgasms, The Vagina Museum has bared all since launching in 2019.

But the charity faced a major setback last summer when it was unexpectedly turfed out of its Bethnal Green home.

However, it reopened on 4 November in a new location, thanks to a successful crowdfunding appeal.

To cover the cost of the new premises, the charity appealed to the public’s generosity and managed to raise more than £90,000 in three weeks.

This demonstrates the power of crowdfunding.

What is crowdfunding?

As we explained in a previous blog post, crowdfunding is an effective way to raise money in the digital space via individual contributions from a large group of people; a crowd, if you will.

The beauty of crowdfunding is it can get your campaign in front of an audience of millions for relatively little effort. And, as the Vagina Museum has proven, if you get it right, it can net you a whole lot of wonga.

Crowdfunding tips

We’ve covered the basics. Now let’s focus on what you need to do to execute a killer crowdfunding campaign.

1. Pick your platform

First things first. You need to decide where you’re going to launch your campaign.

There are hundreds of crowdfunding platforms out there. Before committing, do your homework. We recommend comparing five key areas: structure, fees, features, reach, and reputation. 

This article by GoFundMe is a good place to start.

2.  Frontload your campaign

According to Fundable, campaigns that secure 30% of their goal within the first week are more likely to succeed. This means you need to have backers in place before your campaign goes live.

Tap your trustees, major donors, and management team for donations prior to launch to get the ball rolling.

When you open the campaign up to the rest of the world, they’ll feel like they’re joining a successful movement.

3. Tell a great story

As much as we like to believe we make decisions based on logic, stats, and reason, this isn’t the case. People act on emotion.

That’s not to say there’s no place for facts and figures in your story. They’re important to highlight the scale of the problem you’re trying to solve, but if you want backers to open their wallets, you need to connect with them by sharing a great story.

There are two ways to do it. You can write your story (if you go down this route, it should be supported by striking imagery), or let a film do the talking for you.

According to crowdfunding platform Indiegogo, campaigns with videos raise 114% more than those without.

This emotive piece of video storytelling by Kidscape demonstrates why.

4. Be specific

You’ll raise more funds if you ask people to help you reach a particular goal.

Whether you need help funding a pricey piece of equipment, repairs to your office, or a new initiative to support your beneficiaries, make your ask specific and explain where the money will go.

Oh, and set your goal as low as possible. Why? With some crowdfunding platforms, you won’t receive any money if your campaign doesn’t hit its financial target, so before you press ‘publish’, make sure your goal is realistic.

5. Leverage your network

Once you’ve finalised your campaign, it’s time to spread the word.

Share the campaign on social and ask staff, trustees, ambassadors, volunteers, family, and friends to do the same.

Using your network to access the networks of others will build momentum and awareness.

6. Keep up the momentum

Continually begging for money is going to turn donors off.

When promoting your campaign, consider the 20/80 rule.

Only 20% of your posts should make a direct ask. The other 80% need to convince potential donors you’re worth investing in.

Highlight successful projects, beneficiary case studies, or significant milestones, adding a call to action and your crowdfunding link at the end.

7. Update donors

Along with regular social media updates, be sure to communicate with backers on the campaign platform.

Reply to comments, answer questions, and express your gratitude. And be sure to update them on campaign progress – both on and off the platform.

If you make donors feel valued and show them that their donations are making a difference, the chances are they’ll share the page and encourage others to contribute.

Final Word

Follow these steps and you’ll be well on the way to crowdfunding success.

Looking for a digital fundraiser to kickstart your campaign? You’re in the right place. Give us a call on 0203 750 3111 or email info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get the ball rolling.

Introducing Charity Fillers

According to Ofcom, nine in ten people (89.6%) in the UK listen to the radio at least once a week.

That’s millions of captive ears.

Want to promote your charity to them, for free?

Thanks to Charity Fillers, you can.

Launched by C.I. Broadcasting, the service aims to plug unfilled airtime on UK radio stations with third-sector commercials and content.

What are ‘fillers?’

If you were around in the 70’s, you may remember the Green Cross Man; a costumed superhero who featured in a series of TV commercials in the 1970s to teach children about road safety.

This is a prime example of a ‘filler’; a non-commercial public service announcement that’s used by broadcasters to fill gaps in TV and radio programming schedules.

Charity Fillers is a similar concept, but it promotes third sector organisations rather than public announcements.

Call-out for charities

The newly launched platform has signed up 30 regional radio stations so far, including Together Radio, True Radio, Apple FM, and Brum Radio.

And registered charities are now being invited to sign up and take advantage of their unsold airtime.

Want to get involved?

Here’s what you need to know.

To get started, fill out the form on Charity Fillers’s website. Once the team has checked your credentials, they’ll set you up with a user account, through which you’ll upload your audio commercials (with accompanying copy clearance details).

Once uploaded, the radio stations will be able to view, download and use your content.

Reporting

As part of the service, radio stations will submit weekly online reports to Charity Fillers, detailing the number of times a commercial has been used (a single piece of audio cannot be played more than 28 times in week).

The reports will then be collated and forwarded to partner charities so they can gauge the effectiveness of the service.

On its website, Charity Fillers says that (currently) the ‘vast majority of U.K. radio stations using Charity Fillers are non RAJAR reporting stations, which means it is difficult to gauge an individual station's actual audience.

However, in the current RAJAR reporting period, just over five million adults listened to these stations each week, representing 9% of U.K. radio listening.’

Is radio advertising worth the effort?

Yes, for three reasons.  

1. Radio is the most trusted medium

A survey by Eurobarometer found that radio is trusted by 56% of the population, compared to 49% for TV and press, 35% for the internet and 20% for social media.

2. Radio advertising is effective

According to RadioCentre, radio advertising increases awareness of charity campaigns by 79% and relevance by 27%.

3. Charity Fillers is a free service

What have you got to lose?

Looking for a broadcast-savvy fundraiser to get your commercial in the can? We can help. Give us a call on 0203 750 3111 or email info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get the conversation started.

How Cats Protection raised £50,000 on eBay in four months

Does your charity have an eBay shop? If not, you could be missing out on a healthy chunk of income, as Cats Protection has proven.

Back in September, a small team of staff set up an eBay store from an office above a Cats Protection shop in Somerset, to harness the power of a worldwide marketplace and make the most of ‘rare and unusual’ items donated by supporters.

Little did they know how successful it would be.

In just four months, their efforts have generated over £50,000, and there’s no sign of sales slowing down.

How have they done it?

David Chan-Baker, Cats Protection’s retail online hub manager revealed all in an interview with Somerset Apple.

“The [eBay] team takes in items that have been donated to Cats Protection shops across the country.

They look for pieces that would have value in the shops but where we can add extra value online.

It’s about using our knowledge of the items to make the most of our donors’ generous gifts.”

Finding value

The team looks into the history of each item it sells online, cataloging the details, heritage, and previous sales of similar items to guide the pricing. 

Chan-Baker said, “We try to find specifics about items that will add value. For example, if we have a games console, we will look at the version, which games come with it, and how others have sold so that we can pitch just below the higher end of the pricing scale to improve turnover.”

Pitch perfect

The team clearly has a knack for pitching, as some of the items have reached astonishing prices.

As Chan-Baker explains, “We had a Bernina sewing machine go for £600 and a saxophone went to a customer in Europe for £549. We are unlikely to have made that in any of our shops as we’d have needed a jazz musician to walk in and know its value.”

The charity also raised £8,000 from the sale of model trains, £400 from Chanel earrings, and £3,000 from Christmas cards.

Current items for sale include a 1960’s velvet coat, from the designer Jean Patou, which is being offered for just under £500, and a vintage mandolin from the 1900s that’s been priced at £160. 

Want to check out their wares? You can do so here.

How to get started with eBay

If Cats Protections’ success has inspired you to launch your own eBay charity shop, you can find out all you need to know to get started here.

It’s worth noting however, that charities aren’t exempt from fees.

While there are no listing fees, you’ll pay a final value fee of 1.1% of the total amount of each sale, plus 17p per order.

The ‘total amount’ is the entire amount the buyer pays, including handling charges, the shipping service the buyer selects, sales tax, plus any other applicable fees.

Need a fundraiser to run your eBay shop? We’ve got the talent. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111 to find the perfect fit.

Funding opportunities for February

Grants are a vital source of income for charities large and small, but trawling through databases for relevant opportunities is a time-consuming task.

Enter Bamboo.

Each month, we scour the internet and highlight a range of funding opportunities from trusts, corporates, and the public sector.

Let’s get into it.

Trust for London

Amount: £1,000 - £180,000
Deadline: March 4, 2024

Trust for London wants to fund organisations fighting for the rights of disabled people. This includes work that strengthens the ability of deaf and disabled people organisations (DDPOs) to engage in campaigning, policy, and advocacy. They're also keen to fund work that contributes to growing, broadening, and diversifying the disability movement.

There are two types of grants available:

• development grants of up to £20,000 for new and small organisations

• larger grants for up to £180,000 over 2-3 years

To be eligible, you must provide services for, or work on behalf of, deaf and disabled people who live in London. And at least 75% of your trustees and 50% of your paid staff must be disabled.

Find out more and apply here.

The Haberdashers Company

Amount: Up to £5,000
Deadline: March 8, 2024

The Haberdashers Company aims to ‘empower young people from every background to fulfil their potential’.

It awards grants to charities that serve the following groups:

• Early Years (0–5-year-olds)

• Young people who experience disadvantage

• Young people with experience of the custody system

• Young people who experience homelessness

Projects must provide inclusive solutions to the challenges faced by these communities in one of the following boroughs/geographical areas.

• The London Boroughs of Bexley, Hackney, Lewisham, or Southwark

• Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire

• The Forest of Dean

• Chertsey, Surrey

• Albrighton, Shropshire (and surrounding areas)

• Wigston, Leicestershire (and surrounding areas)

• Bunbury, Cheshire (and surrounding areas)

Applications from charities with an income of less than £250,000 are actively encouraged to apply. 

Request an application form from grants@haberdashers.co.uk (putting Small Grants Programme in the subject heading).

Be sure to include:

• A link to your entry on the Charities Commission website

• The focus area your charity addresses

• The geographical area your work covers

Gatwick Airport Community Trust

Amount: between £1,000 - £5,000
Deadline: March 31, 2024

The Gatwick Airport Community Trust funds projects targeted towards the development of young people, the arts, sporting facilities, environmental improvement and conservation, improvements to community facilities, volunteering, the elderly and the disabled.

To be considered, your project should benefit people in the areas directly affected by operations at Gatwick Airport i.e. East and West Sussex, Surrey, and Kent.

They occasionally award larger grants for projects that will benefit a significant number of people and make a valuable difference over the long term. 

Check out their featured projects for inspiration.

If you tick all the boxes, apply here.

Regional Capacity Building

Amount: Up to £100,000
Deadline: March 31, 2024

This Government funding is for activities and projects that promote the understanding, management, and conservation of the historic environment.

Eligible projects must help to reduce or avoid risk to the historic environment through one of the following:

• build up the capacity and commitment of local communities to champion the conservation and enhancement of their local historic environments.

• promote best-practice standards for the conservation, documentation, interpretation, and sustainable management of the resources of England's historic environment.

• meet regional-based information needs.

Eligible activities and projects for which there is a lack of alternative sources of funding are the highest priorities for support.

To apply, contact your local Historic England office

The Clothworkers Foundation

Amount: £5,000 - £20,000
Deadline: Ongoing

The Clothworkers Foundation’s Open Grants Programme awards funding for capital projects, which they define as:

• Buildings: purchase, construction, renovation, or refurbishment.

• Fittings, Fixtures, and Equipment: this includes office equipment/furniture, sports/gym equipment, digital/audiovisual equipment, software and websites, garden equipment, and specialist therapeutic (excluding medical) equipment. It does not include equipment for one-off use, or which will be given to service users for personal use on a permanent basis.

• Vehicles: This includes minibuses, cars, caravans, people carriers, 4x4 and boats. They do not provide grants towards vehicle leasing or award funding to organisations whose core activity is community transport.

You must be able to demonstrate that your organisation fits within one or more of their programme areas, and at least 50% of service users benefiting from your project must be from one or more of these groups. 

• Communities experiencing racial inequalities

• Domestic and sexual abuse

• Economic disadvantage

• Homelessness

• LGBT & communities

• Older people facing disadvantage

• Prison & rehabilitation

• Substance misuse & addiction

• Young people facing disadvantage

Want to apply? Take the eligibility quiz and fill out the application form here.

Looking for a trust fundraiser to join your team? We can help. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111 or email us at info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get started.

Return of the Big Help Out

May 8, 2023, saw the launch of The Big Help Out, a national day of volunteering initiated by the Royal Voluntary Service and the Together Coalition.

The event, which took place on the Bank Holiday of the Coronation weekend, was designed to ‘raise awareness of volunteering and provide opportunities for people to make a difference in their communities.’

It’s safe to say it achieved its mission. 

30,000 charities offered volunteering opportunities at 55,000 events, and a whopping 7.2 million people around the UK took part.

Of those 7.2 million, 40% had not done any formal volunteering before, 80% had no prior relationship with the organisation they volunteered for, and 33% have gone on to volunteer again for the same organisation. 

Success story

One of the participating charities, the RSPCA, saw 850 people sign up to become “wildlife friends”. They spent the day litter picking, building hedgehog homes, and creating wildlife-friendly habitats. 

According to the RSPCA, 1,250 new volunteers have joined since the Big Help Out.

Back with a bang

Following the unprecedented success of the inaugural event, the organisers have announced the Big Help Out will return in 2024. But this time, it’ll take place over three days, from 7-9 June, to coincide with the end of Volunteers’ Week.

Catherine Johnstone, Managing Director of the Royal Voluntary Service told Civil Society that extending the event would ‘increase accessibility’ and allow ‘more people to get involved.’  She added that the organisers hope that by including a Friday as one of the days, ‘businesses and schools will be encouraged to take part.’

The value of the Big Help Out

Data from The National Council for Voluntary Organisation’s (NCVO) 2023 Time Well Spent survey revealed that volunteering is at an all-time low in England.

The report shows that, since 2018, the number of people raising money for, or taking part in sponsored events has almost halved, (down from 11% to 6%). And that there’s been a 52% drop in people organising or volunteering at charitable events (down from 14% to 7%).

As a result, volunteer recruitment is a top priority for charities.

Sarah Vibert, CEO of the NCVO said of the report, ‘without volunteers, some charities wouldn’t be able to make the huge differences to people’s lives that they do.

If you’re an organisation that wants to recruit more volunteers, please get involved – it’s a great way to promote your amazing work and the positive impact volunteering makes to local communities.’

Want to take part?

If you want to take part in next year’s event, keep an eye on the Big Help Out website.

Charities will be able to list volunteering opportunities from late January.

In the meantime, if you’re on the hunt for a talented fundraiser, you’re in the right place. Give us a call on 020 3750 3111 or email us at info@bamboofundraising.co.uk to get the process started.