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Description
In the Covid-19 crisis a new generation of donors emerged, young people who consider giving and contributing to society important motivation factors for their behaviour. The problem is that the majority of organizations and institutions (parks, museums, libraries and hospitals), we have observed, can launch but cannot carry out a good fund-raising campaign, i.e. a focused effort for a short time by engaging many and different external participants, which is often due to lack of expertise and human resources.The project will offer a solution for at least 140 organizations, public institutions and informal groups; they will be involved in motivational fund-raising training sessions in order to understand the importance of the topic and their capacity and motivation. 40 of they will take part in the following activities in 4 Accelerators and follow-up fundraising campaigns: training; access to the fundraising platforms Platformata.bg and DMS, meeting to share the progress of the campaigns and group support, individual mentoring by the team, communicators and pro bono ambassadors; technical assistance to prepare texts and video materials and paid advertising on Facebook; proposal of causes to donor companies; a general communication plan and media coverage. The organizations will raise more than 200.000 BGN in total. The long-term impact for them will be better recognition, improved public image and acquired skills for successful upcoming campaigns. At least 40.000 citizens will be reached with calls for giving in the social media, not counting the people reached by the media or by 90 influencers and celebrities. The project will boost the sustainability of Because Foundation with an improved programme for support of small organizations, a broader circle of volunteers, the beginning of a prestigious list of engaged celebrities, who will continue to generate benefits for the civil society in Bulgaria.
Summary of project results
The project contributed to the achievement of the goal of improving citizens'' awareness of the role of non-governmental organizations in society.
Information and encouragement for involvement reached over 450 NGOs. Organizations were encouraged to assess their fundraising readiness, and for the most motivated 155 entered a competition to become participants in 4 Accelerators for successful fundraising campaigns. A total of 40 selected organizations conducted intensive campaigns after training and with the help of pro bono mentors - communicators from companies. The total number of people reached with the 40 organizations'' social media donation appeals, donor outreach and organization events, and paid Facebook advertising by BCause is 1,496,151. The total number of celebrities, influencers and active citizens reached the 40 organizations they turned to for support is 202.
The project included 4 Accelerate Success Forums, where participating organizations shared their achievements and challenges during the campaigns, and mentors, other organizations with more experience in fundraising, inspirational figures and media representatives shared stories, tips and recommendations to the NGO audience how to be successful in conducting donation campaigns.
The project launched the "Celebrities Help" initiative in partnership with Forbes Bulgaria, which aims to promote the example of famous Bulgarians with their donation initiatives and to honor a selection of 10. The total amount of donations collected from the 4 Accelerators is BGN 326,542 through Platformata.bg and DMSbg.com, as well as donations from other sources.
The 40 participating organizations have increased skills, experience, and confidence to create and run donation campaigns. 20 out of 40 in total started another campaign in Platformata.bg or DMSbg. In total, the 28 pro bono mentors declared their willingness to participate in new editions of the Accelerators in the future. The "Celebrities Help" initiative is yet to develop and establish itself as a prestigious, highly publicized event and source of information and inspiration for both celebrities and all donors about giving causes and endeavours. As early as the fall of 2023, we foresee another edition of the Accelerator as part of the preparation and holding of the now traditional Giving Tuesday, a global donation movement, of which the BCause Foundation is a pioneer and driving force in Bulgaria.