How To Successfully Fundraise For Your Campaign
Working on a campaign can mean a lot of long days and hard work, but your dedication and passion will only take you so far. Behind every yard sign, every campaign ad, and every staffer working to get out the vote is the one thing that makes it all possible: money. And for most candidates, asking for it is the hardest, most intimidating part of the job.
Even the best campaigns make fundraising mistakes. They skip out on call time, don’t take the time to learn campaign finance rules, or don’t work to build their email list until it’s too late in the game. While there’s no magic wand to make fundraising easy, there is a roadmap to make it successful. If you're planning to run for office and need to raise money, these are the core steps you need to take to build a strong foundation.
Develop a Fundraising Plan. The first step in your process is to develop a roadmap for how you will achieve your campaign fundraising goals. Start by figuring out how much you need to raise and creating a plan to bring that in the door. As a benchmark, you can go look at what similar winning campaigns have raised for a similar office. Set your goal and make a specific and strategic plan to get there. Then do an assessment and assign a reasonable amount of what you can raise from everyone within your immediate network.
Write Out a Calendar. When you first set up your campaign, you should create a calendar that outlines when your fundraising mailings go out, when emails are sent, when fundraisers are held, and even when call-time should take place. Having an organized campaign calendar will be very helpful for your team as you start to execute your campaign plan.
Set Up a Finance Committee. A strong finance committee can be a powerful asset to your campaign. They can help you expand your fundraising network, organize events, and reach new donors. When structured and used effectively, serving on the committee will be viewed as a meaningful leadership role, not just an honorary title. Reach out to respected community members, businesspeople, union leaders, and elected officials to ask if they’d be willing to lend their support by joining your committee. Their credibility and connections can help open doors and build momentum.
List Building. Fundraising isn’t about cold-calling strangers—it’s about targeted outreach. Start with your closest circle: your friends and family. Sit down with them and ask who they know that might be willing to give to your campaign. Then do the same with your finance committee, and eventually, your donors. Go through their contacts with them—ask about where they went to school, where they work, and who’s in their network. The goal is to build a strong, organized list of potential donors and volunteers. This list will be the backbone of your campaign, and it takes time and focus to get it right. Put all your contacts in one place and keep it updated. Whether you're running for office this year or three years down the road, be sure to take the time to start building your list.
Use the Different Types of Campaign Fundraising.
A successful fundraising plan doesn’t use just one tactic. It layers multiple strategies to maximize your reach and results.
- Call time: This is the bedrock of any strong fundraising program. It means setting aside focused, disciplined hours to personally call your network and ask for money. It’s the most proven and effective fundraising method, but it’s also the most time-consuming and tedious.
- Fundraisers: Events bring people together, generate momentum, and create a sense of community around your campaign. These can take many forms, from high-dollar dinners to casual backyard barbeques.
- Mailings. This can be a powerful tool to reach potential donors and serve as an entry point for someone you might not know very well. Whether it’s a glossy invite to an event or a single-page letter, mail can be a good way to introduce your campaign and build a relationship.
- Email is an efficient and cost-effective way to solicit donations, particularly for lower-dollar donors. A strong email program will build the relationship over time with clear messaging, strong calls to action, and a regular cadence of communication.
- Networking: Tapping into your supporters’ networks is a force multiplier. Ask donors, friends, and community allies to introduce you to people they know who might be willing to support your campaign.
- Re-solicitation: The first donation should really just be the beginning of a relationship. A winning campaign has a plan to reengage existing donors by asking them to max out their contribution or host an event.
Establish Credibility. One of the best ways to keep money coming in the door is by establishing credibility. That means keeping your name in the press, securing endorsements, and regularly updating your donors so they know how their investment is making an impact. As your campaign builds momentum, your credibility will grow, making it easier to bring in new donors and keep your existing ones engaged.
Say Thank You. Gratitude goes a long way in building lasting relationships with your donors. Every time you receive a contribution—no matter the amount—you should always say thank you. Keep a database of all thank you notes you have sent, and if someone donates a second or third time, say it again and again.
Analyze Your Fundraising Potential. Before you commit to running, make sure you know how much you need to raise in order to win. Start by building a list of everyone you know and conservatively estimating how much each person will give. This will give you a clearer picture of your fundraising capacity. Think of it like any major financial decision: you wouldn’t buy a car without knowing if you could afford the payments, and many campaigns can cost more than a car. A good rule is that if you can identify on paper at least 1/3 of the total amount you need to raise from friends and family, you have a good shot at raising the rest.
Talk to a Lawyer. Campaign finance is highly regulated and has strict rules. Before you can accept your first dollar, you need to appoint a treasurer, open a bank account, and understand the contribution limits that apply to your race. Every donation and expenditure needs to be tracked and reported. These laws are complex and vary by jurisdiction, so it’s essential to consult a lawyer who specializes in campaign finance to ensure your campaign is set up correctly.
Grow your Email List. While call time with your network is essential, small-dollar digital fundraising can also play an important role. A strong email program not only supplements your overall efforts but can also provide a steady stream of grassroots support and recurring monthly donations. But you’ll need more than just your immediate friends and family—you need to work to grow your email list. One common mistake that campaigns make is spending too much time emailing their list and not enough time growing it. You should be spending just as much time adding new names to the list as you do on emailing the list.
Estimate Your Returns. Successful fundraising depends on two things: bringing in money and staying organized. As donations come in and new opportunities emerge, it’s important to estimate your likely returns so you can plan ahead. For example, during call time, you might reach 10 to 15 people per hour and get pledges from 30 to 50 percent of them. A well-written fundraising email to a warm list might see a 20- to 30-percent open rate, a 1- to 3-percent click-through rate, and get donations from 10- to 20-percent of those who click. Understanding these benchmarks can help you stay focused, set realistic goals, and make strategic decisions about where you should be spending your time.
Commit to Call Time. Call time can suck, but it is a constant in politics. If you can't dedicate four to six hours every day to making the calls needed, then you are not likely to be successful. The good news is, the more time you put in, the more comfortable and confident you’ll become. It won’t make you a master fundraiser overnight, but practicing your ask and showing up consistently will make your pitch feel more natural and make it more successful.
Follow Up. If you aren’t good at follow-up, then running for office may not be for you. Your follow-up needs to be flawless. It’s important to stay organized because your staff cannot do it all for you. You will never get all the money from your donors in one shot. You need to be prepared to ask folks for more than one donation, by phone, by mail, online, and in person.
Stay Focused. Raising money and running for office need to be your sole focus. If you are writing a novel, finishing your MBA, having major surgery, or any number of other life events, this may not be the best time for you to throw in a time- and energy-consuming campaign. You simply won’t have the time you need to raise the money to run a competitive campaign.
Don't Run If You Can’t Win. If you are running for the first time, make sure you’ve taken a hard look at all your options before you decide to run for Congress. It is a lot easier to raise $200,000 for a local or state race than $400,000 or more for a federal campaign. No race is ever a sure thing, but there is more opportunity in some races than in others. Remember, 95 percent of incumbents win reelection, so before you decide to take one on, make sure you have your ducks in a row.
Don't Look for the Easy Way Out. Fundraising is hard, and there’s no way around it. Don't go down the road of searching for the magic fundraising beans. Spoiler: they don't exist. Online fundraising, house parties, events, direct mail, and institutional fundraising all have a place in your campaign fundraising toolkit, but they don’t take the place of picking up the phone and calling your friends and family. Embrace the grind, stay disciplined, and you’ll get through it.
Know What a Good Fundraising Staffer Does and Doesn’t Do. A good fundraiser will organize your time, help you with your pitch, and define your fundraising prospects. However, most fundraisers don't come with a magic donor list, and they won't make the calls for you. Another one of those campaign fundraising mistakes to avoid: thinking a staff person will do the grunt work necessary to raise funds. They won't.
Get Help. Good staff and volunteers are a must for your campaign. Put time into hiring good people and put even more time into showing appreciation for the work they do. It will go a long way. You are going to ask your friends and family to knock on doors, raise money, and give money. Don't let this be a surprise. Set expectations early, and make sure they’re bought in from the very start.
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