Engage Challenge Participants Long-Term
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After the Challenge: Turning Participants into Lifelong Supporters
The end of your Virtual Challenge isn’t a conclusion—it’s the beginning of a deeper supporter relationship. A smart wrap-up strategy, or “off-boarding,” can turn one-time participants into long-term advocates and give you valuable insights for future campaigns.
Why a Wrap-Up Strategy Matters
When someone completes your challenge, they’ve shown a real commitment to your cause. This is a golden opportunity to build on that excitement. These participants are your best prospects for becoming regular donors, future fundraisers, and passionate ambassadors for your organization.
Without a clear plan, you lose the chance to build on the goodwill and community spirit you’ve created. A strategic wrap-up gives supporters a natural way to stay involved.
1. Celebrate Their Impact and Achievement
Make the end of the challenge meaningful. Participants want to know exactly what their hard work accomplished.
How to Celebrate Effectively:
- Be specific: Share the grand total raised. More importantly, explain exactly how that money will create change. For example, “Your £50,000 will provide 1,000 children with essential school supplies.”
- Show their role: Connect their individual efforts to the bigger picture. This makes them feel like a crucial part of the success.
- Keep fundraising open: Let people know they can still collect donations for a short period. Set clear expectations for what comes next, like when the Facebook Group will close.
Keep the Community Spirit Alive
Don’t just let your Facebook Group fade away. Intentionally manage the transition.
- Turn off new posts, but don’t delete the group. This preserves the positive memories.
- Revisit the group periodically. You can pop in months later to share an impact report or an invitation to a new challenge.
- Share participant spotlights. Highlighting individual stories and memorable moments is far more powerful than a generic thank you.
2. Ask for Feedback to Improve
The best time to ask for feedback is right after the challenge ends, while the experience is fresh and excitement is high. Use a simple tool like SurveyMonkey to gather insights that will shape your next campaign.
Key Questions to Ask:
- Motivation: What first inspired you to join this challenge?
- Future Interest: Would you consider supporting us with a monthly donation?
- Network: Could your workplace be interested in supporting our cause?
- Next Steps: What other kinds of events or challenges would you like to see from us?
Use these insights to offer personalized next steps. If someone expresses interest in monthly giving, add them to a dedicated email series about that program—not your general newsletter.
3. Offer Different Ways to Stay Involved
Recognize that your supporters are all different. Not everyone will want to stay involved in the same way. Offer a menu of options that suits various interests and commitment levels.
Effective Next Step Options:
- Join a future challenge: For those who loved the activity and community.
- Become a monthly donor: For those who want to make an ongoing impact.
- Sign up for a larger event: Offer a different type of experience.
- Donate to a specific project: For those passionate about a particular part of your mission.
- Learn about legacy giving: For participants interested in long-term planning.
- Get their workplace involved: Highlight examples of successful corporate partnerships.
Pro-Tip: Share stories of other participants who have stayed involved. Seeing a real person who turned their challenge into a workplace partnership makes the idea feel more achievable and exciting.
4. Get Permission to Stay in Touch
Your goal should be to get at least 75% of participants to opt-in to future communications. If your rates are lower, you need to revisit your strategy.
How to Increase Opt-In Rates:
- Ask more than once: Include opt-in opportunities in several of your final communications.
- Explain the value: Tell them what they’ll get by staying in touch (e.g., impact updates, early access to new events).
- Offer choices: Let them choose the frequency and type of content they receive.
- Make it easy to opt-out: This builds trust and shows you respect their inbox.
Instead of adding everyone to your main mailing list, create a short, dedicated “bridge” email series. This series should focus on the impact of their challenge and gently introduce other ways they can support your work.
5. Work with Your Fundraising Team
The participants in your challenge are warm leads for your organization. Your Individual Giving or fundraising teams need to know who they are.
- Share your data: Pass along information about top fundraisers and highly engaged participants. Note anyone who expressed interest in monthly giving or other programs in your survey.
- Collaborate on next steps: Work together to create targeted follow-up for these supporters. They are far more likely to become long-term donors than a cold lead.
Challenge participants are more than one-time fundraisers. They are potential lifelong supporters who have already shown they care.
Ready to Build Lasting Relationships?
A great wrap-up strategy celebrates success while systematically building relationships. It turns temporary participants into long-term supporters by creating clear, attractive pathways for them to stay connected.
Want expert help developing a strategy that builds lasting supporter loyalty?
Download our complete Virtual Challenge Playbook for detailed templates and supporter development strategies.
Request a demo to see how GivePanel helps you track participants for long-term engagement.