How Canteen raised over $1 million from Facebook Challenges by creating a hyper-engaged community
Canteen was one of the first GivePanel customers to run a Facebook Challenge in Australia. Since then, they have seen huge success. They raised over $1 million for their cause in the last two years.
What is the secret to their success? Primarily, it is creating a hyper-engaged community. This required both group engagement and a multichannel approach. Ultimately, this resulted in thousands of dedicated fundraisers.
In our latest webinar, I spoke with Canteen’s Lizzy Kwan (Digital P2P Fundraising Campaign Specialist) and Caitlin Crowther (Community Fundraising Coordinator). They discussed why they chose Facebook Challenges. Furthermore, they explained how they manage group engagement effectively. They also shared communication tools that kept participants engaged for a whole month.
🎧 Watch the Webinar
Watch the webinar highlights below, or scroll down to continue reading more insights from the Canteen team.
Who is Canteen and Why Challenges?
About Canteen
Canteen is an Australian non-profit organization. It provides free, tailored support to young people aged $\text{12-25}$. These young people are impacted by cancer. Canteen offers a wide range of services:
- Connection with peers through events and programs.
- Free counseling and individual support.
- $\text{24/7}$ online support services for young people and parents.
- Access to free information and resources.
- Specialist support services for young cancer patients.
The team joined GivePanel in 2021 during the height of Covid-19 lockdowns. They needed a new income stream. Therefore, they sought to replace the sudden loss of in-person events. They launched their first Facebook Challenge in November of that year.
Why Facebook Challenges?
The Canteen team had heard success stories from the UK and US. Facebook Challenges were bringing in significant revenue for non-profits there. They were keen to test this model themselves.
First, let’s cover the basics for newcomers: What is a Facebook Challenge? The answer is simple: it is a virtual event that runs entirely on Facebook. It leverages social networking power through ads, groups, and fundraisers. If you want to get started, check out this guide to creating a new digital income stream with Facebook fundraising.
Second question: What does this mean for your non-profit? Alongside creating a new income stream, it offers:
- Lower acquisition costs.
- More fundraisers.
- No fundraising platform costs!
It’s a win-win-win! If that doesn’t convince you, Canteen’s results from their three Challenges just might.
🔢 The Canteen Results
Let’s talk numbers. Canteen has run three Facebook Challenges since 2021. They raised a grand total of $1,476,866.
Here is the breakdown per Challenge:
| Challenge Event | Funds Raised | Group Members |
| 100 Sit-Ups a Day in November | $368,174 | 4,823 |
| 5km a Day in March | $611,044 | 7,103 |
| 100km Dog Walk in July | $497,668 | 6,232 |
Unsurprisingly, the team surpassed every target they set for themselves. They achieved massive success with every Challenge. Boom!
🤝 Creating a Hyper-Engaged Community
Getting Facebook Challenge results like Canteen’s requires effort. Indeed, it is a labor of love. It demands quality time spent perfecting a hyper-engaged community.
Here are Canteen’s top tips for building engagement:
1. Quality Over Quantity
It all starts with getting the right people into your Facebook Group. Specifically, you want people who will participate, fundraise, and support your cause. Get off to a flying start with the right message in your Facebook ads. Focus your content on your non-profit’s mission and fundraising impact. Do not focus too heavily on the free incentive. Furthermore, do not be afraid to enforce rules. Caitlin mentions the need for a safe space for all supporters. Consequently, you must remove anyone who jeopardizes that security.
2. Make Time to Engage
Facebook Challenges are demanding. Your team will need to schedule time to engage with supporters. For Canteen, this means interacting with every single post or comment in the Group. It also means maintaining a daily content schedule. This is time-consuming, but the effort pays off.
3. Build Your Own Team
Quality engagement takes time. Therefore, resource your team appropriately to manage the full Challenge timeline. The Canteen team notes this includes managing the Facebook Group itself. It also means handling multiple platforms like email and SMS.
A top tip is to involve your wider team. Ask them to interact with Group posts you want members to see. This makes posts repeatedly appear at the top of the feed.
4. Mix Up Your Content Themes
Keeping the Facebook Group engaged can be tricky. This is especially true if you constantly churn out the same messages. For their Challenges, Canteen likes to switch between core themes. This helps them relay the right messages and provides a mix of content.
- Cause and Impact: The Canteen team shares cause-related posts about their work. They also share personal stories about experiences with cancer and Canteen services. They involve their youth ambassadors whose experiences appear in welcome packs, Group posts, and a live event.
- Engagement Generators: The team found success by celebrating achievements and incentive modeling. Celebrating includes fundraising updates and Challenge milestones. Incentive modeling helps encourage more Active Fundraisers and builds connection with the Canteen brand.
- Top Tips: Canteen shares fundraising tips with interactive polls. They also use their “Good Boy Specialist,” Murphy . This softens the fundraising ask and injects fun into the content. Everyone loves seeing photos of good dogs!
- Competitions: Canteen runs multiple competitions in the Group throughout the Challenge. These boost registrations, donations, and overall engagement. For example, competitions included best dog memes and dog tricks. One fundraiser’s dog could even do math!
📱 Multichannel Engagement is Key
The Facebook Group is essential, but Canteen knows engagement can’t stop there. Engaging supporters on other platforms builds stronger relationships. This strategy solves problems quickly. Ultimately, it prepares supporters for future journeys, like regular giving.
Canteen uses six additional channels outside of Facebook, starting at the beginning of the fundraiser’s journey:
- Welcome Packs: Canteen sends these to all registered participants. Packs include a Challenge t-shirt, a bandana, a fundraising pocket guide, and a daily checklist. Crucially, a handwritten card from a youth ambassador is included. In-house fulfillment creates initial excitement, with supporters sharing photos in the Group.
- Emails: Emails are a campaign staple. Canteen uses GivePanel’s tool for initial registration emails. Then, they use Campaign Monitor for up to $\text{11}$ campaign emails total. Their data proves emails work: Fundraisers who click an email are $\text{4.2}$ times more likely to raise funds. Conclusion: Emails are vital!
- Calls to Fundraisers: Canteen connects with supporters through phone calls. They split calls between two groups: $0 Fundraisers and those who have raised over $250. These calls provide a great opportunity to build one-on-one relationships. The team offers additional support and gains vital insights.
- SMS: Canteen tested SMS for two purposes. They used GiveEasy for kickstarting donations. They used Conversr with AI for two-way engagement, seeing a $\mathbf{70\%}$ response rate. Big news: GivePanel launched its own SMS for Facebook Fundraising feature in 2023.
- On-Page Messaging: Canteen enlists the GivePanel Managed Services team. They post direct messages on individual Fundraiser pages. This provides another essential engagement touchpoint.
- Live Event: Canteen hosts a Facebook Live ‘Kick Off’ event at the start of Challenges. They introduce the team, share Canteen information, and provide fundraising tips. They stream the event through Zoom into the Facebook Group. This saves the video to the feed, allowing supporters to catch up later.
🎯 Final Thoughts
Engaging with supporters is key. It all starts with the all-important Facebook Group. However, going the extra mile with other communication channels is smart. It connects with supporters and encourages them to fundraise.
If you take anything away from this blog, remember these five key points:
- Preparation: Ensure your non-profit has Facebook’s Giving Tools turned on before planning. Read our guide for everything you need to know.
- Messaging: Lead with cause-focused messaging in your Group and ads. Share personal stories and experiences.
- Resourcing: Resource your team to manage Facebook Group engagement. Outsource areas like advertising and on-page messaging if necessary.
- Testing: Keep testing new features, such as GivePanel’s SMS for Facebook Fundraising. This helps further your connection with supporters.
- Attitude: As Canteen says, there is no such thing as a bad Challenge! See it as an acquisition opportunity. You can channel supporters to different areas of your fundraising portfolio.
Related Resources
- How the Australian Heart Foundation raised over $110,000 with their first Facebook Challenge
- https://givepanel.com/blog/australian-heart-foundation-facebook-challenge/ (Based on search context, providing the most relevant link.)
- How to create a new digital income stream with Facebook Fundraising as a nonprofit in Australia
- https://givepanel.com/blog/how-to-create-a-new-digital-income-stream-with-facebook-fundraising-as-a-nonprofit-in-australia/ (Based on search context, providing the most relevant link.)
- How to make the most of Facebook Fundraising as a charity in Australia
- https://givepanel.com/blog/how-to-make-the-most-of-facebook-fundraising-as-a-charity-in-australia/ (Based on search context, providing the most relevant link.)
- Thinking outside the box with Facebook Challenge ideas
- https://givepanel.com/blog/thinking-outside-the-box-with-facebook-challenge-ideas/ (Based on search context, providing the most relevant link.)