How Heart Foundation used GivePanel to collaborate on a Facebook Challenge and raise over AU$110,000
Heart Foundation in Australia raised over AU$110,000 in its first Facebook Challenge by finding a Challenge format that worked for them and activating the nonprofit’s campaign through the Facebook community.
Key results
Driving impact, making a difference
Having seen the success other charities had achieved with Facebook fundraising, the team were eager to take on the Challenge themselves. However, they were also keen to keep costs low and resource the project internally. Therefore, they adopted a highly efficient, hands-on approach from the beginning.
Here’s how they did it:
Platform Efficiency: They selected a Challenge model (Squats in April) known to perform well for similar audiences, consequently increasing the likelihood of success while keeping ad spend tightly controlled.
Internal Photoshoot: They used their team for a DIY photoshoot to generate all ad creative. This meant they avoided external agency fees.
Asset Maximization: They created a comprehensive content schedule. Furthermore, they used the same photoshoot assets to generate content that lasted the entire Challenge period, maximizing the use of every resource.
Set the scene
Who is Heart Foundation?
Heart Foundation is an Australian non-profit. For more than 60 years, they have worked to improve lives. They focus on heart disease prevention, research, and support. Since 1959, the charity has funded over $670 million in research projects.
The Foundation previously focused on website-hosted peer-to-peer (P2P) events. They noticed a disconnect between their website activity and social media fundraisers. By joining GivePanel, the team gained clear visibility of their data. They immediately saw an opportunity to grow Facebook fundraising.
Jesse Lewis, Social Media Lead at Heart Foundation, spoke to GivePanel about their first Facebook Challenge. That Challenge was 3000 Squats in April 2022.
“We want to empower our audiences to fundraise. We thank the fundraiser, they thank their donors. It’s their space, it’s their energy. And we just wanted to activate that and give them the tools to be able to do that and I think Challenges is the way we need to do it.”
– Jesse Lewis
The challenge
3000 Squats in April
A Facebook Challenge is a virtual event that runs solely on Facebook and leverages the power of social networking through ads, groups and fundraisers. This means:
- Lower acquisition costs
- More fundraisers
- And the chance to meet supporters where they already are!
Heart Foundation chose squats as their Challenge model. This was primarily because they noted that squats were accessible for their audience. Moreover, squats were among the top performing U.K. Challenge formats. The team ran their own photoshoot for their Facebook ad creative. Consequently, they ensured the imagery was ‘Challenge-first’ but also strongly reflective of their brand.
Beyond the initial ads, they created a comprehensive content schedule. The team then used the photoshoot to gather assets that would last throughout the entire Challenge. This content included Instagram Reels and informative posts, all of which helped keep supporters engaged.
The Heart Foundation enlisted the support of five volunteers to manage their Facebook Challenge T-shirt fulfillment. This crucial help allowed the internal team to focus entirely on quality group engagement. Furthermore, it provided a meaningful role for volunteers, enabling them to directly see the impact of their support.
The team did not source Group Champions prior to the event. Instead, they identified and onboarded these leaders organically during the Challenge. These Champions, recognized for their natural enthusiasm, posted engaging content, supported other participants, and set a high-energy tone for the entire event.
From start to finish, Heart Foundation managed their 3,000 Squats in April Facebook Challenge entirely by themselves through a team of six staff and five volunteers.
Here’s what the team looked like:
- One Digital Lead – working as the Project Manager to oversee the Facebook Challenge campaign.
- Two Social Media Team Members – managing advertising, group content, comment moderation, and creatives for the promotion of the Facebook Challenge. Responsible for the initial set-up within GivePanel including messaging and custom fundraiser links.
- Three Community Fundraising Team Members – one lead, one manager and one coordinator managing group participation and stewardship of fundraisers.
- Five Volunteers – responsible for the packing and sending of the Facebook Challenge incentives.
The GivePanel difference
Meeting supporters where they are
Heart Foundation joined GivePanel in 2021 in the wake of activating their Facebook Fundraising Tools. The charity felt that they needed a clear and understandable way to view their Facebook fundraising data across their teams and have a platform that allowed them to all interact with and manage the same campaign.
Additionally, the team also needed a method of stewarding their supporters and ensuring they could connect with their fundraisers throughout their journey with the charity. Here’s what Jesse had to say about what he found GivePanel useful for with Facebook fundraising and in the running of 3000 Squats in April:
“It’s hard to sell that vision (of Facebook fundraising). I think as soon as we got GivePanel, everyone was like, “This is awesome, I can see everything that’s happening.” And that’s when, as an organization, everyone started to get truly behind it because they could see what was happening in the background, it was really visual for them. So I think that solved a lot of not just platform and implementation problems, but behavioral problems (by) taking people through that journey. It’s tools like GivePanel that enable us to tell that story more effectively, and make better decisions as an organization.”
The results
The Challenge in numbers
1,910
Registrations
630
Active Fundraisers
AU$12.70
Cost per Active Fundraiser
AU$190.28
Average Raised
AU$119,879
Total Raised
Final thoughts
Top tips for JustGiving success
In a short space of time, Brain Tumour Research had significant success. Building on its initial JustGiving results, the organization has now made the integration a core part of its overall social-first fundraising strategy.
For nonprofits looking to do the same, Michelle’s advice is to:
- Use GivePanel’s JustGiving integration to offer your supporters what they need and avoid an over-reliance on Meta.
- Examine your supporter journey and go through it to test how frictionless it is. As she says, “We just want to make it as easy and frictionless and enjoyable for them to raise money as possible.”
- Check what resources you have internally to run a Facebook Challenge, and seek partnerships, like GivePanel, to fill in the gaps.
Other case studies
New to Facebook fundraising, but keen to increase their fundraising revenue, Dementia Australia ran their first ever Facebook Challenge in 2023 of 100 Crunches in June.
Irish Heart Foundation launched their first December Facebook Challenge in 2022, with the idea of tapping into the popularity of cold water swimming in Ireland.
LauraLynn saw success with a 2021 280,000 Steps in February and looked to repeat the same results a year on.