How We Raised $1 Million on Facebook
At DonorsChoose.org, we’re always hunting for new ways to get people to donate to classroom project requests.
Four years ago, we tried several Facebook tactics. We posted daily content, paid for Facebook ads, and added a “Like” button to every classroom project request. Despite our high hopes, these methods didn’t generate significant traffic or donations.
At that time, Facebook Connect, now called Open Graph, represented a new way for companies to connect with their audiences. Our CTO and head of product began testing different uses of Open Graph, and we saw early success.
Now, when teachers create an account on DonorsChoose.org, we ask them for permission to post to their Facebook wall at key times in the project lifecycle, such as when the teacher posts a new project, when a donation is made to their project, when they share photos (example below), and when their project is fully funded. Open Graph allows us to fundraise on behalf of teachers in an automated but personalized way.
We hear from teachers that they’ve received donations from unlikely sources: high school classmates they haven’t spoken to in years, ex-boyfriends and girlfriends, and acquaintances they’ve met just a couple times. This feature takes the pressure off teachers to ask their friends for money, but gets the word out to hundreds of thousands of potential donors. Cumulatively, these posts on teachers’ walls have driven $1.1 million in donations over the last two school years.
I’m sure you’ve heard before that social media is most effective when your users (rather than your team) are the ones drawing attention to your company. Open Graph can help you foster this dynamic at scale.|
