Overview

Each yearStudent Action with Farmworkers raises funds from individuals to bring new donors into the SAF fold,increase donations from current donors, and most importantlyraise awareness of farmworker issues and SAF’s work! Fundraising also helps deepen your own commitment to SAF’s work and farmworker justice. SAF interns, fellows, student organizers, alumni, and board members raise over $40,000 from hundreds of individuals from all over the country as a part of our annual grassroots fundraising efforts. SAF uses money raised from individuals to conduct outreach to students and farmworkers; provide training, stipends, and scholarships for interns, fellows, students organizers, and youth; share documentaries and presentations with the general public, and provide a living wage and full benefits to our staff!

Four easy steps to raise money the grassroots way

  1. Develop a plan:

•Think about how you will inform individuals about this effort. We suggest email, social media, and in-person calls or meetings.

•Make a list of people to ask: friends, family, colleagues, professors, administrators, peers, and neighbors. It can also include groups, such as campus clubs, service groups, local businesses, religious congregations, and civic clubs. Because the majority of people you ask may not be able to give, you will need to brainstorm 2-3 times the number of individuals that you need togive.

•Develop a goal for how much money you hope to raise. In our previous campaigns, the average gift was $50, with some individuals giving $10 and others donating $1,000. Organizations and clubs tend to give $100 - $500, while many individuals will give less.

•Develop a giving chart so you know how much to ask each person for. Here is an example chart of how many people you need to give what amount based on a goal of $1k:

  • 1 donor to give $250
  • 3 donors to give $100 each
  • 5 donors to give $50 each
  • 8 donors to give $25 each

•Develop a timeline to hold your campaign. We suggest running your campaign intensely for 1 week, but understand that some of you will be more comfortable stretching this out a bit. Interns, fellows & student organizers must raise their funds by their orientation start date.

  1. Create a personalized fundraising web page using SAF’s template and include the link to the page in all your correspondence. Check out the online guide for details.
  1. Follow-up with your contacts daily for one week or 2-3 times/week if your campaign is multiple weeks. Let them know how the campaign is going and how much time is left to make a donation. Keep it brief. Remind them of why it is important to donate to SAF.
  1. Send personalized thank-you letters or emails to folks who donate. Your donors will get an email confirmation and thank-you from SAF, and we can provide you with notecards that you can use to write a personal thank you to every donor.
    Five Keys to a Successful Campaign:
  1. Be personal

On your online page and in follow-up emails, share personal stories about yourself, your connection to SAF, and your interest in farmworkers, food justice, immigration, the labor movement, youth empowerment, and other issues related to SAF’s work. It has to be about YOU because your friends will give to SAF because YOU believe in our work.

  1. Create a sense of urgency

Individuals respond best when they have a deadline. So create one. We suggest you select one week in which you will run your campaign. Share with folks the timeframe to give, remind them of the deadline, and announce the beginning and end of the campaign. You must share the results of your campaign each day so that folks can support you to meet your goal.

  1. Follow-up individually
  • Although most of your correspondence will be to groups and through email or social media, you can increase your chances of meeting your goal if you communicate individually with folks by sending personal emails or instant messages, making follow-up calls, or meeting with individuals in person to share with them about SAF and how they can give.
  • Before you do individual follow-up, prepare yourself by making sure you know how much to ask that individual for. Practice your pitch and be sure to include your personal story and why farmworkers and SAF’s work are important to you. Most organizations, campus clubs, and religious groups will be able to give $100-$500, while most individuals will give $50-$200 each. Don’t ask for too little; it is better to ask for a little more than what you think someone can donate than to ask for less than they are willing to give.
  • Prepare to receive some “no’s”. Some people will not be able to give due to timing of your ask, a lack of resources, personal emergencies, being offline due to travel, etc. Don’t take it personally; you are giving folks an opportunity to be a part of SAF’s work and they need to determine for themselves if they can contribute in this way.
  1. Make sure donors have the info they need

Make sure your donors know how to give and can access you or SAF staff if they have a problem making their donation. Individuals have two ways to donate:

  • Online by clicking on the “Donate” button on your individual fundraising page or by copying and pasting the URL to your campaign page. If your “Donate” button or campaign URL are not working, folks can go to and click on “Donate to SAF” at the bottom of the page. They should designate that the gift is for you, so that it will show up on the thermometer on your individual page.
  • Writing a check made out to Student Action with Farmworkers or SAF and mailed to 1317 W. Pettigrew St., Durham, NC 27705. Any checks that we receive for you will show up on your thermometer, but of course will take a little time. Just let your donors know to write your name in the memo section so the donation can be attributed to you.

All contributions made to SAF are tax-deductible (as long as no goods or services are given in return). Our federal taxpayer identification number issued by the Internal Revenue Service is 56-1789014.Donations have to be made directly to SAF in order to be tax-deductible, so make sure folks write checks to SAF and not to you!

  1. Make a gift yourself

Many donors want to know if the person asking them for a gift contributes to the same organization themselves. So the first donation should be your own—it can be any amount that is significant to you!

Creating Your Online Page

How to Create Your Page

1. Log-in using this link:

Log-in: firstnamelastname2013

Password: safista

  1. Manage your campaign:
  • Once you’re logged in, scroll down to the name of your campaign and click the “Manage Page” link on the far right side. This is the home page for your campaign where you can check the progress of your fundraising efforts and the campaign as a whole, create content and share your page, and see individual donations and comments.
  1. Design your fundraising page:
  • Click the Page Content tab
  • Set your fundraising goal to the amount you’ve decided on.
  • Select a photo for the header of the page.Make sure your image is not a large file or it will have trouble showing up on your page right away.Around 200 pixels wide is a good size for photos.
  • Enter your text into the “My Page Content” box. You can type directly in the box or cut and paste text. To cut and paste from another source, always use the “Paste from Word” or “Paste as Plain text” button.
  • Use the icons at the top of the box to customize your page. Scroll over each icon and pause to see its name come up. Use the icons to change the font size, color etc. Hyperlink to websites by clicking on the globe icon and pasting in the URL.
  • Upload photos in the body of your page by clicking on the image icon, click on upload, browse for the photo on your computer, and send it to the server. Change the photo dimensions to around 200 pixels wide.
  • Be sure to give people several chances to donate throughout your page! Use text like “Donate Now!” or “Give Now!” and use the link icon (the globe with a chain) to link to your donation page (the link is listed under the Share My Page tab).
  • Stop and save your page often while you’re working to avoid accidentally losing your work.
  • Go to the blue “View My Fundraising Page” tab on the top right to see what your webpage looks like out of edit mode. This will open another tab that you can refer to while you continue to edit your page.

4. Publicize your fundraising page:

  • Email the campaign page to your friends and family. Use the “Share My Page” tab to copy the link to send out in an email.
  • Paste the link on your Facebook, Twitter, and other social media pages. You can also use the social media iconsat the bottom to directly link to your page.
  • If you’re having a fundraising event you can open your fundraising page on a laptop and people can donate with their credit cards right there. Want more ideas? Ask us!

Check out these sample webpages to get started:

  • Sample fundraising page in English:
  • Sample fundraising page in Spanish:
  • Samplefundraising page from intern:
  • Sample fundraising page from alumni/board:

Sample Thank-you Note/Ejemplo de carta de agradecimiento

For every donation you receive, please send a hand-written thank you note. Thank you notes are crucial, because donors want to feel appreciated and are most likely to give in the future.

Por favor envía una carta de agradecimiento escrita a mano por cada donación que recibas. Las cartas de agradecimiento son sumamente importantes porque los donantes quieren saber que se les agradece su apoyo y es más probable que hagan una contribución en el futuro si reciben una carta.

April 21, 2013

Dear Ms. Sánchez,

As a member of Student Action with Farmworkers' Farmworker Awareness Campaign Team, I would like to thank you for your recent contribution of [enter donation amount]. SAF depends on donations from individuals to sponsor our work with migrant and seasonal farmworkers. SAF has 20 years of experience linking students and farmworkers to work together for social justice, and your gift will ensure that this important work continues into future.

If you would like more information about SAF, please call 919-660-3652 or visit SAF's web site at
.I am grateful for your support!

Sincerely,

Carlita Safista

P.S. Your gift to SAF is tax-deductible. SAF's federal tax Employer Identification Number is 56-1789014.

21 de abril de 2013

Estimada Sra. Sánchez,

Como miembro del equipo de recaudación de fondos para trabajadores agrícolas de la organización Estudiantes en Acción con Campesinos (SAF - Student Action with Farmworkers), quiero agradecerle por su contribución de [cantidad de la donación]. SAF depende de las donaciones del público para apoyar nuestro trabajo con trabajadores agrícolas migrantes y temporeros. SAF cuenta con 20 años de experiencia conectando a estudiantes y trabajadores agrícolas para trabajar juntos por la justicia social. Su donación permitirá que esta labor tan importante continúe en el futuro.

Si desea obtener más información sobre SAF, por favor llame al 919-660-3652 o visite la página web: ¡Le agradezco mucho su apoyo!

Atentmente,

Carlita Safista

P.D. Su donación a SAF es deducible de impuestos. El número Federal de Identificación del Empleador (EIN) de SAF es: 56-1789014