How to fundraise on Twitter in 7 steps

By on

How to Fundraise on Twitter | Sassy in Sequins
By my rationale that doing something once and succeeding makes me an expert, I’m offering you my step-by-step brilliantly executed plan: How to Fundraise on Twitter


1. Pick a Worthy Cause

You can’t fundraise without a cause. Well, technically you could, if you’re a scam artist or just don’t want to work, but keep your honeymoon fundraising off Twitter. No one wants to fund your bike trip down a volcano. I’m talking legit 501(c)(3) organization fundraising for worthy causes. My cause was the MS Challenge Walk–a 50 mile, 3 day walk to raise money for the MS Society. 


2. Have an Epiphany

In my last post I mentioned that I met my goal for the MS Challenge Walk at the 11th hour. I was about $300 from my goal and was desperate to meet it by the time the walk started. Having already tapped into my family and friends for donations and realizing that neither group was going to pay me to stop begging, I had an epiphany. I could use another source: Twitter. 


3. Listen for the angels

You just had an epiphany–they should be singing.


4. Come up with a plan

I’ve seen the how the power of social media can shame people into giving strangers money for good causes (á la Ice Bucket Challenge) and we all know that humans are naturally curious, so I put the two together in my goofy awkward way to solicit the remaining donations from Twitter. 
how to fundraise on instagram

I had asked for donations on Twitter previously in my fundraising efforts, but this time was different. I needed something that would make people want to donate to a stranger. I had to be creative! So I tapped into curiosity and offered the unknown “weird things” as a reward for a donation.

The result? My Twitter followers, likely thinking that they would receive some naked selfie, obliged.

*Warning: Unfiltered selfies ahead*

5. Execute the plan

I had one person re-tweet my request for donations and within minutes the first donation came rolling in. It was from my friend Josh and I set myself up to do my first “weird” thing to thank him. Due to both self respect and lack of resources in a hotel room, I did the first second thing that came to mind–I dressed myself up like a puppy!

Probably not the best idea considering I subsequently had to wipe my eyeliner-drawn nose and whiskers off of my face but Puppy Emily was well received. Josh and I exchanged some “terRUFFic”puns and I was one step closer to my goal. Woohoo!

6. Keep it up

Donations from Twitter continued to come in little by little. Having used the most adorable idea first, I resorted to doing yoga poses and cramming myself into small spaces wearing the MS Buff that we had gotten as swag. 
My creativity was constrained by the fact that I was in a hotel room with my teammates who were in their pajamas wanting to go to bed before our early morning wakeup for the Walk the next day. So I stuck to doing strange things around the hotel room for the rest of the generous donations. 
In less than an hour I had met my fundraising goal, thanks to my awesome followers and a Twitter stranger who donated the remaining $157 to get me there. 

7. Say thank you

While my followers didn’t receive the topless pictures of me riding a donkey they had likely envisioned, their curiosity and philanthropy helped me exceed my fundraising expectations by the next morning. I had successfully met and exceeded by fundraising goal for the MS Challenge Walk thanks to the help of curious strangers.
And that’s my guide for fundraising on Twitter!

Freedom: An Unplugged Weekend

By on

Last weekend I unplugged. Albeit not as unplugged as I was last year in “Not Tahoe” but I spent the weekend away from email, social media, and phone calls. Instead I surrounded myself with friends and nature (and maybe some adult beverages).  

I accepted an invitation from my friend to join her and her fiancé at his family’s cottage in Freedom, New Hampshire. For those of you not in the know, Freedom is a tiny town on Ossipee Lake, situated next to a town called Die. Ok, the last part isn’t true but it should be based on New Hampshire’s state motto.  It really is a lakeside town in New Hampshire.
I decided the night before leaving for New Hampshire to go unplugged. A foreign concept for me, a woman who documents most of her day (and meals) on Twitter and Instagram. I fell asleep Friday night excited for a weekend of freedom, unbeknownst to me that while breaking ties with technology, I would literally find myself in Freedom.
My last tweet was posted on Saturday morning and I officially left technology behind.  Well, for the most part. I used my phone for pictures and a few texts (Jewish moms get worried) but my emails went unanswered,  Twitter went unread, and Instagram remained still.
What I found was more than I had bargained for. Originally worried that I would be bored, I brought magazines and freaked out upon realizing that I had forgotten a book. How would I spend an entire weekend entertaining myself?!
For starters, friends. In a time when much of my interaction with my best friends is through email, it was refreshing to catch up in person. In our busy daily lives, we are provided a cursory overview on the lives of others.  Focusing on the “now”and the “where” and the “what” in emails–facts that provide concise information that we’re seeking. 
Without distractions, we can explore the “why” and the “how”–the things that really matter to us and our friends. A friend’s wedding planning, my completely rational fear of lake monsters, our somewhat dysfunctional families, and other things that can’t be broken down into 140 characters.

It was the perfect kind of weekend. Reconnecting by disconnecting and in it, finding Freedom.