Austin Pets Alive! | Shelter Pet Social Fundraising Guide

Jun 01, 2022

Thank you for joining us to save shelter pets this summer! By creating a fundraising page in partnership with Austin Pets Alive!, you will help to save the lives of vulnerable animals. Engaging with your friends, family, and social networks through sharing a Classy and/or Facebook fundraiser is a great way to connect people with a mission you care about, tell them about your shelter pet, why you adopted from, volunteer for, donate to, or support APA!, and why they should help us to save more animal lives.

Best of all, it’s easy to do. Creating your fundraising page takes just minutes. Sharing your page with your community and encouraging folks to donate is quick and effective (more on that later!). As you raise funds and engage with your community, you’ll also get insider tips and incentives to keep your momentum going!

Ready to get started? Here is a guide to setting up your fundraiser, along with a Frequently Asked Questions section to help you launch your page!

Creating a Fundraising Page on Classy

1. Visit APA!’s Classy page and click “Become a Fundraiser”

2. Decide if you want to create an individual fundraiser or join or create a team. Next, you’ll create your free account, or log in to an existing account if you have used Classy before.

3. To create an individual fundraising page:

   1. Click “As an individual.” Set a fundraising goal and an end date for your fundraiser at least 3 weeks from now.

TIP: Think about an ambitious but realistic goal – fundraising pages often raise about $350, which is a great target! Your supporters want to see you succeed and achieve milestones – you can always raise your goal!

1. Once you have created your account, click “Manage” to customize your page and tell your community why you’re fundraising for Austin Pets Alive! You can share a story of how you adopted a shelter pet, why you donate personally to APA!, or highlight your volunteer contributions. You can also add a photo of yourself or your pet!

2. Share your fundraiser with friends, family, and your broader network through email and social media! Look for this icon on your Classy page to get social!

1. To create a team fundraising page:

   1. Click “Create a team.” Set a fundraising goal and name your team.

   2. Create your individual fundraising page that will be linked to the team fundraiser

   3. Invite others to join your team or donate to your fundraising page by sharing via email or on social media!

2. To join an existing team fundraising page:

   1. Click “Join a team” and search for the team you want to join by typing in the search bar or scrolling through the list of teams.

   2. Select the team, create your fundraising page, and share it via email or social media to get folks to join you!

Creating a Fundraiser on Facebook

1. Visit APA!’s Facebook page Fundraisers

2. Click “Raise Money”

3. Set a fundraising goal and an end date at least three weeks in the future. This gives your network time to donate and hear more from you about Austin Pets Alive!

4. Add your story of how you adopted a shelter pet, why you donate personally to APA!, or highlight your volunteer contributions. You can also add a photo of yourself or your pet!
   Also, be sure to say somewhere that you’re fundraising for Shelter Pet Social so your dollars are counted toward this campaign’s goal and prizes.

5. Click the “Create” button

6. Share your fundraiser with your Facebook friends by creating a post or sending it directly via Messenger

TIP: Sharing broadly on Facebook is a great way to connect people you may not even know are animal lovers with our mission! We recommend sharing with everyone on your Friends list!

Frequently Asked Questions

When should I create my fundraiser and share it with my community?

Now! We’re officially kicking off this social fundraising campaign on Friday, May 20 but you can start building your page and sharing with your supporters right away.

The longer your page is active the more opportunities folks have to donate and engage with your passion for saving animal lives. Sharing your fundraiser regularly throughout the campaign is the best way to make sure everyone has a chance to participate!

Which type of fundraising page should I create? Can I create both a Classy page and Facebook fundraiser?

You can absolutely create both types of fundraisers! In fact, it’s a great way to customize your outreach to friends and family via email with a link to your Classy page and connect more broadly with your network via Facebook.

If you only want to create one page, think about who you want to ask to engage with APA!’s mission and what sort of support you may want or need for your fundraiser. Classy is great for more personalized outreach and you’ll receive encouragement from our team along with tips and tricks for making your page a success! Facebook is easy to send to lots of people but unfortunately, we can’t offer the same sort of support.

How can I make sure my fundraiser is a success?

The most important thing you can do to make sure your fundraiser is successful is to share why you care about Austin Pets Alive! and the vulnerable animals that we serve. The second most important thing you can do is share your page often with a broad audience. If you do these things, you’ll likely see success! Here are a few more tips:

• Email your fundraiser to your close friends and family first – these are the folks who are most likely to support your efforts!

• Include the link to your fundraising page whenever you share or post about it

• Specifically, ask for a donation, and consider making one yourself

• Customize your page! Share why you care about vulnerable shelter pets or APA!, a story about your adopted animal, or other reasons why folks should join you in supporting APA!

• Share updates and ask for folks to donate regularly. As you get your first donation, hit milestones along the way, and eventually reach your fundraising goal, share these successes with your community!

• Thank your supporters! This can be as simple as commenting on Facebook but makes a big difference.

Where can I get graphics to dress up my page?

Visit our Shelter Pet Social Fundraiser Resources for graphics that you can use to customize your page. We also highly recommend using photos of your pets to help folks engage with your page!

What if I have other questions or need support?

Reach out to us at [email protected]. We’re happy to help if you need assistance setting-up your page or if you have any questions along the way.

Thank you again for starting your fundraiser for Austin Pets Alive! Your support enables us to save more than 10,000 animal lives each year and share our lifesaving best practices across the country.