Sharing your crowdfunding campaign on Instagram

by Zane Groenewald | Jan 21, 2021 | Featured

According to BusinessTech, over 3.8 million South Africans use Instagram. 

With over 1 Billion users globally, Instagram allows you to reach a wide audience of supporters through sharing beautiful photos, engaging videos and trending hashtags.

In this guide, we will discuss the power of sharing your crowdfunding campaign on Instagram and share practical tips you can use to promote your cause.

Why use Instagram to share your crowdfunding campaign?

• Instagram boasts 58 times more engagement per follower than Facebook, According to ecommerceCEO
• 60% of Instagram users use the platform once a day, according to Sprout Social

Before posting on Instagram, consider these key factors:

Put your crowdfunding campaign link In your bio

Whether you are creating posts, stories or IGTV videos to promote your campaign, it’s important to give your followers a call to action to donate to your campaign.

How to post a link in your Instagram Bio

When posting on Instagram, direct your audience to click on the link in your bio for more information and to make a donation!

When to post on Instagram

According to Hubspot, the best time to post on Instagram is between 2pm-3pm. There is also an increase in engagements on Thursdays 5am, 11am and between 3pm-4pm. 

Quintly also states that interactions are 22.29% higher on Saturday and Sunday.

Please note: You can post your campaign on any day, see what works the best for you! We recommend sharing your campaign at least 2/3 times a week across your social media platforms for the best possible result.

Visual content 

Photos and videos are the language on Instagram, you will need to upload visual content in order to create a post with a caption.

Photo

Instagram images get on average, 23% more engagement than Facebook images, according to Business of Apps.

Post hi-quality photos that tell your crowdfunding story. Avoid shocking or graphic content, as this might discourage Instagram users engaging with your content. 

Video

Video posts get up to 38% more engagements than image posts, according to Mention.

Post short, informative videos on your Instagram timeline to introduce the aim and importance of your crowdfunding campaign and direct users to your campaign link in your bio. 

For videos longer than 60 seconds, you will need to upload your video to IGTV (more information below)

Writing your Instagram post caption

Keep your message short and specific

While you have more than 2000 characters at your disposal when writing your post caption, Sprout Social, suggests 138-150 characters will get you the most engagement (shares, likes, comments)

If you want to ensure that your full caption is visible and is not cut off by the “see more” tab, keep your post within 125 characters.

What information should your post include?

To introduce your crowdfunding campaign, make sure you answer the following questions in your post.

1. Who are you raising funds for? (name, age, location)
2. Why are they in need of funds? (what has lead you to crowdfunding?)
3. What will funds raised be used for? (in a tangible way mention how funds will be used, for example “We are raising funds to purchase 100 pairs of shoes for 50 children”
4. Where can people make a donation? (Direct your audience to click on the link in your bio to make a donation to support your cause)

Take a look at this example below:https://www.instagram.com/p/B_MV0BgJhBk/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=12&wp=500&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.backabuddy.co.za&rp=%2Fnews%2Fsharing-your-crowdfunding-campaign-on-instagram%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A14821.220000041649%2C%22ls%22%3A9928.710000007413%2C%22le%22%3A9972.820000024512%7D

#Hashtags

Make use of hashtags to make your post more discoverable – this will allow you to reach more people who are interested in your topic.

Instagram allows users to post 30 hashtags in a single caption, to avoid your post looking like spam, it’s recommended to use no more than 10 relevant hashtags in your post.

Even including one hashtag in your post can increase your engagement by 12.6% according to PR Daily.

Creating a hashtag

To Create a hashtag, simply type # and your keyword in your post caption.

Popular hashtags to use when sharing your crowdfunding campaign

#crowdfunding #backabuddy #crowdfundingcampaign #fundraising #support #donate #crowdfund #funding #charity #crowdfundingproject #payitforward #donation. 

Include specific/trending hashtags that relate to your cause:

• Your need: #cancertreatment #universityfees #rugbytour #masksformedics
• Location: #capetown #southafrica #mzansi #sa
• Events: #comrades #marathon #ironman #midmarmile #birthday
• Social issues: #covid19 #lockdown #blacklivesmatter #womensupportingwomen #animalrights
• Organisations: #backabuddy #smilefoundation #spca #giftofthegivers
• Institutions: #UCT #witkoppenclinic #unisa 
• Awareness days: #mandeladay #givingtuesday #christmas #worldclubfootday

Mention Instagram users in your post

When creating a post, Instagram allows users to mention/tag other users and influencers, their location, organisations and businesses. This will notify other users to view and interact with your post. 

Location is key

By tagging your area location in your Instagram post can increase your engagement by 79% according to PR Daily. 

Research also shows that crowdfunding campaigns are typically supported locally – be sure to let Instagram users know where you are from!

Not sure what to say? Use this template:

We have created a crowdfunding campaign on @backabuddy to raise funds [to/for]. Funds raised will allow us to [positive impact]. Click on the link in my bio to make a donation.  #crowdfunding #backabuddy #donations #fundraising #southafrica 

Include:

• Other relevant/trending hashtags
• Tag your location
• Tag Instagram users/organizations that relate to your cause

Post multiple images/videos

By creating a carousel on Instagram, you can post up to 10 images to tell your crowdfunding story and increase engagement.

Make use of these Facebook tools to promote your crowdfunding campaign

Direct Message

Make use of Instagram’s direct message option to reach out to close friends and family, influencers and organisations who might be interested in supporting your cause.

With Instagram Direct, you can send messages, photos and videos to one or more people. Messages won’t appear in Feed, search or your profile.

Instagram Stories

Posting stories is a great way to create awareness about your campaign, share updates and ensure your campaign maintains momentum.

Instagram stories are typically about 15 seconds long and stay on your profile for only 24 hours. 

Why post Instagram stories to share your crowdfunding campaign?

• According to The Mobile Media Lab, Instagram stories receive 2-3  times more engagement than regular posts.
• According to Social Media Today Instagram stories boast over 300 million active daily users.

Before posting a story on Instagram, consider these key factors:

• Place your text toward the center and bottom of the screen and keep your message short and clear.
• Mention other Instagram users and organizations in your story, to allow your story to be re-posted.
• Use 1 or 2 relevant Hashtags on your Instagram story to increase your visibility.
• Save your story to your highlight reel, so your campaign updates can be viewed longer than 24 hours.

Share your Instagram story to Facebook

Add your story to your highlights

IGTV

With the introduction of IGTV, Instagram users can post 10 minute long videos and increase their visibility by appearing on the “Explore” tab on the platform.

Need advice for putting together your video? Read Our Guide.

GO Live on Instagram

Instagram now allows users to post 60 minute live videos. Just like Facebook live, your followers will be notified when you’re live and will be able to interact with you in real-time.

Sharing live videos is a great way to introduce your campaign, share campaign updates and milestones, conduct short interviews and provide additional information about your project.

We hope you enjoyed our tips for sharing your crowdfunding campaign on Instagram!

While Instagram is a great tool to use to reach a wider audience, it should not be used in isolation.

Take a look at our other social media guidelines below

• WhatsApp
• Facebook

Cheetah conservation centre crowdfunds for support

by Zane Groenewald | Jan 21, 2021 | Featured

The Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre is a captive breeding facility for South African cheetahs and other animals that is situated in the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountain range in the North West Province of South Africa.

The centre prides itself on its contribution to the conservation and survival of the cheetah species through meticulous breeding (ensuring genetic diversity) and the ability to release captive born cheetahs as and when suitable space becomes available. 

The facility has also played an important role in the academic arena, thus far 80 research publications have been written and undertaken through the organisation.

Veterinary support

The Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre currently has over 80 Cheetah’s in their care who constantly need vaccinations and health checks.

As a non-profit organisation that receives no government funding, the centre relies heavily on sponsorship, donations and income generated from tours and the adoption programme, to subsidise their various conservation projects.

With the implementation of the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the organisation has been deeply affected financially as they have been unable to fundraise and operate at full capacity.

To secure funds to cover their outstanding vet bills that have accumulated to over R300 000 over the last 3 years, the organisation has launched a crowdfunding campaign on BackaBuddy to appeal to animal lovers for support.

With generous support, almost R100 000 has been raised towards their fundraising target with contributions from 45 donors from across the globe, to settle their account at the Old Chapel Veterinary Clinic.

Kya and Roxanne are two of the Cheetahs at the centre that have contributed to the vet bill after suffering health setbacks.

• Kya, is an 8-year-old, female Cheetah who at the end of 2017 injured her left hind leg and fractured her Calcaneus which resulted in her Achilles Tendon becoming very loose.  At the clinic, X-rays were taken and Kya had to undergo surgery to insert screws and pins in her legs.  Unfortunately the skin did not grow over and close her open wound, so a second surgery was needed, as well as vet care for nearly 6 months. Kya is still on the road to recovery.

• Roxanne, is a 2-year-old Female Cheetah, who was only 7 months old when she climbed a tree and jumped out, putting all her weight onto her right front leg resulting in a Distel Humerus fracture. She was rushed to the veterinary Clinic, for complicated 3 hour surgery that thankfully repaired her fracture. As her elbow had to be fused, she is unable to bend it, but she has made a full recovery from her ordeal.

Make a donation to support The Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre

https://www.backabuddy.co.za/veterinary-animal-care-account

Donate directly

Donate via Snapscan

Connect with The Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre

Established in 1971 by Ann and originally known as the De Wildt Cheetah Research Centre, the name was changed in 2010, to the Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre as a tribute to the woman who has devoted her life to the survival of cheetahs and other rare and endangered species.

Two hour guided tours are offered daily, and on certain mornings guests have the option to book a cheetah run and guided tour package. The cheetah run offers an opportunity to witness a breathtaking high speed cheetah chase. Tours are led by a knowledgeable guide and visitors to the Centre will see a variety of animals including cheetah, King Cheetah, African wild dog, caracal and vultures amongst others. 

Contact The Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre.