How To Set Up a GoFundMe Campaign

It has become a familiar sight online. Someone posts a campaign on a crowdfunding website such as GoFundMe.com asking for small donations to raise money for a family member’s funeral…a community playground…or a life-saving surgery for their dog. Last year, more than $17 billion was raised through online crowdfunding in North America.

But not all campaigns are successful. With so much competition for donors, only 22% of campaigns met their monetary goals. Of those successful campaigns, the average amount raised per year was just under $29,000. But consider all campaigns, including the unsuccessful ones, and the number is dramatically lower: $824.

Here’s how to make sure your own crowdfunding campaign succeeds…

Set up a Gofundme.com account. It’s the largest and easiest site to use for personal campaigns. Signup is free, and the platform charges a fee of 2.9% plus $0.30 for each donation. The fee is automatically deducted before the money is wired to your bank account. Even if you don’t reach your fundraising goal, you keep all the donations. Alternative crowdfunding sites to consider: Fundly.com…Givebutter.com.

Build support before you launch your campaign. Successful crowdfunding is about how effectively you can monetize your social network. E-mail your personal network of family, friends and community. Ask them to donate and share the web link to your campaign with their own networks. If you aren’t a whiz at social media, seek out a younger person who can help you gain a presence on social-media platforms such as various Facebook groups, Instagram, YouTube and X (formerly Twitter).

Write a catchy title for your GoFundMe page. Use an action word—for example, “help”… “support”…“fund”…“grow”—plus the person’s name or a creative pun. Examples of titles: “Help My Mom Take Her Dream Trip”…“Fund Life-Saving Surgery for Jeffrey”…“Mission Impawsible: Save Our Local Pet Clinic.”

Tell a humble and compelling story. GoFundMe hosts about two million campaigns a year. To draw people in, you need to make them feel connected to your campaign. Tell them what events prompted you to start your campaign, and what the consequences are if you don’t reach your goal. Helpful: Post high-quality photos and/or a short video talking directly to your audience.

Create a sense of urgency. Momentum is everything in crowdfunding. Set a deadline for your fundraising goal—campaigns typically last 30 days—and make it clear to donors why the deadline is so important. Campaigns that raise at least 30% of their target within the first week are far more likely to reach their goals. Reasons: When people see other donations mounting, they are motivated to jump on board and contribute. Crowdfunding campaigns follow a classic U-shaped pattern—donations peak in the first few days…there is a lull in the middle of the campaign…then donations perk back up in the last few days.

Set a reasonable and attainable financial goal. To inspire people to action, they need not just to empathize with you but also to feel their donation can make a tangible difference. The average pledge per giver for a GoFundMe campaign is $50, so if you ask for a total of $50,000 to eliminate your medical debt, donors may feel discouraged and wonder why to contribute at all. Instead, it may be more effective to set a goal of $7,500 to pay off your most overdue medical debts.

Provide weekly updates with new content. Show followers their impact by making them aware of your progress and milestones (“We’re halfway there! Please share the latest video I posted!”). Thank your donors profusely and offer to make their names public—many contributors enjoy that public affirmation. Have a thick skin—don’t take it personally if specific friends or family don’t contribute. Stay gracious and positive, and avoid getting drawn into online criticism.