A CrowdRaiser is GiveNow's peer-to-peer fundraising tool. It allows your supporters to create their own personalised fundraising pages to raise money on behalf of your organisation. This article explains how CrowdRaisers work, what you can configure in OrgHQ, and how to make the most of this feature.
How does a CrowdRaiser work?
When CrowdRaisers are enabled for a cause, supporters can create their own fundraising pages linked to that cause. They personalise their page with a title, description, images, and a fundraising goal, then share it with their networks to collect donations.
Supporters can fundraise as individuals or as part of a team. CrowdRaiser pages are often created for special occasions like birthdays, weddings, fun runs, or community challenges — any activity where someone wants to rally their network around your cause.
All donations made through a CrowdRaiser page are processed through GiveNow and included in your organisation's regular remittance. For a step-by-step guide on how supporters set up their pages, see How do I create a CrowdRaiser to fundraise for an organisation?
Setting up CrowdRaisers for your cause
CrowdRaisers are enabled by default for all causes. In OrgHQ, you can configure several settings to control how CrowdRaisers work for each cause.
To access these settings, log in to OrgHQ and go to Manage causes, located under Causes & donations in the left-hand menu. Select Edit for your cause, then go to the Settings tab and locate the CrowdRaiser section.
From here, you can:
- Enable or disable CrowdRaisers: Turn the CrowdRaiser option on or off for a specific cause. See How do I enable/disable the CrowdRaiser option for our cause?
- Require approval before pages go live: By default, CrowdRaiser pages go live as soon as the supporter verifies their email address. You can change this so that your organisation reviews and approves each page first. See Can organisations review a CrowdRaiser page for approval before it goes live?
- Customise default page text: Provide pre-written text that appears when supporters create a CrowdRaiser page for your cause. This helps ensure consistent messaging and makes it easier for supporters to get started. See How do I create customised default text for our CrowdRaisers?
- Let donors cover the platform fee: If this option is enabled for your cause, donors who give through a CrowdRaiser page can choose to cover the platform fee on their donation. See How do I turn on the option for our donors to cover the platform fee?
Managing CrowdRaisers in OrgHQ
Once supporters start creating CrowdRaiser pages for your cause, you can manage them through OrgHQ using the CrowdRaiser section in the left-hand menu.
- View your CrowdRaisers: See an overview of all supporters who are fundraising for your organisation, and download a spreadsheet of CrowdRaiser activity. See How do I see who is a CrowdRaiser for our organisation?
- View CrowdRaiser donations: See all donations made through CrowdRaiser pages and download donation data. See How do I see who has donated via a CrowdRaiser?
- Stop a CrowdRaiser: If needed, you can stop a specific supporter from fundraising for your cause. See How do I stop a specific CrowdRaiser from fundraising for our cause?
- Embed a leaderboard: Display a CrowdRaiser leaderboard on your website to showcase top fundraisers. This feature is available on the Pro plan. See How do I embed the CrowdRaiser Leaderboard on our website?
Tips for running a successful CrowdRaiser campaign
CrowdRaisers work best when your organisation actively encourages and supports your fundraisers. Here are some ways to set your campaign up for success.
Think about who to ask. Start with people who already have a connection to your organisation. Volunteers, existing donors, staff, and board members are often your most effective CrowdRaisers because they already understand and care about your work. Local businesses and community groups can also be great partners — they may be willing to put forward a team for a fun run, bike ride, or other challenge.
Prepare a toolkit for your supporters. Make it easy for your CrowdRaisers to tell your story by providing content they can use on their pages. Consider preparing a short paragraph explaining how funds will be used, a selection of images they can use as their cover photo, and a link to a video that shows the impact of your work. You can also use the customised default text feature to pre-populate CrowdRaiser pages with your preferred messaging.
Reach out personally. A direct email asking someone to create a CrowdRaiser page is more effective than a general callout. Let them know how simple the process is, explain the specific goal you are working towards, and include a link to your cause page so they can get started straight away.
Note: For more information about the difference between a cause and a CrowdRaiser, see What is the difference between a cause and a CrowdRaiser?