Technology constantly evolves, so staying on top of digital fundraising trends is a must—particularly for smaller, community-based organizations like schools, sports teams, churches, and booster clubs.
With limited resources, knowing when to invest in new software or digital fundraising methods is important. Fortunately, RaiseRight is here to help.
Below, we’re sharing the top digital fundraising industry trends and opportunities that can pay off for you big time in 2025.
1. Keep it mobile
No device has ever been as entwined with individual spending as smartphones—in fact, nearly 80% of all 2024 retail web traffic took place on them. So, regardless of what type of program or event you’re planning, keep mobile accessibility top of mind. What exactly does this mean?
You can gt started by ensuring your communications are mobile-enabled. This includes:
- Mobile optimization of your website(s) and payment portals
- Text notifications and reminders related to fundraising events, campaigns, and news
- QR codes linked to mobile donation pages or accounts
Next, lead with mobile-first fundraising opportunities, such as:
- Text-to-donate campaigns
- RaiseRight: Use the app to earn money on gift card purchases and online shopping
- Mobile payments and purchasing (i.e., mobile wallets, PayPal, Venmo) for things like tickets, donations, and general transactions
- Dedicated fundraising and crowdfunding apps
2. Integrate AI
If you guessed AI would be among the top fundraiser trends of 2025, you’re correct.
Artificial intelligence and its practical applications are evolving quickly, which can make decision-making around adoption a top priority. For fundraising in particular, it’s useful to break AI decisions into the categories of what connects and what doesn’t connect with your donors.
At a back-end level, you can leverage AI for:
- Routine tasks related to donation, database, and project management
- Data analytics to understand, target, and suggest messages for past and current donors
- Early drafts of marketing ideas and copy, sponsor pitches, and other text
- Research of potential sponsors and donors
At a public-facing level, there’s both opportunity and concern. Generative AI is becoming a go-to in drafting and editing correspondence, such as donor appeals and thank-you notes. It’s even been tested to autonomously run a fundraiser from start to finish.
However, recent surveys report that 31% of donors would be less likely to give to organizations that use AI, and 70% of donors with $200,000+ incomes would be discouraged from giving to a charity that leveraged AI in its appeals.
What does this mean for your organization?
It’s crucial to be thoughtful with your AI approach. Leverage tools that can increase efficiency with operational tasks but maintain human connection at the public-facing level. If you use AI to draft correspondence, ensure thorough human oversight to personalize the content and offset the generic AI voice.
3. Focus on storytelling
Storytelling has become a popular buzzword for marketing professionals across industries. Fortunately, nonprofits and community groups have a built-in advantage over for-profit entities in this area. After all, at the heart of every nonprofit and community organization is a mission around improvement and collaboration to support a worthy cause.
Ultimately, this means you can find and share real-life stories about the individuals your organization serves or promotes.
Wondering why storytelling is a critical digital trend? Compelling stories cut through the "look at me!" clutter of social media platforms and online footprints. On top of that, stories are remembered up to 22 times more than facts alone. This is because they emotionally translate the facts and data of annual reports and summaries.
"Storytelling can give your organization an incredible advantage," says Michelle Leung, Content Marketing Manager at RaiseRight. "When you tell a meaningful story, you’re not just asking for support—you’re giving your audience a reason to care deeply and take action."
So, in 2025, focus on storytelling in:
- Social media posts and campaigns
- Short-form video clips
- Direct fundraising appeals
- Sponsor pitches
4. Bridge online shopping with fundraising
The surge in ecommerce during the pandemic accelerated the shift away from brick-and-mortar shopping by about five years. Case in point: Over a third of the world’s population shopped online in 2024, spending a whopping $6.8 trillion.
This proves that connecting online shopping to fundraising is more important than ever.
"Fundraising works best when it integrates naturally into people’s lives," says Billy Lawler, Senior Product Marketing Manager at RaiseRight. "Online shopping is already a part of everyday routines, making it an ideal strategy to drive consistent earnings for organizations."
When supporters initiate an online shopping experience from RaiseRight, their purchase automatically generates a percentage of the sale as earnings that stream directly back to the organization. Smaller organizations that depend on members to fund budget needs can particularly profit from RaiseRight’s online shopping fundraising for several reasons:
- There’s no cost to the user, as the earnings come directly from the brand
- It’s simple and easy to implement
- The program can remain in place year-round, supporting ongoing earnings
- It blends well with other fundraising methods that require members’ time or money
RaiseRight’s online shopping experience can also be combined with physical and eGift card purchases. This means shopping through our links and using a gift card from the same brand to complete the purchase will result in combined extra earnings.
5. Prepare for charitable tax law change
The Tax Cut and Jobs Act (TCJA), which significantly increased the standard deduction, expires at the end of 2025. Experts believe that the fallout of the TCJA has cost charities $16 billion annually since 2018 by effectively wiping out the itemized charitable tax deduction for more than 30 million U.S. taxpayers.
Whether the TCJA is extended or not, there is bipartisan support for a proposed charitable deduction in addition to the standard deduction.
This would provide the opportunity for all taxpayers to deduct donations, which is particularly important since small gifts have significantly fallen in recent years, including a 10.4% year-over-year drop in early 2024 of donors giving $100 or less.
What does this mean for your organization?
Keep an eye on tax legislation that impacts charitable deductions in the months ahead , and be prepared to respond quickly. If it passes, reach out to your supporters to let them know they can deduct a gift and offer multiple ways to make immediate donations (via text, app, web page, etc.).
6. Host remote events
You may already be using video conferencing to increase attendance at board meetings, but what about using it for fundraising?
Remote events can appeal to those who don’t typically attend traditional fundraisers. They’re also popular during seasons when folks are reluctant to venture out of their homes.
When it comes to remote fundraising events, consider the following:
- Craft tutorials, like a Paint and Sip evening with materials pre-mailed to attendees
- Trivia, bingo, or other types of game night fundraisers that utilize a dynamic game host
- Live auction fundraisers with electronic bidding
- Virtual talent shows
Since geography doesn’t impact these events, encourage supporters to invite far-off friends and family. You can also market events with widespread appeal to a larger audience by targeting interests rather than community connections.
7. Offer independent fundraising options
Convenience is king for overscheduled families, so offering participation on your supporters’ schedules is a rising trend. In 2025, consider opportunities that give supporters several weeks or months to engage or complete a mission, such as:
- Treasure hunt—You can design a silly, detailed, or complex hunt, making it custom to your local community and landscape. All promotions, details, updates, and recognition can also be handled digitally.
- Geocaching—Like a treasure hunt, geocaching takes place globally but only connects to the organization digitally. Teams or individuals snap a photo of a QR code or message at each cache to prove their success.
- DIY challenges—Provide supporters with the opportunity and tools to create mini-campaigns powered by their social media and offline networks. This could include requesting donations instead of birthday gifts, collecting pledges for a fitness challenge, or simply appealing for donations.
- Online auction—Plan an auction with a wide bidding window so that people can bid at their leisure. Include donated services, behind-the-scenes tours, singing telegrams, and anything you can secure from your sponsors and members.
Partner with a leader in digital fundraising
Regardless of the type of organization you run, it’s critical to always have evergreen and easily accessible digital giving options for your supporters. RaiseRight can help throughout the year and enable supporters to earn funds for your organization without adding to their schedules or spending.
RaiseRight’s easy-to-use mobile app allows users to quickly buy and refill eGift cards that they can spend on goods and services already in their budget. Once enrolled, they can use gift cards to pay for gas, groceries, food delivery, streaming services, and more from hundreds of brands that pay up to 20% in earnings, including major retailers like Walmart, Target, Sam's Club, and Amazon.
With each gift card or online shopping transaction, users can effortlessly raise funds–without spending an extra dime out of pocket. It’s also easy to combine gift cards and online earnings in one transaction to raise even more.
Ready to get started and make 2025 your best fundraising year yet? Download the RaiseRight Fundraising Playbook to learn more, or get started for free!
