A Step-by-step guide to fundraising for yourself

In one year amputee and Positive Bones founder, Josephine Bridges, crowdfunded almost £100,000 enabling her to purchase a prosthetic that would empower her to live a life without limits - if you don’t already know our origin story then you can read more here - she has shared her guide to crowdfunding so that others might be able to raise money for their own specialist equipment/services/prosthetics.

If you are fundraising for equipment, services, or prosthetics for a limb disability; get in contact we will share your posts, fundraiser and make a blog post about your story!

Step 1: Decide on your amount

Before you begin crowdfunding make sure to fully research how much you need. Speak to the specialist equipment/services/prosthetics supplier and get quotes in full. Often if purchasing a private prosthesis you also need to account for additional sockets, physio and more.

Step 2: Decide on your platform

There are a lot of crowdfunding platforms and each charges a different amount for you to host your fundraiser. Some will charge the person donating; meaning you don’t incur a charge but the person donating does and some will place on automatic charge on every donation received; meaning you get a set percentage of each persons donation. It is best to do your research and decide which is best for you depending on the benefits each platform provides

Step 3: Share your story

Once you are set-up on your crowdfunding platform, start sharing your story: Who are you? Why are you fundraising? What would this equipment/service/prosthetic help you do? Why is this important to you?

You can do this via social media, contacting the local news, speaking to your local community, posting flyers, sending emails etc.

Keep it short with a few easily sharable points but make sure share your story honestly, allow people to really understand what their donation would mean to you and if people want to help, they will. It can feel uncomfortable asking for money but if people can empathise with your story, you may not have to.

If you are fundraising for equipment, services, or prosthetics for a limb disability; get in contact we will share your posts, fundraiser and make a blog post about your story!

Step 4: Keep people up to date

Its lovely for people to see where there donation is going and how its helping. As you fundraise and even after you reach your goal, share your journey with your donators; send a newsletter, update your social media, contact people through your crowdfunding platform etc.

Include images or videos so that they can share in the joy of their kindness as much as you can. It will mean a lot and allow people to stay engaged.

Step 5: Allow people to support in other ways

Some people may not be able to provide monetary support but may still wish to help out. Provide them with information on how they can share your story, promote it to others or increase your fundraisers visibility. Valuable support doesn’t always need to cost.

Step 6: Adjust your goal as needed

You may find that a charity gets in touch and offers to donate a grant or the item you wish to purchase might change in price, in all cases, if the goal changes make sure to keep people updated and change it on the crowd funding platform too. It allows people to see in real-time what you are aiming for.

Step 7: Run your own fundraiser

Set yourself a challenge so that people can sponsor you, organise a coffee morning, set up a car-boot sale, learn to make something and sell what you make… the possibilities are endless. Fundraising can come from anywhere and by running your own not only do you support your crowd funding but your also increase the visibility of your fundraiser. It is also encouraging for people to see you work towards your goal too.

Step 8: Share the kindness

If you receive more than you need consider sharing the kindness by donating to another crowd-funder or charity providing you ask for approval through rejection from the people who have donated. The further the kindness the spreads the more likely it is to come back around.

Step 9: Enjoy the process

It can be quite daunting when first setting out to crowdfund but it can also be such a fun, life affirming and heart-warming experience. It can fill you with gratitude and open you up to new friends and community, and you never know, maybe you will also be inspired to set up a charity!