Crowdfunding is a way for donors to support the MIT community on a grassroots level and directly impact an Institute-centered project. Because crowdfunding campaigns have a limited timeframe, they can create a sense of urgency and excitement to boost your campaign. And because your supporters are closer to the project, it can feel like they’re part of the experience or startup funding behind your project.  

All registered students, organizations, competitive sport teams, full-time faculty, staff members, postdocs, development officers, schools, departments, labs, centers, and pretty much any other member of the MIT community that would like to raise funds for a project or initiative at MIT.

• A specific fundraising need. Why are you raising money? What will the funds go toward? The more detailed you are, the more your donors feel like they’re having a direct impact on something they support, and the more likely they will be to give.  MIT Crowdfunding is not a resource for endowment, capital, or personal projects. Projects must support MIT programs and initiatives. Funds cannot be redirected to a third-party, external charity or other nonprofit.
• A team of enthusiastic volunteers. The more people reaching out to their friends, family, and peers about the campaign, the more people to potentially support your campaign.
• An interested base of supporters. This base is who you will reach out to when your campaign starts.
• A plan for outreach. MIT Annual Giving can provide planning and guidance support, but the key to successful crowdfunding is tapping into personal networks—your most dedicated supporters love MIT, but they REALLY love you and your project.
• A realistic goal. Your target goal should take the following into consideration:
  • the financial need of your project
  • the size of your potential donor base
  • your personal contacts
  • the level of individual dedication invested by your project team

A formula for goalsetting we like to use is 4(# of contacts) = Probable $ Raised.  

For example, if you have 1,000 email addresses on file, you should make your goal around $4,000. It is best to set realistic and attainable goals and strive to surpass them. You can always increase your goal if the campaign is doing well. 

While the active outreach time is typically about six weeks, the most successful campaigns are worked on for at least three months. We typically recommend that crowdfunding teams set aside 30-45 days to plan and prepare prior to launching a campaign. That gives a team time to plan, apply, be approved, and promote their campaigns.  

A crowdfunding project requires active commitment in three phases: quiet phase, active phase, and stewardship phase.  

• Quiet Phase (1-2 weeks): During this phase, you are responsible for encouraging the five to 10 donors you have identified to make a gift of at least $10 toward the campaign. If you have identified who can contribute toward 20 percent of your goal, this is the time to ask them to make a gift. This is typically done through strategic outreach to your team’s personal networks (i.e. family, friends, affinity groups, and community partners).
• Active Phase (6-8 weeks): Your project is publicly promoted by you and your team of volunteers via a direct link on crowdfund.mit.edu where anyone can also search for your project and make a  gift. This phase includes the bulk of your solicitation efforts through email, social media, and project updates. 
• Stewardship Phase (~1 week): Once the active phase is complete and the project has stopped accepting donations, then you will work with the MIT Annual Giving team to send thank-you notes and impact updates to project donors 

Generally, the success of your campaign depends on many factors, including how much effort the team puts into fundraising, how large the fundraising team is, and whether the project resonates with the community. Here are a few numbers to give you an idea of what the average campaign looks like: 

Average funds raised per campaign in 2023: $X,XXX 

Average number of donors per campaign in 2023: XX 

Average gift amount in 2023: $XXX