Fundraising: Virtual Aid Drive™

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Virtual Aid Drive

Virtual Aid Drive™

Almost everyone has participated in a collection drive for charity. Collections of food, clothing, furniture, books and other needed items are conducted year round by charitable organizations and businesses alike. The problem is that many times the items collected are not what is most needed and the resources required to collect, sort and store these items puts a huge strain on nonprofits that rely on volunteers to help.

The Aidmatrix Virtual Aid Drive™ is a fast, easy and fun way to conduct a humanitarian relief fundraising campaign. It all works by Internet and email, making it easy to involve lots of people, whether they be right next door or around the world. And with the Virtual Aid Drive, donors can be sure that their donations are used most wisely to purchase the actual items required by people in need.

Benefits for NGOs:

Collect donations in a fast, easy way

Operate multiple drives with minimal resources

Reach more people, regardless of location

Reduce collection of unneeded items that take up valuable shelf space

Ensure collection of nutritious foods and complete meal items, as well as uncommonly donated items such as socks or school supplies

Benefits for Businesses:

Build morale - all employees can participate, regardless of location

Organize a campaign with minimal resources

Eliminate bulky collection boxes

Run multi-office, multi-city campaigns

View real-time reporting to easily assess the progress of your drive

Utilize the campaign toolkit to promote your drive

Benefits for Donors:

Eliminate the need to go shop for items or find a drop box — a convenient alternative

Access quickly and easily through email or Internet

Maximize your donation taking full advantage of bulk buying and drastically reduced prices

View dollar amount and percentage of savings gained through donating online

Receive automatic tax receipt delivered by email for easy donation tracking (for U.S.A. taxpayers)

View how many meals/items you have donated to clearly show the impact of your donation

Benefits for People in Need:

Ensure that nonprofit agencies stock items most in demand — nutritious food, healthcare, etc.

Increase number of people served per donation

Help with the purchase of seasonal items - fresh fruits, warm or cool clothing, school supplies etc.

Free non-profit resources to run extra programs and activities for people in need

Raise donor awareness to the real needs

Get needed items to people faster — no waiting for donations to be transported

The Aidmatrix Virtual Food Drive is an example of how your organization can use Virtual Drive Technology. Each screen is easy to use and contains all the information needed to start, track and use your campaign.

All Virtual Drives provide specialized areas for corporations, nonprofits and donors to perform tasks necessary to their part in the campaign. Corporations can sign up for drives, nonprofits can set up needs lists and review reports, and donors can select from a variety of active virtual drives to make monetary donations at any time.

Once you have finished shopping, and you are ready to proceed to checkout, you reach the final report on just how far your donation will go -- including total purchase, the retail price you would have paid, and your total percent savings for your donation. Where the Virtual Aid Drive is truly different is in the final line - in this case you see exactly how many meals your donation will put on the tables of hungry people in your community.

The Virtual Aid Drive uses the same technology as in commercial online shopping sites - shopping is fast, easy, and fun. The shopping screen shows you detailed information on your donation including quantity and weight, retail value, and the price the non-profit can purchase goods for. Most importantly, you can see the percent savings you are receiving by donating online.

As an alternative, you can use the One-Step-To-Donate Feature: You can now offer a single-click donation screen on your VAD. Instead of donors choosing multiple items from an online shopping cart, they enter the exact amount they wish to donate and proceed directly to checkout.

And if you are running a Virtual Aid Drive™, you will be provided with a handy toolkit to help you achieve the most success from your campaign. With useful tools like ready made posters, emails for reports, internet buttons, monitor stickers and an easy-to-follow "How To" guide, you will be able to promote your drive in a minimal amount of time, with a maximum amount of impact!