FundBlast FAQs

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FundBlast FAQs

SOCIAL NETWORKING THAT PAYS

Fundblast.com is a social networking and fundraising website rolled into one, and we feel its going to change the world. We've taken the best features of some of the most popular social networking websites and combined them with a way for anyone to create, promote, and sponsor fundraisers, causes and events. What makes FundBlast so exciting is that it combines social networking with fundraising in several innovative and beneficial ways including allowing anyone to create and promote fundraisers for almost any reason, cause or event from corporate and school fundraisers, to personal fundraisers and fundraisers that help businessess grow and make money and everything in between. But not until now has the process of creating and promoting any kind of fundraiser, cause or event been so easy and available to everyone, and the opportunities to sponsors and supporters has never been so great.

WHY FUNDBLAST MATTERS

FundBlast will create opportunities for tens of millions of people. Research shows that approximately 30 million people participate in fundraisers each year just in the United States. That's about 1 out of every 10 people in this country who either participate in raising money or awareness for a cause or people who are supporting or sponsoring a cause. Whether it's a school fundraiser, a 5K walk for Parkinsons, a run for cancer or leukemia research, a corporate fundraiser, a national fundraiser or a community event to help someone in need, fundraising helps create awareness and raises billions of dollars.

Many of us have an affinity for a particular cause, but unless people know about it, they can't support it. The news media traditionally does a fine job of reporting on important causes, especially those impacting local communities. Sadly, however, a report that's in the news today is often forgotten about tomorrow. Many of us know about the causes involving cancer and Parkinson's research, or the tremendous work done by the Centers for the Blind and Muscular Dystrophy organizations and other charitable causes, but what about the student who's paying their way though college who suffers a severe financial setback and needs help, or the family who lost their life savings as part of a failed company, or our military men and women who suffered life changing wounds, or the homeless student who goes to school during the day but lives in a shelter at night, or the aspiring musician who needs a little support to take their music to the next level, or the entrepreneur who needs help getting their business off the ground, or an aspiring athlete who could make it to the next Olympics if he or she just had a little more support, or for the school who's raising money to help a team, group or club, or any of a multitude of great causes. Fundblast.com is also a great way for religious groups and other organizations who have missionaries all over the world chronicle and feature what their doing abroad. Creating a FundBlast fundraiser and featuring an on location video of their cause is an excellent way to rally support and gain sponsorship, which again, is great for both fundraiser and sponsor alike. FundBlast is a fantastic place to create and promote any fundraiser, cause, or event. It's also the perfect place to network and create awareness of great fundraising products and the professional fundraising companies who develop and build these products.

FUNDBLAST IS FANTASTIC FOR SCHOOLS

FundBlast is also fantastic for schools! Did you know that of the 134,000 K-12 schools in the United States nearly all of them have fundraisers every year and nearly every high school has multiple fundraisers throughout the year to support a variety of teams, groups and clubs? Take high school fundraisers for example. Every school knows when they'll be running their fundraisers, but nearly all of them fail to make this information available to the public and even on their school website. Football fundraisers for example, are run before the season begins usually around August and some in September, and basketball, baseball, fast pitch, hockey, track and field, and other sports and clubs are similar in that they start around the same time each year, year after year. By featuring a fundraiser at FundBlast, schools will be able to promote their fundraiser in advance, create buzz and gain much more support. Though fundblast.com, schools, their teams, clubs and students will now be able to promote all of their fundraising activities and connect with people who have an affinity for their cause including merchants, businesses and consumers nationally, even globally! A win-win for everyone.

Take, for example, the tens of thousands of school fundraisers that go on every year, year after year. Many school programs depend on fundraising for as much as 95% to keep their program competitive and many depend on fundraising as their sole financial support to keep their programs alive. Over the years, tens of thousands of schools and millions of students have turned to professional fundraising facilitators or representatives (reps) to help coordinate and run their fundraisers, and many have experienced tremendous returns as a result. Fundraising reps can be a very valuable asset to any fundraising effort. Over the years, professional fundraising reps have proven what works best for a particular group in raising support, awareness, and money for their program, and it's these dedicated men and women that have a track record in raising record revenues and profits for clubs, groups, teams and schools. Coordinating a successful fundraiser takes experience and knowledge of not only a particular group's needs, but also understanding what will appeal to the community. Take for example, the popular discount card fundraising product. Products such as the discount card lists 20 or so participating merchants that offer discounts on products and services and on dining and meals. Many discount cards are good for one year with unlimited use and many offer 2-for-1 deals at popular restaurants which can help pay for the price of the discount card after just one use. These successful products have proven very popular with communities all across the country, but it's the fundraising reps who put these products together and build a successful fundraising product that help raise money for their customers. Many fundraising representatives are committed to not only the groups they represent, but also to the merchants who participate and the communities that buy and redeem the products. It's their level of commitment and service that result in not only building great fundraising products that so many people enjoy, but they also build great relationships that so many people benefit from. FundBlast is also dedicated to this same level of commitment. By creating a website where anyone including fundraising reps can promote their fundraisers, they can now leverage the popularity of social media with the growing demand for quality discount products. Fundblast.com can not only help promote fundraisers and great discount products which can directly benefit clubs, groups, teams and schools everywhere, it can also help fundraising reps grow and take their business to new levels of success.

IMPROVE THE BUZZ ABOUT YOUR FUNDRAISER

Most fundraising is planned in advance and fundraisers know exactly when they will start and finish. Take high school football example. Most high school football fundraisers are held before the season starts, around August each year. Since their fundraising products are built as early as June, creating a buzz about their fundraiser has never been so beneficial and great when they're posted on FundBlast. By promoting their fundraiser at FundBlast coaches, booster clubs, and team players will be able to send a link to everyone they know including alumni, parents, businesses and to popular social media and networking sites improving the buzz about their fundraiser. This way more and more people in the community will know exactly when the fundraiser will kick off, and if they get missed by one of the students during their fundraising kickoff, they can now buy the fundraising product online at Fundblast.com, and this opens the door for everyone in the community the chance at buying the fundraising product and supporting the club, group, team or school. In addition, because FundBlast gives people complete flexibility and control over the promotion of their fundraiser, fundraisers can specify when they will accept online orders so that it maximizes the buzz about their fundraiser, but also so it doesn't interfere with any pre-sale efforts by the group or team.

FUNDRAISING AND FUNDRAISING PRODUCTS ARE NEEDED MORE THAN EVER BEFORE

Today, more than ever fundraising is needed by both fundraisers and consumers alike. Clubs, groups, teams and schools are experiencing budget cuts and reduced financial support for their programs in massive and historic measure, and tens of millions of consumers are not only looking for ways to save money, they are forced to make their money stretch as much as possible. However, like many things opportunity can be created from challenges like troubled economic times. Clubs, groups, teams and schools for instance need fundraising to help keep their programs competitive and in many cases alive and well. This however, creates opportunity to offer a discount product that millions of consumers can benefit from, such as the products offered by school group and athletic programs. A typical discount card, for instance can feature 20 merchants or more and offer great deals that most people will redeem. Whether it's a discount on an oil and filter change that can pay for itself in one or two uses, or a 2-for-1 dining or meal discount that can pay for itself in one or two uses, these are the type of discounts that millions of consumers need now more than ever, especially when the discount product is good for one year with unlimited use. Historically, however, school fundraisers for instance, weren't promoted in a way that consumers were made aware of. Many communities are made aware of the fundraiser only when a student knocks on their door and has the fundraising product in hand.

So, because we are facing challenging and troubled economic times not seen in many generations, clubs, groups, teams and schools will benefit from promoting their fundraisers at FundBlast like never before. Merchants will benefit from participating on fundraising products, especially when they're featured at FundBlast. Fundraising reps will benefit in the increased demand for quality fundraising products and the increased exposure to their products at FundBlast, and millions of consumers will benefit when they buy and redeem their discount products. In short, everyone can benefit from fundraising, especially when the fundraisers are promoted at fundblast.com. A win-win for everyone.

INDIVIDUAL GROUP OR TEAM MEMBERS CAN HELP PROMOTE THEIR FUNDRAISER TOO

Individual group or team players can help promote their fundraiser by sending the link to the group or team's fundraising page and get more participation and support than ever before, and when they send their FundBlast page link to many of the popular social media sites, things can get really exciting. By including a link to their FundBlast fundraiser to people in their network, especially popular social networking sites, promoting their fundraiser can get a boost by leveraging the popularity and effectiveness of these sites. Another great way to raise support and revenue is for those groups and students who participate in a fundraising letter writing campaign. Individual students in a diversity of groups from all across the country are encouraged to write letters to everyone they know who may support their program, and this type of fundraiser has proven very successful. The program is very simple and straight forward. Students get a package of pre-printed letters that explain what the fundraiser is all about and how it will help their cause. Students will fill in the name of the person they will mail the letter to and include a self addressed stamped return envelope. When the recipient receives the letter they will specify the amount of their financial contribution or sponsorship, and then attach a check or money order and mail the letter back to the group leader. Now, with the ability for anyone to promote their fundraiser at FundBlast, students who participate in the letter writing campaign can create a short video using the FundBlast video recording functionality and upload a short video explaining what the fundraiser is all about and then send the link to their fundraising page to everyone they know for a more personal and engaging presentation. NOTE: It's universially proven when people tell a story it can have an impact, but when people see a story such as through video, it can be very compelling and an effective tool to rally support, and with the ability for members to upload a video about their fundraiser or cause, you can create a dynamic and informative piece that leverages the popularity of video with cause marketing which also shows people that you're more organized, better prepared and a little more on the ball which can go a long way to winning the hearts and minds of people. They can also leverage the power of FundBlast by listing their PayPal account and be able to accept credit card donations and sponsorships.

EMPOWERING FUNDRAISERS AND SPONSORS

People who participate in marathons and other walk or running events for example, can now leverage the power of support and sponsorship through FundBlast. Let me explain. Some charity events use all or much of the entry fees that people pay to promote the event, but little if any of the entry fees may actually go to the charities they care about. When you create a fundraiser at FundBlast, however, you provide a way for people to support the charity through you. That's right, and people who may not have supported the charity before will have several great reasons to support it now because of your participation. Look at it this way, if a person has the choice of sending in their financial support directly to a charitable organization, or through a FundBlast member's fundraiser but gets the opportunity to not only be recognized for their support, but also a venue to promote a cause theyre interested in or to advertise their business it's a no brainer. The charity gets the support they need and the sponsor gets the recognition they deserve including a venue to promote their cause or business, and the fundraiser creates a lot more support by participating in an event they were going to participate in anyway. A win-win for everyone.

CREATING GOOD WILL AND REVENUE!

Another great benefit is when businesses create a fundraiser as a way to increase sales. Let me explain. Say for instance you own or manage a restaurant and you want to create a fundraiser for one of your customers or someone in the community who's in need of help, you could create a fundraiser just like the sample Tom Sinclair fundraiser, but instead of a discount card as the fundraising product, you could have a discount coupon on a meal where a portion of the sale is donated to your fundraising cause. This way you're increasing sales and supporting a good cause at the same time, and businesses who support fundraising causes are perceived by many consumers to be more loyal to the community thereby attracting new and repeat customers and increasing sales and revenue for their business. You know the old adage of, "when we help other people we help ourselves" may never be more true than with FundBlast. Now imagine the effectiveness of sponsoring and creating many fundraisers, how much more awareness and new business could be created from helping even more people? Wow! Just think of the possibilities!

FUNDRAISING HELPS BUSINESSESS GROW

Let's say for example, youre a real estate agent. Now many of us know that real estate is experiencing a crises not seen in many generations. Declining property values, increased mortgage payments, limited or no credit available and losses of jobs on a massive scale have resulted in record numbers of foreclosures all across the country. Not only are millions of families losing their home, but an enormous number of real estate professionals are finding it difficult to make a living, and many are out of work. FundBlast may just be the marketing advantage you need to attract more clients and increase your sales. How? Its simple. Find someone in the community that needs help, maybe its a family that's currently in default of their mortgage or has lost their home to a foreclosure, or from a fire or natural disaster, or a member of the community that needs help with medical expenses, maybe its a student that needs help with tuition, or any of a multitude of reasons including causes such as helping to support an aspiring musician or athlete. Create a fundraiser for this person at FundBlast and then contact everyone you know including the media and ask them to do a feature about the cause. All contributions and support can go through your fundraiser at fundblast.com, and when people visit your fundraiser who will they see is sponsoring this great cause... you! And this is the perfect opportunity for you to feature a promotion or discount offer for your business. You can also specify that whenever you sell a home during the fundraising period youll contribute part of your commission for the fundraiser which of course can attract additional clients. Whether you're a real estate agent, or a construction company, a plumber, a doctor or dentist, attorney, insurance agent, restaurant, graphic designer or retail business, or any of a multitude of other professions, businesses or companies, FundBlast opens up a whole new world of opportunity for millions of businesses too.

LEVERAGING THE POPULARITY OF VIDEO WITH CAUSE MARKETING

FundBlast.com complements any fundraiser, event or cause. Whether its the high school team player selling a discount product, or your neighbors elementary student selling cookie dough for their school, a group car wash or an outreach cause for a community member that needs help, a national or international charity. Maybe it's an aspiring band that needs money for their next gig, or a family that's facing financial hardship or a student that needs help with tuition or travel expenses, or a fundraiser to help fund an event for the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts or any of a multitude of groups, clubs, organizations including individual causes. It's universially proven when people tell a story it can have an impact, but when people see a story such as through video, it can be very compelling and an effective tool to rally support, and with the ability for members to upload a video about their fundraiser or cause, you can create a dynamic and informative piece that leverages the popularity of video with cause marketing which also shows people that you're more organized, better prepared and a little more on the ball which can go a long way to winning the hearts and minds of people.

HOW DO I GET STARTED CREATING MY FUNDRAISER?

First, visit the fundblast.com tutorials and watch every tutorial video. When you do this you will learn everything you need to know to create and promote your fundraiser, event or cause and get support from more people, more businesses, and even from your community. After you've watched the tutorials the following next few steps will help you get started. First, create a free FundBlast account, then create a short video telling about your fundraiser, event or cause, then create or upload any coupon or fundraising offer you may have. Next, contact everyone you can think of including friends and family including people you do business with, like your doctor, dentist, insurance agent and other people you know. Send an email to everyone you know and ask for their support and remind them of all the benefits of your fundraising product, your fundraising cause and the advantages of being a sponsor. Thats it.

I wish you success with all your fundraising and sponsorship endeavours.
Dave Kerrigan,
Founder & President,
Fundblast.com

Q & As OF CURRENT SITE FUNCTIONALITY:

Q. I want to sponsor a fundraiser anonymously, can I do this.

A. Yes. Anonymous sponsors can choose the "Buy Now" button or to donate through a fundraiser's PayPal account without completing the sponsorship form and choose to either pay with PayPal or credit card. Sponsors may also send their donation or payment by whatever acceptable payment method has been specified by the fundraiser in the "Payment Details" field. Note: You also have the option to uncheck "Show Offer Details" at the sponsorship form which can simplify the process of not showing any sponsorship offer, especially if you don't have one. You may want to be recognized as a sponsor, but without having a discount offer or promotion of any kind.

Q. I sponsored a fundraiser but my information doesn't show that I sponsored the fundraiser yet. Why not?

A. Fundraisers must log into their page and either "Accept" or "Reject" a sponsorship. You can also use the member message functionality to make direct contact with other members to remind them of your sponsorship. Note: In addition, sponsors who choose to use the "Donate" button without completing the sponsorship form will not have their donation automatically updated in the fundraiser's "Amount raised so far" field during the beta period of the fundblast.com website. During this period it's advised to complete the sponsors form so the fundraiser can see their "Amount raised so far" total has increased. Fundraisers can manually update their "Amount raised so far" total by logging into their "My Fundraisers" page.

Q. I sponsored a fundraiser a while back but now my information like my discount coupon doesn't show any more. Why?

A. The "End Date" of your offer that you set when you first created your sponsorship may have expired. Remember, your sponsorship information such as a discount coupon is valid and will be featured only as long as the offer is good for, and this date is set by you, the sponsor during the sponsorship form completion. You can always log back into your account and change the date or your offer, but remember to change the date of any discount offer in the coupon you created, which most likely will require you to tweak the original artwork for the discount coupon. Your member information will always show.

Q. I'm creating a fundraiser for myself, but I don't have any products to sell. Can I still create my fundraiser?

A. Yes. Take for example a hardship fundraiser that a member may want to create because they lost their job. They will complete the "Create New Fundraiser" form and in any field that asks for product information, you can enter a message such as a greeting or simply state that you do not have a fundraising product at this time. Many well known and widely advertised national fundraisers don't have any products, they simply ask for financial support, you can too.