Fundraising and Awareness in the Metaverse: Become a Meta-Charity!

As nonprofits, we talk a lot about donor attrition rates, which is the rate at which donors do not renew their gifts each year. Attrition rates can drop off for several reasons. The reason we are focused on today is that many of our donors are getting older and can no longer give for different reasons.

I talk a lot about the importance of digital fundraising because bringing our nonprofit marketing and fundraising online is how we attract next-gen donors. Getting digital and meeting younger donors where they are at is how we fight attrition: that and excellent stewardship.

The Metaverse is predicted to become an $800 billion market by 2024, with tech giants like Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, and Google investing big money. Talking about the Metaverse nowadays is much like how we talked about the Internet back in the 80s.

In this article, we cover metaverse basics, accessing the Metaverse, and even how to incorporate the Metaverse into our fund development strategy!

What is The Metaverse

The Metaverse is a virtual world - a 3D version of the internet. It is a cyberspace made up of multiple virtual worlds that combine components of social media, gaming, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), cryptocurrencies, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

There are many different Metaverses, such as:

Decentraland: which is a VR space where users can create content, interact with one another, and earn money through investments and other digital assets.

The Sandbox: a blockchain-based game where investors can sell, buy, and trade virtual plots of land.

Roblox: is one of the top metaverse platforms where users can play games created by other users, among many other activities.

Horizon Worlds: Facebook's Metaverse and focuses on organizing virtual business meetings.

We can't talk about the Metaverse without mentioning avatars, which are electronic images representing a human, an animal, or even something more abstract. With your avatar, you can go about many of your everyday interactions in the Metaverse, like interacting with other people’s avatars, buying and selling land, attending events, going to museums, building a house, and so much more.

Thanks to the gaming industry, the concept of virtual and augmented reality has been steadily growing over the last 20 years. Thanks to the advent of Bitcoin, there is now a digital economy within the Metaverse. For us, this means digital fundraising opportunities!

I mentioned next-gen donors. Targeting millennials and Gen Z is of utmost importance to brands. We as nonprofits can learn much from the major brand names like Nike, who are investing heavily in the Metaverse. They are one of the first corporations to not only release NFTs but to invest in the Metaverse ecosystem itself.

Accessing the Metaverse

The Metaverse’s infrastructure is still in its infancy, but let’s take a tour!

To start, you need hardware. Your smartphone is enough to enter a metaverse. There are plenty of meta features currently available for android and iPhone. However, you might not be getting that much of the meta experience.

For the full experience, you might want to consider purchasing a VR headset or a pair of AR smart glasses. Headsets can range from the affordable Google Cardboard to the mid-range Oculus Quest headsets or even the high-quality Valve Index VR, depending on your budget.

Just a heads up that many metaverse platforms require a crypto wallet and avatar.

I have begun to explore Horizon Worlds, which was super simple to sign up for and access. My advice is to take some time to explore, meet new friends and play games. You can also attend Metaverse events, which is a great way to get familiar with the system.

Fundraising with the Metaverse

The Metaverse offers many unique opportunities to raise funds and awareness for nonprofits. If you start strategizing and experimenting today, you'll put your organization in a good position to make the most of the Metaverse tomorrow.

Fundraising events - The Metaverse can host events of any size. Thanks to gamification elements, the Metaverse also offers unlimited ways to engage attendees and interact.

Partner with a Creator – An increasing numbers of creators are donating proceeds from NFT sales to worthy nonprofit organizations.

Advertising - Soon, we will see billboards in the Metaverse advertising donations and ads for buying NFTs with the proceeds benefitting nonprofits.

NFTs - For example, in honour of its 75th anniversary UNICEF launched 1,000 Patchwork Kingdoms.

Fan tokens – Which are Fan tokens are a form of cryptocurrency that gives holders access to a variety of fan-related membership perks, which can be adapted by nonprofits.

Virtual Tours - Imagine the impact of being able to walk in the shoes of those you serve by using the power of VR & AR.

Hold A Scavenger Hunt - Using special transmitting devices known as beacons, you can spread interactive visuals around your desired location.

Branded characters - Send representatives out into the wider Metaverse to raise awareness for your cause.

These are just a few ways your organization can use the Metaverse to attract and engage younger donors. Brainstorm with your team how your nonprofit can use the Metaverse to build awareness and fundraise based on your mission.

www.causespecialists.ca

Check out our YouTube video for Nonprofits using the Metaverse for Fundraising & Awareness.

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