Traditional Drive Challenges
In the traditional collection drive, nonprofits assemble a wishlist of supplies, identify a large number of dropoff locations, and ask their donors to purchase and drop off the supplies at one of these locations. Simple to set up, the traditional drive comes with some drawbacks: Inconsistent product quality Donors purchase a range of products making it difficult to provide the same type of goods to your clients across the board. High volunteer support required A large number of volunteers are often required for the mundane tasks of counting and reviewing donated supplies. Product gaps It’s common in drives to find that donors like to purchase certain types of items (e.g., cute backpacks for young kids) while other more expensive items are under-donated (e.g., large sturdy backpacks for teens).
More Efficient Online Collection Drives
With Ronga’s online collection drives, you can run a targeted drive and get only the supplies you need. Nonprofits improve the effectiveness of drives by: Maximizing the reach of your dollar Our vendor network includes wholesalers whose bulk products can be used in drives - so your supporters can get more for their dollar compared to retail. Getting only the supplies you need Donors pick from your pre-selected list. Quantities are updated with each donation, so you know how much of what is still needed at any time. Simplifying your logistics Roonga delivers your supplies pre-sorted at the close of your drive. Minimize your storage requirements during the drive. Consolidating your purchasing Collecting cash donations? Eliminate a trip to the store by adding to your Roonga order. All items arrive together pre-sorted with the items from your drive.
Convenience & Transparency for Donors
E-commerce continues to grow, and traditional retail is shrinking. As more and more people become accustomed to shopping online or on their phones, relying solely on the traditional offline drive will not be sufficient. Our online collection drives help you: Expand your reach Expand your footprint beyond your collection barrels – leverage email and social media to engage younger supporters inside and outside your physical footprint. Provide a convenient purchasing option Recruit busy donors by offering the convenience of purchasing on their terms - wherever they are, whenever they’re available, and however they’d like, from their computer or on their phone. And since Roonga delivers, no dropoff required! Give your supporters complete transparency The prices on your drive are the costs of the supplies. When your supporters purchase through the online drive, they know exactly where their money is going – this is especially important to millenials! Make it easy for supporters to organize their own drives Instead of passively asking supporters to organize their drives and receiving goods that may not be needed, provide a simple way for them to launch their own drives with quality goods you actually need. Engage your volunteers in a meaningful way Instead of asking volunteers to count and recount supplies, they can now take on higher value add activities or engage your clients in more meaningful tasks that build a stronger connection to your organization.
How it Works?
Set up a drive in as little as 10-15 minutes! We provide the tools to set up and monitor your drive. Once you get the word out, our service will do the rest!
Set up your drive
Name your drive, pick your launch and close dates, and select the items and quantities you’d like to target. Launch your drive!
Promote your drive
Point your supporters to your drive. Send an email blast, share on social media, and encourage them to purchase in a timely manner.
Receive your orders
When the drive closes, we submit the orders to our vendors who deliver the supplies directly to you – aggregated & pre-sorted, ready for distribution!
Thank your supporters
After distributing the supplies at your event, thank your supporters for their contributions with Roonga’s report on who purchased what!
How Online and Offline Work Together
Have a successful offline drive? Looking to attract the tech-savvy donors? If you are interested in growing your next generation donors and increasing the outcomes of your drive, it doesn’t hurt to leverage both options.
| Offline Collection Drive | Online Collection Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Offline drive where nonprofits sign up partners to host collection sites within the community. Donors are asked to purchase items and drop off at these locations. | Online drive where nonprofits specify needs on a website and communicate the drive to donors with a web link. Donors purchase items online, and the supplies are delivered to the nonprofit. |
| Ideal Scenarios | Great for nonprofits with a lot of community partners and volunteer support. | Great for nonprofits with limited resources and/or interest in expanding digital presence (especially with millenials). |
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| Key Drawbacks |
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Why choose one when you can have both?
While many nonprofits continue to run only the traditional offline drives, some organizations have opted to replace their offline drive entirely with the online option, streamlining their collection process and reducing the resources required to run the drive. However, there is no reason you can’t do both. Nonprofits can simply add the online drive as an additional option for your donors to use. In partnership with the offline drive, nonprofits can also take the additional step of optimizing the drive by:
- Eliminating collection sites that are not frequently visited, or further away
- Leveraging the online drive to target gaps in the offline drive – that is, selecting items that aren’t donated frequently offline and asking online donors to purchase those.
Case Studies
See what people say
Chris Norwood, Executive Director,
Bay Area Tutoring Association
Bay Area Tutoring Association
Stuff the Bus is our in-person drive where donors drop off supplies at local retail stores. I was really happy to have our online drive when 4 out of 5 stores fell through at the last minute!
Kaarina Romero
Director of Marketing,
United Way of Monmouth and Ocean Counties
United Way of Monmouth and Ocean Counties
I liked how easy it was to see where our drive was at, who donated, and what items were still needed. The supplies from Roonga ensured that we didn't have to dip into our own funds to close the drive.
Bridget Hickey
Volunteer Coordinator, Volunteers of America Illinois
Our school supply drive was so darn easy this year! Huge load off my shoulders without hiring a temp. We grew our donor base, helped more children than ever, and spent less time managing the program. Thanks, Roonga!
Carolyn Alexander
Director of Operations,
Sunnyvale Community Services
Sunnyvale Community Services
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