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Launching a peer-to-peer (P2P) fundraising program can be a game-changer for nonprofit organisations. Done right, it empowers your supporters to fundraise on your behalf, extending your reach to new donors. It can boost revenue and engagement well beyond traditional campaigns.
But success isn’t guaranteed by enthusiasm alone – it requires strategic forethought and careful planning. This guide will walk you through a step-by-step roadmap: from clarifying why you’re starting a P2P program, through assessing where it fits in your fundraising portfolio, developing a compelling concept, setting realistic expectations, building internal buy-in, and finally creating a phased launch plan (Dream, Plan, Do, Celebrate).
This roadmap is based on insights shared in a workshop by Kari Bodell at the 2025 Peer-to-Peer Forum, and has been expanded with industry best practices, along with other resources and our own experience.
Follow these steps, and you’ll launch your P2P program with confidence and a solid foundation for long-term success.
Before anything else, be crystal clear on why you want to launch a P2P program. Too often, nonprofits jump into a new fundraising fad due to pressure or anecdotal reasons – “The boss’s boss told us to,” “Our legacy events aren’t delivering like they used to,” or “Someone said charity walks are dead” . These impulsive drivers are not a solid foundation. Launching a peer-to-peer initiative is a significant investment of time, money, and brand capital, so you need a compelling strategic rationale behind it.
Take a step back and articulate the core purpose. Are you trying to fill a revenue gap or diversify income? Perhaps your existing portfolio is fully optimised and you’v found a once in a lifetime opportunity – for example, engaging a community that your current events don’t reach. Or maybe supporters have been asking for new ways to get involved, or you see a chance to tap into a trending activity that aligns with your mission.
Make sure the program’s purpose ties directly to your organisation’s mission and long-term strategy, not just short-term financial need. This clarity of purpose will guide all other decisions and keep your team aligned.
Importantly, ensure there is genuine demand and internal will for the program. One useful framework is to evaluate three factors – desirability, feasibility, and viability – the design thinking trifecta for any new venture . In other words:
Your new P2P initiative should hit the “sweet spot” where these three areas overlap – a program that supporters love, your team can execute, and that will further your mission in a cost-effective way . If you discover misalignment (e.g. an idea that is popular but too costly, or a concept that fits your org but doesn’t excite supporters), you may need to rethink the approach.
Starting with a strong “why” and a reality check on these fundamentals will save you headaches later and set your P2P program up for success.
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Next, take a thorough review of your current fundraising portfolio. Understanding where a peer-to-peer program fits in requires knowing where you are now. “In order to determine where to go, you need to get clear about where you are,” as Kari Bodell notes . Perform a fundraising audit or portfolio assessment to identify gaps and opportunities. This means reviewing all your existing fundraising activities (events, campaigns, appeals) and asking key questions:
A systematic audit of your income streams, donor segments, and event performance can spotlight where a new peer-to-peer program could yield the most growth. Look at your data: which events are trending down or reaching saturation, and where do you see untapped enthusiasm? For example, you might find that your walkathon participation is declining, while many supporters are independently organising birthday fundraisers – a signal that a formal DIY P2P program could meet a need.
Also, analyse the ROI and capacity of current efforts. Are certain events high effort for little return, or do they exclude people due to cost or location? A new P2P campaign could potentially replace or supplement a low-performing activity if it promises better margins or reach. As fundraising consultants often advise, conduct a fundraising audit to answer questions like “What are our main sources of income? How diversified are they? What is the exsiting programs potentiale?”. This will ground your decisions in data rather than anecdote.
By pinpointing open spaces in your portfolio, you can intentionally design a P2P program to fill those gaps. For example, you might conclude: “We need a peer-driven fundraiser that appeals to young families and involves our community service mission, which none of our current events do.” That insight becomes the seed of your program concept. The goal is to launch a P2P program that complements (not cannibalises) your existing initiatives, reaches new supporters, and drives growth in areas you’ve identified as priorities. This strategic fit will justify the effort and make it easier to rally support internally.
With your needs and gaps clear, it’s time to design the P2P program concept itself. This is arguably the most creative and crucial step – you’re crafting the blueprint of an experience that will motivate people to fundraise and engage with your cause. A strong concept includes several elements: target audience, activity/format, the “ask,” and the value exchange (what participants get in return). It should also align with your mission and stand out from anything else you (or peer organisations) offer.
Start with who you want to engage. Define a specific target audience for your program – the more specific, the better. Are you aiming for passionate cyclists? School students? Gamers streaming online? Busy professionals looking for low-commitment ways to help? Knowing your primary audience will shape all other decisions, from the activity to messaging.
A common mistake is to say “everyone is our audience,” but the best P2P campaigns often thrive by deeply resonating with a particular community or interest group.
Next, design the experience and activity around that audience and your cause. If your audience is families, a fun walk or read-a-thon might work; if they’re adrenaline seekers, perhaps a mountain trek or endurance challenge would be more suitable. Ensure it ties to your mission narrative – participants should feel the activity connects to the impact they’re making. For example, a cancer charity might launch a cycling event symbolising the long ride towards a cure.
Be clear on what you’re asking participants to do: is it to complete an activity (run/bike/swim), perform acts of service, hold their own events (DIY fundraising), or a year-round pledge (e.g. “give up your birthday” campaigns)?
Crucially, define the value exchange: what we ask of them versus what we offer them . Peer-to-peer fundraising is a two-way street – participants are not just donors; they’re advocates who give their time and social capital, so they must feel it’s worth it.
Outline the the value exchange cleraly:
A strong concept offers significant value to a defined target audience, with minimal barriers to entry. In practice, that means the experience and “marketing promise” of your program should be compelling, and any requirements (fees, fundraising minimums, physical demands) should feel reasonable and “worth it” to participants.
If you impose too high a barrier – say, a high registration fee or a very difficult challenge – interest may drop off. It’s a careful balance.
To hone your concept, ask yourself and your team: What makes this program unique compared to everything else in our portfolio (or what others are doing)? You need a clear, unique value proposition. If it’s just a copy of a million other walkathons, why would supporters choose yours? It could be the cause focus, the target community, the format, or even an innovative twist (perhaps your event is virtual and year-round, or tied to a quirky activity).
Also, consider what this program will not be – being all things to all people is a recipe for confusion. As you develop the idea, articulate the boundaries: e.g. “This initiative is not about major donors, and it’s not a formal black-tie event.” Knowing what you won’t do with the program is as important as knowing what you will, because it keeps the concept focused and helps avoid scope creep.
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Finally, consider the support and infrastructure required to bring this concept to life. Even at the conceptual stage, factor in how you’ll make it easy for people to participate and fundraise – the smoother the experience, the more likely they are to say “yes” and stay engaged.
Plan for the tools, tech, and support you will provide. In modern P2P, a user-friendly digital platform is a must-have to empower your supporters. For example, if you’re a Betternow customer (or considering it), leverage the platform’s capabilities to simplify campaign setup and supporter participation.
Betternow provides low-friction technology for peer-to-peer campaigns – supporters can create personal fundraising pages in minutes, share to social media, and track their progress – so you remove technical barriers and let people focus on storytelling and fundraising. It also offers features like team fundraising, built-in stewardship journeys and an easy-to-use back-end which will make your life (and theirs) much easier.
When designing your program concept, assume your participants aren’t fundraising experts – your job is to equip and inspire them. Provide relevant communications, toolkits, and “customer service” support at the right level. In practice, this could mean having email templates, how-to guides, a support hotline, and cheerleading communications ready to go.
A platform like Betternow can automate and streamline many of these aspects (for instance, sending thank-you messages to donors, aggregating data, etc.), thus empowering your team while reducing administrative friction.
In short, your P2P concept should clearly answer: Who is this for? What do we want them to do? What experience are we giving them? And why would they love doing this? If you nail that, you have the foundation of a successful program concept. The excitement should be palpable – when you describe it to a supporter or colleague, they should immediately grasp the idea and feel intrigued or motivated. Only once you have this compelling concept should you move on to logistics and targets (next section).
Early on, it’s critical to set realistic expectations with your leadership and team about what launching a P2P program entails. A new program is not a magic money tree – it will take time to grow and likely require investment before generating a return. Being upfront about this will help secure the necessary support (and patience) to make the venture successful. Essentially, you want everyone on board to understand the financial model, resource needs, and timeline for your P2P program.
Begin with the business case and revenue model. Model out the numbers in detail: How will this program raise money? Is it purely peer-to-peer fundraising (participants ask their friends for donations), or is there also an event component with ticket sales, sponsorships, merchandise, etc.? For most P2P initiatives, gross revenue can be expressed as a function of several drivers: number of participants, their fundraising productivity, and any additional income streams.
For example, one formula might be: Registrants × (Activation Rate × Average Funds Raised) + sponsorships + ancillary sales = Total Revenue. Spend time to get very clear on the revenue model and the math . If you estimate 100 people will participate and on average each raises £200, that’s £20,000 – is that reasonable? What if only 50 people sign up, or if some raise much less? Running best-case, expected, and worst-case scenarios will help you anticipate outcomes and set a realistic goal.
Also, clarify the expense model – what will it cost to execute this program? Again, get very clear and do the math. Include platform fees, any event costs (venue, permits, marketing, T-shirts, etc.), staff time, and so on.
Hand-in-hand with financial projections is the timeline for results. Align with your stakeholders on what success looks like in 6 months, 1 year, 3 years. P2P programs can take time to catch on and scale up. Perhaps you expect that Year 1 is a pilot (focused on learning and tweaking), Year 2 doubles participation, and by Year 3 you aim to hit a certain revenue milestone. Whatever the case, communicate that timeline.
Make sure the executive champion and board are aligned on the timeline for results and won’t pull the plug prematurely. Set expectations that you will measure more than just immediate dollars raised – for instance, new donors acquired, new volunteers or advocates recruited, social reach, etc., can all be valuable outcomes of a P2P campaign even if the first-year revenue is modest. Remember that one benefit of peer-to-peer is expanding your supporter base; indeed, a large portion of P2P donors are new and can be cultivated for future support.
Defining key metrics and KPIs upfront is part of setting expectations. Identify what numbers you’ll track to evaluate success.
Common P2P metrics include:
If your program has a participation event (like an actual walk/ride), you might track event attendance or completion rate. Also, decide on metrics like supporter satisfaction or engagement (perhaps via a survey or NPS score after the event). Having these metrics agreed on will help manage expectations later – everyone knows what you’re aiming for and by what measures you’ll judge the program.
Bottom line: Under-promise and over-deliver. Set a launch goal that is ambitious but reasonable. It’s better to celebrate exceeding your first-year target than to scramble for excuses if you miss an unrealistic goal.
By having a clear financial model and aligned expectations on outcomes and timing, you create a supportive environment where your P2P program can grow. There will be less panic if things start slowly, because everyone knew what to expect and is committed to the longer journey.
Launching a peer-to-peer program is a cross-functional effort – it’s not just a fundraising team experiment off in a corner. To really succeed, you need internal alignment across your organisation and a team of champions who will drive the program forward. This includes leadership backing, as well as buy-in from departments like marketing, communications, IT, and programs.
Start by identifying an Executive Champion for the initiative. Ideally, this is a senior leader who believes in the project and will advocate for it at the highest levels. A well-respected leader who is enthusiastic can help cut through internal resistance, secure resources, and maintain momentum.
Beyond your executive sponsor, consider forming a working group or task force for the P2P program launch. Think of this as your internal “brain trust” and execution team. Include representatives from all key functions: fundraising (of course), marketing/communications (for campaign messaging and promotion), digital/IT (for platform and tech integration), donor services or community engagement (for handling supporter inquiries and stewardship), and finance (for budgeting and processing funds). Early on, get this group together and define roles clearly.
Many teams find a RACI model helpful – identify who is Responsible for specific tasks (the doers), who is Accountable (the owner of the program’s success, who signs off), who needs to be Consulted (experts whose input is valuable, e.g. your social media manager for the promotion plan), and who just needs to be Informed as things progress. Mapping this out avoids confusion.
You’ll also want to recruit some internal cheerleaders – staff or existing volunteers who are particularly passionate about the idea and will champion it among their peers. These might be people outside the fundraising department. For example, a programs staffer who works directly with beneficiaries might be a great spokesperson to inspire others about the cause during the campaign, or a volunteer coordinator might identify volunteer team captains. Bring them into the fold early.
Lastly, plan how you’ll communicate progress and wins internally. Create excitement within the organisation by sharing updates: the first big corporate team that registers, the initial donations coming in, etc.
When your colleagues see positive energy and leadership support behind the P2P program, it builds a culture that rallies around it. Internal alignment isn’t a one-time task; maintain it through the launch and beyond by keeping your champions engaged as advisors.
With strategy set and team in place, it’s go time – you need a roadmap to launch the P2P program. One effective approach is to break the journey into phases. Kari Bodell frames it as Dream, Plan, Do, Celebrate.
This structure provides a natural flow: you start with big ideas, get practical with planning, execute the campaign, and then celebrate (and evaluate).
Let’s walk through each phase and what should happen in each:
This is the visionary, brainstorming stage. In the Dream phase, gather your core team (and maybe some creative volunteers or supporters) to imagine the possibilities.
Refine the program concept – what does wild success look like? – and dream up ways to make the experience special. This is where you solidify the name and branding of the campaign, its story, and key messaging.
You might create a charter or vision statement for the program. Also, dream about partnerships or ambassadors: is there an influencer or community leader who could be the face of this campaign? Don’t get bogged down by limitations yet; encourage open innovation. Importantly, dream with your supporters in mind – employ empathy and design thinking.
You might even host a focus group or informal survey at this stage: ask a few loyal supporters what would inspire them to join and fundraise, what fears or barriers they’d have, and what support they’d want. Those insights can fuel your creative brainstorming.
By the end of the Dream phase, you should have a clear and inspiring concept (which you likely do from Step 3 above) and lots of ideas on how to execute it. Of course, you can’t do everything that was dreamed up, but you’ll carry the best ideas forward.
Now we get down to brass tacks. The Plan phase is all about project management and preparation. Develop a detailed project plan and timeline leading up to launch day and through the campaign’s duration.
Define all major milestones and tasks (marketing materials ready, website live, soft launch to VIPs, public launch date, check-in points, event day if applicable, etc.). Assign owners and deadlines to each task.
Essentially, this is where you operationalise everything:
At this stage, hold a “readiness review” meeting a week or so before launch: gather your champions and walk through the plan – have we forgotten anything? Is each department ready? It’s much like a pre-flight check. A little extra planning here prevents frantic moments during the Do phase.
This is it – launch and execution! The Do phase encompasses the active campaign period. It starts with your launch kickoff (the moment you open the campaign to the public or cut the ribbon on your event) and continues through the duration of fundraising, up to the campaign’s culmination.
During the Do phase, your role shifts to marketing, monitoring, and motivation. It’s all about driving participation and maintaining high energy levels. Key actions in this phase:
The Do phase can be intense, but it’s also the most exciting. You’re watching your idea come to life and seeing people rally for your cause.
Keep your team spirit high – maybe hold brief daily huddles to share progress and stories from the field.
After the active campaign or event concludes, don’t skip the celebration! This phase is about recognising accomplishments, thanking everyone involved, and learning from the experience. First and foremost, thank your supporters and participants profusely.
Peer-to-peer fundraisers are your heroes – they’ve given their time, voice, and networks to uplift your mission, and that deserves major appreciation. “Celebrating their successes” is not just a nice gesture; it’s been shown to boost retention and future engagement.
Make them feel like the champions they are. Create a recap video or photo montage from the event or campaign and share it with everyone, showing the collective impact made.
Additionally, circle back with all your internal stakeholders and champions to celebrate together. Share the results (how much raised, how many new donors, etc.) compared to the goals. Even if you fell short of some targets, focus on positives as well – e.g., “We engaged 300 participants who brought in 900 donors, 40% of whom were new to our charity.”
Celebration naturally transitions into evaluation and iteration. While spirits and memories are fresh, conduct a debrief: what worked well, what didn’t, and what can we improve? Gather feedback from participants too – perhaps through a survey or even a few quick phone interviews with fundraisers. Did they feel supported? What was hard? Use this feedback to refine your concept and execution plan for next time.
Finally, share the impact that the P2P campaign will have, closing the loop for participants and donors. For example, announce: “Together you raised £50,000, which will enable us to fund 100 new beds” or whatever tangible outcome. People are motivated by knowing what their effort accomplished. Your participants and their donors have formed a community of sorts – nurture that community beyond the campaign. Invite them to stay involved (perhaps this becomes an annual event, or you have other programs they can join).
“Celebrate” isn’t just about a victory lap; it’s about appreciating everyone, consolidating lessons learned, and laying the groundwork for the next cycle. In many ways, this phase feeds back into the Dream phase of the next iteration – the feedback and data will inform how you dream bigger or differently for the program’s future.
By ending on a high note of gratitude and accomplishment, you also energise your base to come back again. Fundraisers who feel valued and have a great experience will return – and bring friends. So celebrate to cultivate that loyalty.
In conclusion, launching a peer-to-peer program is a journey that blends strategy, creativity, and community-building. By understanding your “why,” carefully planning where this new program fits and how it will work, and executing it with both precision and passion, you set yourself up not only for a grand first launch but for a sustainable, growing initiative.
Remember that success in P2P is not just measured in pounds raised on day one – it’s also in the new supporters you inspire and the awareness you generate for your cause. With each cycle of Dream-Plan-Do-Celebrate, you’ll refine the program, strengthen internal and external buy-in, and hopefully see increasing returns.
Throughout this process, lean on the tools and partners available to you. A platform like Betternow can be your silent partner in the background, handling the heavy lifting of campaign setup, donation processing, and data tracking, so you and your team can focus on what matters most – engaging people and telling your story. By using such fundraising technology to provide a seamless experience (for example, eliminating technical hassles for fundraisers and giving you real-time insight into performance), you reduce friction for everyone involved.
Launching a new P2P program is undoubtedly hard work, but it’s also one of the most rewarding projects a nonprofit can undertake. You’ll witness incredible generosity and grassroots advocacy as people rally their friends and family for your cause.
Happy launching, and cheers to your peer-to-peer success!
