First 72 Hours Fundraising Sprint

Your goal: collect $5,000 from your warmest supporters in 72 hours to prove viability and fund your next steps. Every serious campaign does this. Here's the exact playbook.

The Cadence (Email + SMS)

Hour 0 — Launch

Launch email to your full list + a short personal text to your inner circle with a direct donation link. Keep it personal: "I'm officially running. Can you be one of my first supporters?"

Hour 24 — Progress Update

Show your thermometer. Include social proof (quotes from early donors). Make it specific: "We're at $2,400 — 47 people in. Can you be #48?" Offer ask tiers: $25 / $100 / $250.

Hour 60 — Urgency Close

"We're $X away — can you chip in before midnight tomorrow?" Send to everyone who opened but hasn't given. Text your warmest contacts directly.

Your Donor Ladder

• Inner circle: family, close friends, past colleagues — call + text
• Champions: early endorsers, local leaders, professional network — email + DM
• Broad list: subscribers, social audience, community contacts — email + post

Call Script (2 minutes)

"Hi [Name], it's [You]. I'm running for [Office]. We're in a 72-hour sprint to raise our first $5,000. Can you pitch in [anchored amount] today? I'd be honored to have you on my Day-1 list."

Tracking

• Use one donation link with a UTM tag: ?utm_source=launch72
• Tag donors by ladder rung for follow-up sequencing
• Send a daily recap to your team with counts and total raised

Targets

• 60–120 donations total; median gift $35–$50
• 30–50% reply rate on inner-circle texts
• 35–45% open rate on your launch email

After 72 Hours

Send a gratitude roundup. List your first goals (voter file, compliance, first field shift). Invite donors to share your page. This group will be your most loyal supporters all campaign.