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Q2 is officially in the books, and with it another record-breaking stretch for social fundraising. From the late bloomers to the consistent standouts, April through June proved what we already know to be true: Facebook Challenges still work—but only when you work them right.
With an overall 264% return on ad spend (ROAS) for Q2 (exceeding our 225% goal by 6%), we’ve taken a close look at what drove growth, what held campaigns back, and what we’re doing differently in Q3 to keep this momentum going.
Let’s dive in.
What Worked: Trends, Tactics, and Top Performers
Across all three months, we saw strong performances from Challenges that:
- Tapped into niche, yet timely themes
(Motorcycle Rides, Outdoor Miles, Mile a Day concepts) - Leaned into political, seasonal, or cause-driven urgency
- Prioritized accessibility and clear, tried and true activities
April: ROAS peaked at 330%, buoyed by Parkinson’s Awareness Month, Autism advocacy, and sociopolitical missions' continued success amid a shifting political climate.
May: Despite early struggles, the month closed at a respectable 191% ROAS, thanks in part to better-than-expected performances from some organizations who had struggled with performance last year. We updated their challenge strategies to reduce cadence and create demand in market and saw that pan out in performance.
June: Wrapping up at 303% ROAS (and a week still to go!), June proved the power of a few niche Challenge activities, well-timed creative refreshes, and keeping spend tight where efficiency matters most.
What We Tested (and What We Learned)
1. Instagram Isn’t the Silver Bullet
Despite leaning into investment in Instagram Challenges, performance fell flat in both May and June. Creative fatigue, activity misalignment, and a more risk-heavy targeting model all contributed to the shortfall.
Takeaway: Stick with Instagram when the activity or audience fits the platform—otherwise, it’s not worth the gamble.
2. “Cure” Language May Be Losing Steam
For some organizations focused on finding a cure over many years, we’re beginning to test the hypothesis that explicit “cure” language might actually be a turn-off, evoking skepticism or fatigue in audiences compared to broader advocacy or research messaging, which continues to perform well. It may be that this "cure" focused language highlights that there* isn't* a cure yet, rather than all the great work these organizations are doing* toward that end*.
Next Step: Controlled testing of alternate mission language in future Challenges.
3. Creative Refreshes Must Match the Moment
When performance lagged, many of our wins came from rethinking how the activity was framed and ensuring that creative elements, from imagery to headlines, matched both the organization’s brand and the moment in time. Refreshed creative that clearly tied activity to purpose saw renewed traction, especially when we could shift a lofty month-long goal to a simple daily approach.
Actionable Insight: Reframe challenge activities to reach a new or broader audience, and update creative to reflect the organization’s voice and mission when performance indicates it might be misaligned.
Hypotheses That Proved True
- Lead Gen Flexibility = Improved Efficiency:
Extending lead generation timeframe into activity month can help reduce the spend rate, increasing efficiency and lengthening the runway for acquisition, but extending past days 5-6 of activity month can come with risks like increased costs. - Optimizing Device UX Still Works:
Holding our Android-Optimized UX campaigns with spend under $5K helped maintain a stronger ROAS, especially when paired with iOS-Optimized campaigns in parallel and the ability to shift spend as warranted by performance. - Niche Challenges Burn Fast:
Niche activities and missions can spike early, and require careful pacing to avoid burnout. While they may start hot, we ensured performance was stable before increasing spend to capitalize on the moment. - New Concepts > Repeats:
Some activities that used to be fan-favorites, like dog walks, underperformed, suggesting fatigue with frequent activities. Fresh framing matters, and it's a learning for those niche activities too. They can easily be over done, even across organizations and mission areas.
What Didn’t Work—and Why
❌ Targeted Activity with Competing CTAs in Market
When an organization has competing asks or events in market, it can be risky to narrow in on a more "cute" or targeted concept, as the audience is already being split between multiple asks. An activity with broader appeal, or simply deconflicting from other campaigns and events can help performance across channels.
❌ Leaning into Supporters who are Personally Affected
While many organizations see that those closer to the cause are their biggest giving champions, there are some mission areas where tapping supporters rather than those directly affected my improve performance. For example, our affiliation data for a recovery and addiction support organization suggests that stigma around addiction may reduce people’s willingness to donate and fundraise, even among personally affected individuals.
❌ Instagram Challenges (May + June)
As noted above, we're recalibrating our expectations and strategy for Instagram in Q3. Instagram challenges rely on low acquisition costs and volume to overcome the weaker fundraising. We're looking at ways to decrease fall off between lead and fundraising, as well as how to make it easier for fundraisers to benefit from network effects on Instagram, like we see with Facebook fundraising.
Looking Ahead: What We’re Doubling Down On
- Getting Smarter About Audience Strategy
Whether it’s smarter spend allocation for first-time Challenges or resisting the urge to scale prematurely, efficiency continues to be our most powerful lever. - Leaning Into Political + Cultural Moments
Timing continues to be everything. When paired with the right mission, we see real compounding effects.
Final Thought: ROAS Is a Reflection of Alignment
When Challenge activity, mission, creative, and timing align, results follow. Q2 proved this again and again. As we move into Q3, we’ll continue to question what works, adapt quickly, and double down on strategies that drive not just acquisition but mission-driven fundraising success.
Let’s keep going.
