Meet our new Digital Fundraising Coach, Róisín McGovern

We’re happy to welcome Róisín McGovern to #TeamLightful! 💜

Róisín will be our new Digital Fundraising Coach working with our Relationship Managers as part of the BRIDGE programme. She will be helping hundreds of charities to boost their fundraising skills through training and 1:1 support.

Fun fact: we’ve met Róisín two years ago when she was a participant on our very first BRIDGE cohort!

Let’s find out more about her.`

Welcome to Lightful! Can you tell us more about your previous role?

Before joining Lightful I worked for an organisation called mothers2mothers (m2m), an African NGO that is working to create a future free from HIV and healthy, thriving families across sub-Saharan Africa. m2m employs women living with HIV as Mentor Mothers – community health workers who are working on the frontlines, delivering lifesaving health services and education to women, children, and entire families.

It’s an incredible charity so do go and check them out! My hybrid role sat across both the global communications team and the UK fundraising team. I led on content creation for all our social media platforms as well as fundraising events and campaigns. I also led on community fundraising initiatives, community-level corporate partnerships, our influencer engagement strategy and supported the events team. I worked at m2m for over two and a half years and it was such an incredible experience. Working in such a varied role meant I was lucky enough to work with multiple teams and learn from so many different people.

You were part of the very first BRIDGE cohort in 2018. How did you find the experience?

Yes, I was! It was a really helpful experience, particularly as I was fairly new to my role and so it was perfect timing for me as I knew I wanted to develop my social media and digital skills

Everyone at Lightful was so helpful and quick to respond to my questions. I also met my relationship manager, Tereza, in-person to go over our Giving Tuesday campaign strategy and it was great to be able to sit down and get that 1-1 support. Having that personalised support was really valuable.

How did it help your professional learning and digital skills?

The BRIDGE programme increased my confidence when using digital tools, particularly in regards to social media. The live sessions were really helpful and it was great to learn all the new tips and tricks that you don’t always have time to sit down and research.

At the time I was working as part of a small and busy team, so it was great to be able to reach out to Lightful and know that someone would respond almost immediately.

The programme inspired me to really invest time and energy into digital content, and I guess is one of the reasons I’m here now!

I want to be able to help other charities feel empowered to leverage digital tools the way Lightful helped me.

In your experience, what’s the best way for a small comms/digital team to boost their fundraising campaigns?

I know it can be difficult to find the extra time but it’s so important to research the latest digital tools available and make sure you’re using them. From Facebook advertising to Google Ad Words, there are so many great tools out there but you do need to spend a little time understanding them and getting to grips with the different platforms.

It’s also a good idea to emphasise the importance of digital fundraising and digital communications to your wider team. Never has it been more important to have a strong digital presence and this requires input from all levels of an organisation. Whether it’s an increased digital budget or getting staff to engage with social media content, let everyone know that digital is a priority!

Why did you want to join Lightful?

I have worked in the nonprofit sector for several years and have always been passionate about how charities showcase their impact through social media and other forms of digital communications.

Now more than ever, the world is connecting through digital space and it is so important that charities feel confident to be part of this transition. I love that Lightful empowers charities to build their digital presence, and use the tools available to them to increase their brand awareness and ultimately fundraising.

It’s a really exciting time for social media and digital marketing, particularly for charities. What you do on social media impacts your supporters and their donor journey. There are so many ways in which charities can benefit from this transition to a more digital-led way of working, and I think it’s really important they have the support and tools they need to feel comfortable and confident working in this way.

What are you most excited about in your new role?

I’m excited to meet so many new organisations. I’ve always been passionate about the charity sector and I can’t wait to introduce myself to some of the organisations taking part in the BRIDGE programme and learn more about their work and what they are hoping to achieve.

How did you find the remote onboarding experience?

It has been great! Everyone at Lightful has been so welcoming and made an extra effort to talk to me, introduce themselves and check how I am getting on.

What’s the first impression from #TeamLightful?

Everyone seems so lovely! I have had a few virtual coffees with different people and one thing that’s stood out is that everyone seems to really love working here, and are so excited when talking about their work and other teams.

How do you stay motivated during challenging times?

I guess by remembering the bigger picture – what are we working towards? Why is it important? And then also making sure to celebrate the small wins!

Tell us one thing we don’t know about you

I spent three months in El Salvador learning how to eco-plaster on a sustainable construction project.

Interested in joining Lightful? Have a look at our Open Roles.