iClimb is one of United Way's largest fundraising campaigns. After a successful inaugural event, the United Way wanted to offer volunteer participants an online opportunity to solicit pledges from their friends and family. They also wanted to give participants an easy online way to register for the event, which would aid in internal tracking and event management.

By giving individuals the opportunity to collect pledges online, participants were able to engage their network by way of email and social media, giving them a new and easy way to raise money for the cause.

36 teams and 234 individuals registered online through Artez to support the iClimb by climbing over 1,000 at the WFCU Centre Arena. A small percentage of individuals registered offline, but the majority chose to use the easy website registration process.

The United Way enabled Facebook and Twitter integration, allowing climbers to connect their profile pages with their personal fundraising pages using social media.

How did the United Way use the Artez Friendship Powered Fundraising System?

Friendship Powered Fundraising was used to register climbers, provide personal fundraising pages to participants, and give registrants the ability to solicit friends and family via email and social media. Thanks to Friendship Powered Fundraising, the United Way was able to process donations with the integrated PayPal gateway, issue receipts and provide obtain detailed reports.

How has the Artez system improved 2011 event results compared to previous years when the system was not employed?

Participants seemed to be even more excited to take part in the event - with the new ability to collect pledges online. When iClimb began, participants were only able to collect pledges in person - the traditional way.

With the new system, registrants could reach out to people outside of the local community for pledges, and could track their results and send thank you notes online.

In the second year, pledges nearly doubled and $10,000 was collected online. In the third year, $15,000 was collected online. These online pledges helped us elevate the total amount raised in support of the event and the community. Additionally, the event was promoted heavily online - through Facebook and Twitter - which just added to the excitement and increased awareness of the event.

United Way / Centraide of Windsor-Essex County

The United Way is "the largest funder of the voluntary sector and social services in Canada" outside of the government. Active in the Windsor-Essex community since 1947, the United Way / Centraide of Windsor-Essex County works with different agencies and government and business organisations to help improve the lives of the members of the area. Their focus is: "To improve lives today and tomorrow in Windsor and Essex County by mobilizing people, resources, and the caring power of our community in a positive, healthy and lasting way."