How do I set up a graphic, like a thermometer or something, that shows how close we are to our donation goal?

There are lots of complicated ways to do that, and no simple ones that I'm aware of. Websites that have that sort of thing usually hire programmers to do it. There may be some pointers in the Help Forums to resources that you might be able to use. Try searching for the word "thermometer".

There is an easy way and a cooler hard way.

The easy way is just to create a thermometer graphic filled up to the level achieved and update it as you get more donations.

The hard way - but very easy to modify as you get donations - (and you might get an idea of the graphic from this) is to use a javascript like THIS

Here's another LINK

Mary Jo Lorden wrote:

Hi Mary Jo,

I looked for the one I used in 2010, but it isn't at hand. I chose one from a site that was free. You do need to go back to update your amount but it worked great for me.

I simply googled "fundraising graphic free". You'll find several. Read the scoop before you choose... and then you may wish to change it, if you are not happy with it. Here is the first one I came across moments ago says: "FREE Fundraising Thermometers You Manage From Your Own Site

Below you will find our newest selection of fundraising thermometers and progress bars. We have added some elements to make your progress more apparent to visitors to your site. Our fundraising thermometers are FREE. Many are managed directly from your website. You place the code on your site or blog once. After that simply click on the update button and you can update your numbers any time."

It is found here: http://www.easy-fundraising-ideas.com/tools/fundraising-thermometer/]http://www.easy-fundraising-ideas.com/tools/fundraising-thermometer/]http://www.easy-fundraising-ideas.com/tools/fundraising-thermometer/

This one allows you to change the color. That is great for school sites.

I set the lines in BOLD that are important to me.

After you follow the steps to 'design' your thermometer, you'll want to embed the code on your page. That requires pasting the coding under SOURCE in your editor page. If you hit a glitch along the way, come back here and one of us will help you out.

Let us know what you do. Good luck!

Though I now prefer what I read about the thermometer at the site above, I found the one I used. It is the one at the bottom of this page... the cheerleader.
http://www.fundraiserinsight.org/thermometer/

ANOTHER EDIT ADDITION: Okay, now I am interested in this topic. I found another site that says it not only has the easy update... well, read this: "School-Fundraisers.com is pleased to offer a free online fundraising thermometer available to all fundraising groups for use on their websites. Our state-of-the-art widget has over 12 different thermometer themes and thermometer colors to choose from. Plus, it's the easiest fundraising tool to use on the internet. No more copying and pasting each time you want to update your thermometer! Our unique thermometer has a custom control panel so you can update and manage your fundraising widget hassle-free. And, our custom features allow you to add your group's name and a custom message. Best of all, it's 100% free! Play around with the options below to create your custom thermometer.

NEW: We now have five different thermometer sizes to choose from! Finding a thermometer that will fit on your website is not a problem."
Your text to link here...

I am going to play with this last one. We'll see how I might use it on a site.

BTW, I've turned this thread into a 3rd party thread. Third party widgets make it easier for those of us who are not as talented as some of our esteem admins.