Fundraising Articles

10 New Ideas for Creative Fundraising Thermometers

If you want to use a fundraising thermometer, but think that the traditional one is boring, you're not alone. Read about 10 new ideas that can make your fundraising creative and effective.

14 Fundraisers that Promote Healthy Living

With our overweight society, it can be easy to buy into fundraisers that support unwholesome eating or living. We’ve compiled a list of 14 healthy fundraisers that are fun to do, involve everyone and support healthy living, while still earning your organization the funds that it needs.

4 Great Ideas For Holding a Greener Fundraiser

For your next fundraiser why not go green? Holding a more environmentally friendly fundraiser will not only help you raise money for your cause it will help promote awareness to issues affecting the world we live in. Here are some ideas to get started on holding a much greener fundraiser.

A Look at Fundraising Software Options

Are you looking to save time and run a more efficient fundraiser for your group? Does your group need a better record keeping program than writing everything in a notebook? A fundraising software program may be the answer to help your group run a successful fundraiser. Here are some tips on what to look for in a program, what are absolute musts for any group, and some extra features that may be helpful to your group as well.

Arranging a Golf Tournament Fundraiser

Hosting a golf tournament fundraiser can be a large project, but with the right plans and a great team of volunteers it can be a very successful fundraiser for your organization. Enlisting the help of a local golf course or country club, local celebrities, businesses, and restaurants will be a huge help in getting attention brought to your fundraiser. There are several ways to raise money with this type of fundraiser and great exposure opportunities for your sponsors.

Basic Tips for First Time Fundraising Coordinators

Running a fundraiser for the first time is a big job and may leave you feeling unsure and confused about what direction to head in. You probably have many questions that need to be answered. What kind of fundraiser should your group have? What should you expect from your volunteers? Is it okay to purchase products upfront for sale? Here are some answers to your questions and other great tips that you can follow so that you can run an easy and successful fundraiser.

Disaster and No Notice Fundraising Efforts

Disasters leave little notice for fundraising efforts and often need help and support right away. Choosing the best way to raise funds and deciding what help is necessary right away and for the long term are all issues that your group will face. Learn about creating an emergency fund to have money on hand for immediate disaster relief and how to reach out to replenish the fund for ongoing recovery efforts. This article also discusses finding out what items are needed in the disaster zone so that your group’s efforts go towards helping people get what they really need.

Free Non-Profit Advertising with Google

One of the biggest obstacles a non-profit group faces is getting word out about their group and reaching out to the greatest number of people. If your group has taken steps onto the Internet and created a website, then your next step is advertising. You can get free advertising by applying for a grant with Google. Google’s Adwords program can bring much needed traffic to your website if your group qualifies. Learn more information here about the program and how to apply.

Fundraising Letter Writing 101

One of the toughest tasks you can face during your fundraising efforts is composing an effective fundraising letter. Make sure you make a great first impression with this article on the basics of writing letters for your cause.

Fundraising with eBay

eBay.com is the largest auction website and receives millions of visitors a day. Your group can use that to their advantage and use eBay to raise money. eBay makes it easy by running a charity section called “Giving Works” and will help you set your charity up in their system. Your group will be able to earn money in two different ways. Visitors to eBay will be able to use their search feature to find your auctions, giving your charity free advertising. Find out more here.

Gaining Fundraising Parental Support

As school funding continues to be cut, teachers and school staff have started to ask parents to take a vested interest in neighborhood schools by donating much needed money and volunteer time. However, how do you establish and maintain a good fundraising relationship with your students' parents to ensure that you can count on them time and time again to support your school fundraisers? Communication is key, and keeping them up-to-date of your yearly fundraising plans well in advance will go along way in gaining and maintaining that crucial support.

Garage Sale Success - Turning your Junk into Fundraising Profit

Garage sale fundraisers are simple to organize. With a collection of unwanted items—old clothes, outdated household items, toys that the kids have outgrown, tools and exercise equipment that you no longer use—you can turn your household junk into much needed fundraising profits. However, throwing a rummage sale takes more than a bunch of used items; it also takes organization and a sensible marketing plan. Follow our helpful garage sale tips and tricks and you’ll turn your unwanted junk into someone else’s’ favorite new yard sale find—and even better, into cold much needed fundraising profits for your charity group.

Getting and Keeping Great Volunteers

The secret to any great fundraiser is your volunteer staff. Finding good ones and then retaining them throughout the fundraiser and for subsequent ones can be a challenge though. Discover some of the best ways and places to find volunteers, how to keep them from getting burned out and the best way for them to get their work done. You will also learn some ways of rewarding your volunteers to keep them motivated and to show your appreciation for all of their hard work.

Hosting a Charity Walkathon

Hosting a walkathon fundraiser for your charity or group can be a great way to raise money. At the basic level all you need is to find people willing to walk and people willing to sponsor them with a cash donation. There is a good amount of planning and other details that need to be attended to though. Find out what they are and everything else that you need to know to host a successful Walkathon.

Hosting a Fundraising Event

A fundraising event is usually a one day event in which you only have one opportunity to raise a large amount of money. Careful planning can help you get the most exposure and attendance to your event. It is helpful to not put all of your efforts into one avenue of fundraising, but to spread it out into multiple ways of earning money throughout the day. Also learn how to keep your event from being a wash out due to the weather or other disaster.

Hosting a Photography or Portrait Fundraiser

People love pictures and they can be a treasured item for a family, passed down through the generations. Take advantage of this by running a photography fundraiser for your group. People can help out your group and get a nice photograph in return. There are many different options for hosting one, from how to find a photographer and what kind of portrait sessions to offer. Learn more about how much your group can earn and how to go about hosting one here.

How Car Donation Fundraising Works

Many people have cars taking up space in their garage, driveways and backyards that they just don’t need or use anymore. Your group can raise money by asking these people to donate those cars to you. Both junk cars and running ones have the potential to earn money. Non-running cars can be sold to a junkyard for scrap metal and running cars can be sold at auction. Learn how to maximize your profit and how your donors can use the tax laws to benefit as well.

How to Get People to Give Time Instead of Money

There are many reasons why people volunteer their time for fundraising efforts. They may love the sense of giving back to the community and the opportunity to get out of the house and meet with new people. Finding people to volunteer for your fundraiser and encouraging them to do so can be a challenge though. Learn the best ways to find people, how to get great work out of them, and above all, how to make it fun.

How to Get Permission for Storefront Fundraising

Setting up a booth at the front of a store during the height of your fundraising drive can be a great way to reach out to large number of people, pick up sales and earn extra money. There is a right way to approach stores and conduct yourselves while there that will likely allow you to go back to the same store year after year. Local regulations within your community must also be followed. Working with the store to find the right location and following their rules will help to ensure that you have a great sale.

How to host a Successful 50/50 Fundraising Raffle

The 50/50 draw is a tried and true fundraiser for stag and does, hospital charity events, team fundraising drives and workplace social events for decades. The concept is easy! You simply purchase a roll of raffle tickets, go from person-to-person or desk-to-desk and sell as many tickets as you can, rip the ticket in half, placing one end in the box and giving one end to the donor, draw a ticket from the bucket, and split the fund in half. However, even though it might sound simple, the most tried and true fundraisers, like the 50/50 draw can go wrong if you don’t plan ahead.

How to Tell if and when You Need a Fundraising Consultant

If your charity or group is new to fundraising or if you are trying to reinvigorate your fundraising efforts, you may want to look into hiring a fundraising consultant. It is a big decision thought that may cost your group a lot of money without a big return on your investment if you rush into things without assessing your situation. Here are some tips on how decide if it is a good idea for your group, how to decide on what you would like the consultant to focus on, what they will do for your group, and how to choose a good one.

Incentive Ideas to Keep Your Salespeople Motivated

With any fundraiser where you sell items, it is absolutely essential that you have salespeople. Keeping those salespeople motivated and selling the most that they can is the key to running a successful fundraiser. You want to keep them from getting burned out, so learn how to keep things fun and social for your volunteers. You will also learn how to keep your volunteers informed as to how close you are to meeting your goals and why that is important.

Keeping Fundraising Efforts Safe

In this day and age, safety while fundraising is the most important thing. Door to door sales are now a no-no unless the proper precautions are taken. There are also very profitable alternatives that will have your group out selling in public to large groups of people, which are very safe. Learn about ways to make your public fundraising safe, how to protect your participants and the money you earn, as well places that are great for fundraising at.

Never Fail Fundraising Tips

Having a great fundraising idea is not always enough. More often than not you have to get the word out and, if need be, become a shameless self promoter. These surefire tips will help you get the money rolling into fundraiser in no time.

Organizing Your Fundraising Strategy

Disorganization can be the biggest hurdle to a successful fundraising campaign. It is important to have a clearly outlined strategy with goals to be met in order to maximize your group’s earnings potential. Learn the importance of having strategy meetings and the right people to invite to them. You will also learn about creating small goals for working up to your large monetary goal and how to create a timeline to get there.

School Fundraiser Dos and Don’ts for Success

Schools are constantly in need of money to fund everything from band practice to the football team, the computer lab to the volleyball team, and from the chess club to the prom. However these funds don’t come easy—they come via fundraisers. When it comes to new sports equipment, musical instruments, travel expenses and team uniforms, charity funds are often collected to pick up the bill. But how do you make sure your fundraiser is a success?

Summertime is the Right time for a Car Wash Fundraiser

Summertime and car wash fundraising go hand in hand. Why? Because as soon as the warm weather hits, the motors get revving and everyone wants a clean car to cruise around town. Car wash fundraisers are the perfect way to get people out because they provide a service that many will pay—or rather donate—for. If you organization or team is raising funds for a group with large base of teenagers or adult volunteers a car wash is ideal for getting everyone involved in set up and scrubbing

The Ins and Outs of Online Fundraisers

Using the Internet to help your charity or group raise money can be a profitable avenue to follow. Cyberspace is a big place though and it can be easy for your group and your mission to get lost. Learn the best way to utilize email marketing and about using a website to ask for donations and to sell items. You will also learn how to increase traffic to your website using both offline methods and online methods.

Tips for Holding School Fundraisers

Elementary and high schools have a lot of kids that utilize their facilities, which means that a lot of money goes to upkeep. What about teams and clubs who need money, too? How can a school fundraiser earn enough to please everyone? We’ve addressed this in our Fundraising for Schools article.

Tips for Marketing Your Fundraising Program

Just as the right marketing program can make or break a new product, the right marketing program for your fundraiser can mean the difference between meeting your goals and coming up short. There are many free and easy ways to get the word out about your fundraiser. There are basic word of mouth methods and more elaborate ways, such as using the local media with press releases and phone calls. Learn the different ways and how to be creative to get the most exposure.

Tis the Season to Scream for Ice Cream!

Ice Cream Social fundraisers are so popular with youth groups, as school and daycare fundraisers, and to raise funds for sports teams because—let’s face it—no one can say no to delicious ice cream. The Ice Cream Social is for any organization with a large base of children in their midst; because it helps raise money for your cause, but it’s also a great way for parents to get involved and to network with other parents in their child’s sports team or youth group.

Top 12 Environmental Organizations Who Use Their Donations Well

We’ve compiled a list of twelve well-known environmental organizations that do the best job in handling their fundraising and supporting their causes. After all, when you put your money into something, you want it to pay off, and when it comes to the environment, you want to make sure that your personal beliefs and causes are being adequately supported.

Top 6 Fundraising Tips for Marathons

Holding a marathon for your fundraising endeavors takes a lot of organizing and preparation but the rewards can be amazing. These six tips will help you with the planning of the event, finding sponsors and even provide a little help to ensure you don't “run” out of energy.

Vacuum Your Way to a Successful Asthma Fundraiser

Spring is allergy season and the month of May was National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month. We take a look at one our favorite causes and a how to turn the mundane task of spring cleaning into a unique and highly effective fundraiser.

What to Know about Candle Fundraising

Candles are a pretty popular item with a majority of households burning them on a regular basis. Hosting a candle fundraiser is a great choice, but there are many considerations to make when deciding on one. Should you make your own candles if you have crafty people in your group or go with a candle manufacturer? What kind of candles should you sell? Does it matter from what material they are made of what type of theme they use? Find out what you need to know before jumping in.

What to Know Before Choosing a Fundraising Company

There are literally thousands of companies out there that want to help your group raise money with a fundraiser. You should be able to find all kinds of products to choose from in order to make your fundraiser unique and standout. Choosing the right company for your group or charity can be a difficult decision to make though. Learn about deciding to order products in advance or pre-selling, what to look for in sales materials, and researching a company and their reputation.

Why Fundraising Timing is SO Important!

Fundraising timing is so very important. What time of year, season, day of the week and hour of the day that you decide to go door-to-door can really make or break your fundraising success. For instance, charities that go door-to-door at Christmas have received plenty of success in the past. However, new fundraisers trying to make their holiday mark have done poorly during what is supposedly known as the “giving season”. The goal of your event, the fundraising audience, your proposed budget and the number of volunteers that you have on hand will really determine the format that your fundraising event should take.

Writing a Successful Fundraising Letter

A fundraising letter soliciting donations for your charity or group can be a great way to earn money. It has to be a carefully crafted letter though that knows its audience in order to be a success. Choosing the perfect person to write the letter is a critical first step. Learn why you should never use a committee to write a letter. Also learn about choosing the right length, design, and format for your letter.