But even large companies may have to lower their cash donations during tough economic times and will often resort to making up at least some of the difference through in-kind donations or giving their employees paid time off to volunteer.

How you ask can make the difference between getting a donation or not.

Following are a few points to consider when approaching a company for donations:

1. Do your homework before sending your donation request

Large companies usually have dedicated departments that work with charitable groups. Check the company’s website and make some calls to make sure you’re directing your request to the right department and the right person. Don’t simply send a letter to a catch-all address; it may take too long to get to the right person, or worse, never get there.

Besides, who wants to receive a letter that starts with ‘dear sir’ or ‘to whom it may concern’? How serious would you think this person is about his or her request? Remember that you are going to deal with real people, not the ‘company’.

2. Learn about donation request procedures and follow them

Each company will have their own set of rules, forms and procedures about how to apply for a donation. Some will ask detailed information, down to exact demographics of your beneficiaries, while others may ask for specific forms to be filled out. Be ready to provide a lot of information if you’d like to be considered for the ‘charity of the year’ or a donation match program.

In any case, do a thorough research and ask questions beforehand, so when you send in your donation request package it contains all the pertinent information. Also, be prepared to make your request in person. If a company is willing to make a large donation, they might invite you to make a presentation.

3. Briefly introduce your cause

In your request letter, make it clear right from the beginning who you are. Briefly describe your charity, your mission and goals. This shouldn’t take more than a paragraph or two. Remember that no one has time to read long letters, and you don’t want them to have to do research on something you could have easily mentioned. Be specific and concise and include information on your charity’s rating if applicable.

4. Describe your group’s struggles and what you’d like to achieve

This is the part about why you’re asking for help and why you’re asking now. Make your case and let your passion for your work shine through. This is where persuasive writing skills will come in handy. (See writing fundraising letters.)

Don’t be shy about asking for support for your charity. It’s your job as the representative of your cause to generate as much money as you can for your group, so write with no inhibitions, remembering what you are trying to achieve.

5. Let them know how you’d like to be supported

If you’re sending a donation request, be specific. Tell them you need x amount of money which will support x amount of kids through month or year x. As mentioned before, many companies also offer in-kind donations and paid time off for their employees to volunteer. If these forms of help are useful to you, include these in your request as well.

6. Express your gratitude to your sponsor

Regardless how much they donate to you, send a personalized thank you letter. They didn’t have to donate to you, but thought your cause was worthy of their consideration. A thank you letter will show your appreciation and may even be publicly displayed. It’ll also help pave the way for an ongoing relationship that might possibly result in another donation the following year.

7. Send updates

Your sponsor may request that you send regular updates, but if they don’t, send them anyway. You may already be posting your updates on a blog, or Facebook, but you should also make it a point to occasionally send a letter (possibly with pictures) that describes your progress to your sponsor. Your letter may be posted somewhere for all to see and will remind everyone of the good they are doing.

Even if you didn’t get chosen for a donation one year, be aware of the impression you leave behind. If you’ve represented your cause in a positive light and dealt with everyone in a respectful and friendly manner, chances are they will remember you the following year – when you apply again.

Related posts:

• Sample Donation Request Letter To A Company
• Year End Fundraising Appeal
• How To Write A Donation Request Letter For Youth Arts And Sports Programs
• Fundraising Donation Request Letters – A Writing Guide
• Sample Fundraising Letter For An Event

Unlike a traditional ice cream truck, or the hot dog and taco wagons at a downtown street corner, these new gourmet food trucks are modern kitchens on wheels.

Sure, you could raise funds with the old fashioned food trucks as well, but the diverse cuisines of the new gourmet food trucks will get people curious and surely attract a large crowd. Besides, who can resist a fundraiser that you can leave with dinner already taken care of?

How do you raise funds with food trucks?

1. First, decide on how you would like to make money with food trucks: you could charge a flat fee; you could ask for a percentage of sales; you could pre-sell food tickets; or decide on a combination of all these. But the easiest way to make money is to ask the owners of the food trucks for a flat fee or a donation amount of their own choosing. If you opt for the voluntary donation, be ready to name a suggested minimum.

2. To find food trucks that do business in your area, keep an eye on your local news sources, or go online and search for “food trucks” and “food stands”. You can also check sites like FoodTrucksMap.com, RoamingHunger.com, or Yelp.com and Zagat.com for more information. Yes, even Zagat, the well known restaurant review service has reviewed gourmet food trucks in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco!

Since food trucks usually tweet about their current locations, you can also try Twitter by searching for #foodtruck or #foodtrucks and see what comes up. Many food trucks will have the city as part of their username.

Talk to the owners of the food trucks and find out if they’d be interested in taking part in your event. If there is a lot of interest in your event, you’ll have to decide how many food trucks you’d like to host, which largely depends on how many people you think you’ll be able to attract to your event. To get a great deal of excitement going, plan for an event with at least five or six food trucks with different cuisines, possibly including a vegetarian/vegan choice and dessert. Pick trucks that offer a diverse selection of foods, so you’ll have something for everyone.

3. Decide who to invite to your fundraising event: is it only a specific group (like students and their families), or the general public? This may depend on how large and what kind of place you’ll be able to reserve and how many food trucks vendors have showed interest.

4. Before you book the food trucks, you’ll have to pick a place for the trucks to set up. It could be a school parking lot, in or alongside a park, or any other open space that has parking nearby and/or heavy foot traffic. Once you’ve picked a couple of potential spots, see what the availability is for these places for a few specific times.

Getting these permits and locking in specific dates with food trucks has to happen simultaneously: You don’t want to be stuck with a space that you can’t get the trucks to and you don’t want to reserve the food trucks for a date that you can’t guarantee a place for. Make a spreadsheet that lists potential locations, dates and food trucks so you can stay organized. Also consider drawing up a map that shows exactly where the trucks will set up, and where the trash cans and any seating arrangements can be placed.

5. Volunteers: Make sure you have at least one person available to direct the trucks on where to set up exactly and to answer any questions. This person should be available to the vendors throughout the whole event. You’ll also need volunteers who keep the place clean and keep an eye on the trash bins and empty them as needed, and volunteers who will stay after the event and will help clean up, and wrap up any business with the vendors.

6. Some food trucks will provide their own seating or standing tables, but some of them won’t. You don’t always have to eat sitting down, but it’s nice to have a place to put your drink. You could ask people to bring their own lawn chairs, or set up in an area that already has some seating options. You could arrange for small standing tables that can be rented from an event company.

In any case, you probably don’t have to plan for seating for everyone; many will buy their dinner and then leave, others won’t mind eating standing up, or sitting on a grassy area. However, do make sure your event is wheelchair accessible and you do have at least some seating available.

7. Arrange for trash disposal. Some foods may be wrapped only in a piece of paper, while others may be sold in a styrofoam box. You may also have to plan for lots of recyclables like bottles and cans (Recycle Bottles and Cans to Raise Funds). You may want to consider the amount of trash a food truck will generate before you make your final selection. Some owners will supply a trash can near their truck that they will service.

8. Time to announce your fundraiser! If you’d like to get a feel for how much interest your supporters would have, you could talk about your plans for your fundraiser on your blog or social media accounts right from the beginning of the planning phase. You may get more ideas for your event and be able to better gage potential interest in such a fundraising event.

If you’d rather wait to announce your event until you have all the details planned and then announce your event, that’s fine too. In any case, take full advantage of your social media accounts, blog, email list and any other marketing tools, like a printed newsletter and flyers. Note: Having lots of followers and “likes” in your social media accounts will help convince the owners of the food trucks that they’ll be able to sell lots of food at your event.

9. At the start of your event, have your volunteers in place (see above), set up signs, or use balloons or any other decorations to direct people to your event and to attract passerby traffic. You could also arrange for add-on fundraisers like a raffle to maximize your return on this event.

Are you excited about this kind of fundraiser? You’re not the only one! Even large organizations like the Make-A-Wish foundation and Toys For Tots have successfully raised funds using food truck fundraisers. And if your event is well visited, you could make a food truck fundraiser a regular event and plan for a “food truck night” every month, like some schools in the Los Angeles area.

(Image credit: iStockphoto/wdstock)

Related posts:

• Make Money With a Valentine’s Day Fundraiser
• Planning A Dance Fundraiser
• Let The Games Begin: A Carnival Fundraiser
• Ways To Make Money With A Poker Fundraiser
• Fundraiser Booths & Shows

A Valentine’s Day fundraiser offers the advantages of

• Opportunity for entertaining event-based fundraisers

Every type of Valentine’s Day fundraiser offers a variety of ways to make money. Some, event-based fundraisers especially, can bring in profits in more ways than one.

(More about raising funds with food items, Valentine’s flower fundraiser.)

>> Tip: Use search box above and try “candy fundraiser” or “chocolate fundraiser”.

Product sales:

When planning for a Valentine’s Day fundraiser, consider selling not just flowers and candy, but also items that don’t spoil like knick knacks, or accessories like hats, scarves etc. Remember that Valentine’s Day isn’t just for couples: grandparents may buy for their grand kids, dads for their daughters etc.

Depending on your demographic, offer items in different price ranges to capture sales from a range of your supporters. If you decide on selling flowers for example, along with bouquets of flowers, also offer single flower stems. Among students, single stem roses adorned with a simple ribbon may be a hot seller. If you decide to hold a brochure catalog fundraiser, choose a trusted company that can guarantee on-time delivery.

Events:

If you have access to many participants, an admission fee for a Valentine’s Day event like a school dance can be enough by itself to raise much needed funds. Your group may choose to sell tickets ahead of time, at the door, or both. At the event you can sell anything from food and refreshments to flowers, candy and gift items to boost your fundraising.

On-hand sales:

Cash and carry sales are a great way to reach out to a lot of buyers. Better still, unlike with catalog fundraisers you won’t have to worry about distribution and delivery of product at a later date, and the profits are instantly available. For best results, set up at a location where there is lots of foot-traffic.

Vendors:

If you have a well-attended Valentine’s Day event, and you do not plan to offer cash and carry sales and/or food, drink, and refreshment yourself, invite vendors to rent space at your event. Either charge a flat rate for a space and/or agree upon a percentage of the profits.

Sponsorships:

Many area businesses are happy to sponsor Valentine’s Day events for deserving community groups. They will enjoy increased exposure through advertising, social media mention or banner ads, and you will be able to increase much needed cash donations or in-kind donations. Make sure that you promptly deliver on all the advertising and exposure you’ve promised, so your sponsors will receive the benefits of their generosity and possibly sponsor next year’s event as well.

Any of these Valentine’s Day fundraising methods can be used alone or in combination to bring in excellent Valentine’s Day fundraiser profits. If you have enough volunteers, why not plan a Valentine’s Day event that utilizes all methods listed here to maximize your profits!

Related posts:

• The Benefits Of Holding A Valentine’s Day Fundraiser
• Fundraising Candy Boxes – Fast Money, High Appeal
• Valentine’s Day Flower Fundraiser
• Ways To Make Money With A Poker Fundraiser
• Fundraiser Booths & Shows

Why do your volunteers work for you?

It helps to find out what motivates volunteers to work for your group in the first place. Do they strongly believe in your cause? Do they appreciate their work environment? Even if you have student volunteers who are ‘only’ collecting volunteer hours for their college application, they probably chose your group for reasons other than just convenience or opportunity.

Who are your volunteers?

Also, do you know who your volunteers are? What are their interest and priorities and what other obligations do they have? Your volunteers may be working for more than one group, have family to take care off, have a paying job, go to college etc. In other words, they have plenty of other tasks besides their volunteer work and it’s your job to take that into consideration:

- Non-profit supermoms and dads: may be volunteering not just for your group, but other groups as well and are always on the lookout to help. Have super high energy and may be well versed in social media practices and may direct people to other causes they like. If you have a volunteer like this, resist trying to limit them! Even if you can’t have them all to yourself, make it clear that you appreciate their work and support them. (Note: If a volunteer is involved in more than one charity, there might be a conflict of interest.)

- Friends and family members of the founder of a non-profit will usually work because they truly believe in the cause, but they may also feel obligated. It’s important to keep in mind, that a volunteer who is very motivated to help, may burn out faster, even if he or she has a personal connection to the charity. And people who feel like they’re obligated to help may not perform very well, unless they have work they really like and feel comfortable with.

- If you have professionals (accountant, bookkeeper) donating their services, be sure to deal with them in a professional manner and keep track of their services for future reference and also to possibly put a dollar value on it for any accounting purposes. Check in with them periodically to see if they need any kind of information, so they don’t have to spend time chasing after your last year’s tax return for example. They may be motivated to help out because they really believe in your work, or they help out a different group every year, and they will appreciate any perks you offer, such as free advertising in your newsletter perhaps.

- Retiree volunteers are often volunteering not just to give back to the community, but to get out of the house and be with others. The social aspect of their volunteer job is very important and should be taken seriously. Some retirees may have had to take early retirement, but aren’t really ready for a life of leisure. They like to be able to apply their skills and prefer a mental challenge to casual work. In any case, often retirees are looking for that balance in their lives through volunteer work and if a group is able to provide that, will not only attract highly skilled workers, but also retain them for years to come.

- Volunteers who don’t seem to be very committed: It may be as simple as switching their jobs, or having a little chat with them about how you can make it more attractive for them to volunteer. Maybe you need to backtrack by finding out what brought them to your group to begin with. Or maybe a volunteer is overworked and needs a break or do a different job.

- Student volunteers and out-of-work volunteers: If you have volunteers who are out of work or in school, consider starting a program that details and advertises specific skills a volunteer will learn within a given time frame. This may allow you to attract and hold more volunteers for a specific time frame. Learning goals will depend on what you can easily offer to others without much extra effort. Examples could be marketing, social media, email campaigns, bookkeeping etc. Put the skills that a volunteer will learn in writing and use this list or description as a tool to attract and recruit volunteers.

Start with a small, simple program that includes maybe just one goal that you can easily fulfill and then build on that. A program like this gives volunteers the opportunity to add real skills to their resume while they’re looking or preparing for a paying job. A nice side benefit of such a program will be that your group will become even more organized!

- Volunteers by default, e.g. parents: if you have volunteer parents for a sports team for example, you may have to deal with many different and sometimes clashing opinions on a regular basis. Emotions run high, especially when an important win is at stake. You may actually receive more help than you need or want at times, but in order to keep things running smoothly, firm ground rules need to be set at the beginning of each season that detail the responsibilities of each person, who is in charge, and possibly rules for voting on certain issues.

Handing everyone a written ‘contract’ at the beginning of each season will keep your group running more smoothly and with less friction. Also, work out a plan with your volunteers on how to deal with the aftermath of team losses when people tend to blame each other, and never miss out on celebrating a win!

- If volunteers are beneficiaries of your services: volunteer job descriptions are always a good idea, but especially when you have beneficiaries as volunteers, so everyone knows exactly what’s expected of them. Some beneficiaries may believe it’s never enough what they give back to your group, some may feel they are overworked. A well written and concise volunteer job description will ease tensions about expectations.

Unpaid but definitely not unappreciated

Even though volunteers aren’t paid, they need to be appreciated in other ways. Every group can afford a simple thank you in person, in the form of a note, or in public at an appreciation event. Thank you letters aren’t just for donors! Express your gratitude to your volunteers as well. Not only do they save you money by performing the many tasks they do for you for free, but they also root for your group and take pride in their work. In any case, take the time to communicate with each of your volunteers to ensure that they feel appreciated. Even if you think a volunteer isn’t doing that great a job, a sincere thanks is in order. They didn’t have to come volunteer for you but chose to give their precious time for your cause.

Give credit to your volunteers

When giving credit to your volunteers, check twice to be sure that you’re giving the right credit and the appropriate amount of credit to the correct person. Check with a group leader and the volunteer to make sure everything is accurate before publication. If the volunteer is a minor be sure to receive permission from the parents before publishing any information.

Priceless

You can’t put a price on the time and passion volunteers put into your project. Especially when economic times are tough it may be a challenge to hold on to your volunteer force, because some volunteer may have to get regular paying jobs, or spend their time helping out family. But if you can provide an environment that’s not only task oriented, but also provides real community and room for growth, you’re more likely to hold on to your volunteers through good times and bad.

(Image: iStockphoto/asiseeit)

Related posts:

• Wanted – Volunteers: Recruiting Volunteers For Your Fundraiser
• Motivating Volunteers & Donors: Show What You’re About
• Recognizing Fundraising Volunteers
• Drafting Volunteer Job Descriptions
• Motivating Volunteers & Donors: Get The Word Out And Increase Profits

What does this mean for you? It’ll be important to keep focusing on diversifying your donor pool to capture potentially large one time grants while at the same time consistently going after small donations from individuals online and in person.

This also means to keep working on a strategy that specifically addresses potential donors from different generations, including the Millenials who grew up with the internet in their homes. You might say that you’ve been doing this all along, but what is now more important than ever is the ‘continued diversification‘ part, gaining supporters and collecting donations from different generations through different channels on and offline and with new technologies.

It is up to each group to figure out which demographic is easiest to reach through specific mediums or channels. Some groups will do great harnessing supporters through Facebook for example, while others will be much better in getting the word out through their website or through direct mail campaigns. And reaching potential donors is only the first step as you know; another challenge lies in understanding your donors and ‘connecting’ them with your beneficiaries which will ultimately result in donations.

The choices you offer to your donors when they’re willing and ready to make a donation is very important as well: if it’s too clumsy to make a donation through a smart phone for example, you’ll lose out because transactions may not be completed. But with online, mobile and in person payment technologies becoming more advanced and flexible, making payments through other channels beside a donation button on your website are getting easier.

Why worry about donations from smart phones when you can ask through your website you wonder? Because some sources have predicted that the mobile internet will overtake desktop internet access by 2013, while others have stated that mobile app use has already overtaken desktop web access! We’ll have more information on how to take advantage of this trend, including information on micro donations and mobile giving (including new digital wallets services) coming up soon!

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Our iPhone Touch Giveaway!

Once again congratulations to Lisamaria Martinez, the winner of our iPod Touch Giveaway! She works for The Lighthouse in San Francisco, an organization for the blind and visually impaired. We asked her how she will use the iPod Touch and she sent the following:

“A little about iDevices in general …

iPods, or any iDevice for that matter, are wonderful for people who are blind or low vision. The best part is that they come with built-in-accessability, meaning, I do not have to purchase a device and then go shopping for software to install that usually costs a few hundred extra in order to make the device accessible.

The many apps available to all of us, sighted or blind, help keep our lives organized. For a blind person, being able to carry around an accessible weather app, calculator, address book, calendar, reminders, alarm clock, etc, etc all in one device has lightened our backpacks and purses.

If all of the aforementioned apps weren’t cool enough, the camera in the newest iDevices is extremely accessible to the blind. If VoiceOver is turned on – VoiceOver is the talking feature on Apple products that allow products to be used by the blind – the camera will recognize and announce whether you have one or two faces in the viewfinder. It’ll say something like, “One small face in center.” So as a new mom, I can take decent pictures of my son and know whether his face is even in the frame and if it is toward the top, bottom, left, right, or center.

The downside to all of the cool apps: App creators do not always take into consideration accessibility. It would be great if accessibility were mandatory. My blind friends and I could then play those crazy games we always hear about like Angry Birds. “

It’s truly amazing how technology can make our lives easier. And we agree, it’s time to update Angry Birds for more accessibility!

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Following are our most popular posts this year:

- Keys to a Successful Wine Tasting Fundraising Event

- A Halloween Pumpkin Fundraiser

- Bowling for Dollars: A Bowling Fundraiser

- The Power of a Press Release

- Cookbook Fundraiser

- Recognizing Fundraising Volunteers

Generally, our fundraising letters category has been very popular. Look for more samples and how-to info next year!

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As you may already know, most donations are made near the end of the year. So if you’d like to harness some of these funds, be sure to add one more post on your blog about the benefits of a donation to your group and about how to make last minute donations that can potentially be tax deductible.

We wish you a wonderful and exciting New Year 2012!

Your FundraisingIP.com Editorial Team

Related posts:

• 2010 Recap: New Opportunities Arise Out Of A Challenging Year For Raising Funds
• 2008 Recap: Most Popular On FundraisingIP.com
• 2009 Recap: New Challenges, New Ways To Raise Funds
• Are You Considering a Mobile App for Your Non-profit?
• Why Fundraising Is Important

Especially during the winter holidays, people get lots of gift cards for presents. Sure, you will most likely want to go shopping and spend them yourself, but what about gift cards you receive that are for stores you don’t care much about, or that are partially spent and are adding up in your wallet?

Chances are you have a gift card in your wallet right now with just a few dollars on it (or that’s for a store you never get to) that you’ve had for over a year. You’d like to use it somehow, or get rid of it, but you certainly don’t want to throw it away. If you saw a box where you could simply drop it and have it be for a good cause – you might just donate it, wouldn’t you?

With this fundraiser you simply collect gift cards, new or partially spent, through a drop box or jar that’s easily accessible to your potential donor. You would set this up similar to how you would set up a jar asking for people’s change as a donation. Secure the box or jar to a counter for example, add a sign, and you’re ready to go.

As with any fundraiser, be sure to announce it on your website and Facebook page or any newsletter you’re sending out. This fundraiser also works well as an add-on fundraiser; think Walkathon, crafts, sales at a game etc.

The perfect time to start this fundraiser may be at the end of a year or beginning of a new year, when people are flush with gift cards for presents.

What can you do with donated gift cards?

You can sell your gift cards at websites like PlasticJungle.com or GiftCardGranny.com, which will pay up to 92% of the gift card’s value. You can choose from receiving a cashier’s check, an Amazon gift card, or a PayPal payment into your account.

They will also buy partially spent gift cards, or cards with store credit. You can find out the value of a gift card by calling the number on the back of the card.

For other sites that buy gift cards, search get cash for gift card.

If you receive gift cards of a very small value, instead of trading them in, it may make more sense to hold on to them and use them yourself. For example, if you receive cards for office supply or wholesale stores you could buy your office supplies there, items for a booth fundraiser etc.

In any case, gift cards are almost like cash, so make sure you keep any donated gift cards under lock and key until they can be traded in.

(Image: iStockPhoto/alexsl)

Related posts:

• All Wrapped Up: Fundraising With Gift Wraps And Greeting Cards
• Scratching Up Funds…Fundraising With Scratch Cards
• Gift Wrap Service Fundraiser
• Ongoing Fundraiser: Small But Steady Profits With eScrip
• Box Tops For Education Fundraiser

But please do take a moment out of your busy day and enter our first Giveaway!

All you have to do is link to your favorite charity and you could win an iPod Touch!

You can enter via this blog post or via Twitter and promote your own group or your favorite charity at the same time! (see instructions below)

But hurry, you can only enter until Thursday, December 15th 2011!

The Prize:

Two ways to enter:

- Either: Leave a comment below telling us about your favorite charity, your own group or fundraising campaign and include a link to its website, blog, Facebook or Twitter page etc. (Please keep it under 100 words.)

- Or: Go to Twitter.com and tweet about your favorite charity, your own group or fundraising campaign and include a link to its website, blog, Facebook or Twitter page etc. In order for us to find your entry, add the hashtag #ilovefundraising and @FundraisingIP to your tweet. If you haven’t already, make sure you follow us on our Twitter page, so we can communicate with you should you be the winner.

Rules:

- Odds of winning are based on the number of entries we receive
- Open to US Residents 18 and older
- No purchase necessary
- This Giveaway ends Thursday, December 15th, 2011 at midnight 12:00am and we will announce the winner asap!
- For full rules of this Giveaway, click here

Please note that this is not a contest about which charity gets the most ‘votes,’ but an opportunity for you, our readers, to let us all know about your own group or non-profit, or other favorite charity and of course an opportunity to win a cool gadget!

Good luck to everyone!!

———
Update: We have a winner!! Congratulations to Lisamaria Martinez!! Her favorite charity is the Lighthouse of the Blind for San Francisco.

Related posts:

• Nominate Your Charity To Win A $25,000 Social Media Makeover
• 2008 Recap: Most Popular On FundraisingIP.com

G-Team is a new way for non-profits to raise funds locally for a specific cause. An example (from their site) would be “If the G-Team collectively raise $1,000, a local bike cooperative will fix up 100 broken, used bikes, and donate them to disadvantaged youth in your city.”

What makes this service different from your other online fundraising services, is that you’re able to raise funds locally which makes it ideal for smaller fundraising drives that wouldn’t make sense for a nationwide campaign.

You also have to put a specific dollar amount on the campaign at which it is deemed successful and you’ll be able to reach your specific goal (like being able to fix up those 100 bikes). Only if your campaign reaches this tipping point will users’ accounts be charged and your campaign will receive the money.

Their current campaign (which is nationwide) is for asking donations for Feeding America.

When you sign up for Groupon’s Daily Deal, you select to only get information about deals in your area and not from across the country. This is how the G-Team will distribute information about your local fundraising drive as well.

Currently this service is available in the following cities:

Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Denver Area, Detroit, Toronto, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Madison, WI, Miami Area, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland (Oregon), Raleigh Durham, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa Bay Area, Vancouver, Washington, D.C.

As you can imagine, they already get inundated with requests. According to the site the key is to have an easily measurable and very specific fundraising drive (see example above). Don’t generalize. Surely, an aspect of fun in your application wouldn’t hurt either. Besides contact information be prepared to enter your social media accounts, your group’s mission and your “top three reasons you love your organization.”

From their site:

“Keep in mind, G-Team campaigns typically…

- benefit the local communities of our subscribers
- run for a limited period of time
- support causes that resonate with our subscribers
- aid specific projects, as opposed to broad fundraising efforts
- only succeed if they reach a “tipping point”
- are creatively organized around a compelling story”

The link to apply can be found on this page.

Note: As the internet evolves, more and more neighborhood services are becoming available. A new service for connecting with your neighbors through the internet is NextDoor.com. Even though this site has nothing to do with fundraising, it may be beneficial for finding out about needs within your community, or for drumming up help for local fundraisers.

Related posts:

• Fundraisers To Raise Funds And Team Spirit
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 1
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 2
• Raise Funds With InsiderPages.com
• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service

Thank you to everyone who participated! Your answers give us valuable insight and will help us shape the information you find on our site and better tailor it to your needs.

Question 1: “If more than one option applies to you, please check the option(s) that you spend the most time on. Are you a “

More than one answer was possible and “Other” responses included a homecoming candidate, board members and nonprofit consultants.

Question 2: “Do you raise funds for more than one group?”

Even though there are a lot of you who are dedicated to raising funds for one specific group, over 45% are raising funds for more than one cause!

Question 3: “What has been your favorite fundraising product, service or fundraising campaign?”

Some of you don’t have any favorites or are just starting out. Most of you like raffles, candy sales, t-shirt sales and other simple fundraising ideas. Following is a list of some of the ‘raw’ results of what other fundraisers and campaigns our readers like:

bulb sale

planned giving

Grateful Patient Programs

A Cookbook with people’s recipes and pet photos

fundraiser for animal shelter, underwriters pay $30 a month for a year to cover the cost of the kennel’s occupant’s food, shots, grooming – and – a sign in the shape of a dog bone has their name painted on it and it is hung on the kennel door.

extreme couponing class

Can food drive that was successful in obtaining the Guinness Book of World Record Largest Free-standing can food structure. It was in honor of the Vietnam Veterans.

Annual OKC Shriners Circus

Dinner & Silent Auction

Girl Scout cookies when I was younger

EmptyBowls.org

Social networking

Grant writing

Spring and Fall Gun Raffel

Indiegogo.com

end child labour

carnival

Specialty items, recycling cell phones……NO COOKIE DOUGH or FOOD RELATED ITEMS

Canine Assistants

The Pasta Shoppe – pasta fundraising

Events and grants research

ArchitectInTheHouse.org

Sage fundraising software

poker ride and a wine makers dinner

iPad fundraiser for adults with disabilities

garage sale at work

Jar game

Trivia night

Building a “Wall Against Hunger*

annual penny sales

capital finance for a new juvenile hall facility

copper drive, book sale

Flower Show

Kool for Katz band

art auction

Question 4: “How many small or large fundraising campaigns (online or offline) have you participated in since August 2011, or the beginning of the Fall fundraising season?”

Most of our readers held at least one fundraising campaign between August and October, the typical beginning of the Fall fundraising season.

Question 5: “What feature or information on FundraisingIP.com do you find most helpful?”

Most of you like FundraisingIP.com for getting different fundraising ideas! You like the tips and ideas presented on how to get the most out of your fundraiser and what to look for as you’re planning your next campaign.

You also like the fundraisers that don’t require buying products and several of you liked the information on making a mobile app for your blog. Other aspects of the site, like the fundraising checklists and the fundraising letters also got a few ‘likes.’

Question 6: “What feature or information on FundraisingIP.com would like to see improved or added?”

Most of you would like to see more fundraising ideas that can be implemented on a very low or no budget, including fundraisers that don’t require selling products. You’d like to see information for small groups who rely completely on volunteers and don’t have much of a budget.

It looks like we’ve got our work cut out for us! From the results of this survey it looks like many of you do like product fundraisers, but are in need of fundraising ideas that don’t involve a cash outlay as well. We’ll try and uncover more low cost or no cost, non-product fundraising ideas that are easy to implement. If you have already run a fundraiser that meets these specs, please share it with us in the comments.

Some of you would also like information on grants available. Sites like GrantGopher.com for example, specialize in grants and you can sign up for their emails to receive grant opportunities in your mailbox. They also offer paid services. Or click over to this list of grant sources, compiled by Joanne Fritz at about.com.

We’ve had a few responses that mentioned that they’d like our newsletter articles to link directly to the site. The articles should already link to the site: the titles of the articles should always be clickable, even in the newsletter that only displays excerpts. If you have a problem with any email you receive from us, please contact us through our contact page.

Question 7: Do you use social networking accounts or blogs to help with marketing and fundraising efforts? If yes, which ones:

Looks like Facebook wins when it comes to using social media for your marketing and fundraising efforts! More than one answer was possible and a few of you are also using LinkedIn.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this survey! If you have some tips for other readers please add them in the comments.

Related posts:

• Fundraising Survey – 7 Questions
• Finding The Right Grant Opportunities For You
• What Grant Foundations Are Looking For
• Raise Funds For Yourself?

- You may feel like you want to jump right into helping out a veteran in your neighborhood, but what you think this person needs may be quite different from what they actually need most desperately. Try to speak to the family directly before you start drumming up help.

- Raising funds for veterans and troops requires extra care and sensitivity. Keep in mind that not everybody likes to have their name mentioned publicly and that many veterans have health issues. (Read Maintaining Respect And Compassion When Fundraising For An Individual)

- The U.S. Postal Service used to accept packages and letters to “Any Service Member” or “Any Wounded Service Member,” but stopped doing so. Consider supporting one of the nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping our veterans and troops and their families.

- Are you planning on creating your own non-profit (search for creating a non-profit) for helping out veterans and troops? There may already be a charity or a local group out there doing exactly what you’re planning on doing. The advantage of helping out or partnering with an established group is that they will already have a well oiled system in place to get help and support to veterans and troops quickly.

- Charities that support veterans and troops:

HomesForOurTroops.org – builds homes for severely injured veterans.

GuardianAngelsForSoldiersPet.org – takes care of a wounded veteran’s pet.

ModestNeeds.org – search for keywords like ‘veteran’ or ‘military family’ and send a donation directly through the site.

DVDs4Vets.org – donates DVDs to veterans.

SoldierPackages.org – sends a care package to hospitalized veterans and troops.

OperationGratitude.org – this organizations helps out troops and veterans in many different ways.

CellPhonesForSoldiers.com – provides calling cards for free talk time for troops overseas.

OperationGratitude.org – donate your leftover Halloween candy for care packages. Note: They take donations of toothbrushes as well.

MilServe.org – volunteer your professional expertise.

For a larger list of organizations that help out and support our veterans and troops, visit Military.com.

OurMilitary.mil – this list of organizations supporting our veterans and troops only shows non-profits that have been screened.

Get more information about a specific non-profit at CharityNavigator.org.

Finally, if you’re planning on raising funds for a veteran in your neighborhood, consider helping in some very simple, basic and personal ways as well: you could offer to help out with driving (or feeding) the kids, taking care of pets or repairing things. An invitation to share a meal may be a welcome distraction for a veteran and an opportunity to share stories about his or her experiences. Being able to talk about one’s experiences (good and bad) can be the best gift of all.

Related posts:

• When Raising Funds For An Individual, Consider ModestNeeds.org
• Go Groceries! Raising Funds With Everyday Foodstuffs
• Raising Funds With Free Fundraisers
• 2010 Recap: New Opportunities Arise Out Of A Challenging Year For Raising Funds
• Recycle Bottles And Cans To Raise Funds

1. Look at a donation in terms of how it will benefit the donor

This is always a good idea, but especially in a recession. When the chips are down and money is tight, it helps when approaching businesses to show them the benefits of investing (read: donating) in your organization. Can you offer publicity? How about free advertising? Their name on a banner, website or t-shirt? Are you asking for donations for a large event? Could you find a way to work their name into the event right from the beginning of the promotional stage?

Wise organizations capitalize on these opportunities by offering sponsors increasing benefits for increasing sponsorship amounts — say $100 gets your name into the program, while $500 gets you a large advertising block with graphic in the program and your name on a banner during the event. And be sure to mention that donations to your organization may be tax deductible, assuming your organization has 501(c)(3) status.

2. Relationship, relationship, relationship

In real estate the most important thing is location. In the non-profit industry, the most important thing is still relationship. Did someone donate to your cause last year? If they’re not able to do so this year, don’t make them feel guilty; keep in touch with them throughout the year and ask them if it’s alright if you contact them about donating again next year – they will probably say yes. Don’t forget that the way you handle yourself and treat others during tough times will have a lasting impression on your relationships with your donors for years to come.

Also think about creating new relationships, like collaborations with businesses that would have a tangible benefit from a relationship with your organization. For example, an organization dedicated to fighting diabetes and the local grocery store – eating a diet that includes lots of fresh fruits and vegetables helps decrease your chances of diabetes.

3. Ask professionals for their time

During a slow economy, there will likely also be plenty of skilled, competent people out of work or not fully employed. Suggest to professionals who aren’t able to give financially that they can also help the cause by donating their time and expertise. You’ll be able to put their skills to use, they’ll be able to expand their resume, and you will meet a need in the community at the same time.

For example, an unemployed grant writer might be worth more money to your organization than a donation by helping you apply for a grant. Or, how about a web designer? Chances are your website could use a some sprucing up. Be sure to help out as well by writing letters of recommendation when asked, and adding mentions in your on- and offline publications.

4. Ask for in-kind donations

This may apply more to businesses than to individuals, but store closures, manufacturers’ surplus and restaurant leftovers (for food banks) are all realistic sources for valuable in-kind donations for charitable groups. Getting in-kind donations takes more time to process, sort or sell, but may be just the ticket to take you through tough times. More ideas for getting in-kind donations.

5. Change your expectations

No, you’re not giving up, but there comes a point when you have to be realistic about what you can expect during a recession. This will be different from group to group and from person to person (paid and volunteer). And maybe you just have to lower your expectation from a particular way of raising funds and fill in the gaps with some new, or long forgotten ways of raising funds?

For example, maybe you have to lower your expectation for simple cash donations for a while and try to fill in the gaps with other fundraising drives, like recycling electronics for cash, or pushing your spent ink jet cartridges fundraising more than before. Don’t forget, people still like to help, but they just may not have the extra cash that they’ve been able to give freely before.

6. Use your resources for a new project

Assuming your fundraising activities have been slow and you have plenty of time and volunteer resources available; what can you do with these unused or underused assets? Depending on your resources, you could start a creative project on a site like Kickstarter.com or IndieGoGo.com, that could make good use of your current time (and your volunteers’ time) and greatly help in supporting your cause in the long run by creating an income source. What are Kickstarter.com and IndieGoGo.com? In short, these sites let you raise funds for all kinds of creative projects. IndieGoGo.com also lets you raise funds for charitable purposes, but Kickstarter doesn’t.

People go on Kickstarter and IndieGoGo to fund an art project, a new gadget, a new game, a music album, a documentary etc. View the currently most popular projects on Kickstarter here and see just how much money people are donating to help these projects come to fruition.

Are your creative juices flowing yet?

The key to getting projects funded on either of these sites is to have a project that has wide appeal, a well organized campaign, a good video and/or description explaining your project and possibly some perks.

7. Remain confident and don’t take shortcuts

This means you still have to stay on top of all your paperwork and filings and maintain your level of charitable work. Now is not the time to slow down. In fact, maybe you can take the time to analyze the way you’re doing things currently and work on making them more efficient. If you are in fact able to run certain aspects more efficiently and save money for your group, be sure to report this fact on your blog.

Also, refrain from sounding too desperate. That may sound to others like you’re truly worried about your group surviving. Remain confident in your cause and keep up your sound marketing practices as much as you’re able to.

Finally, look at it this way: Your group is still alive. Others may have already given up. And sometimes, it’s enough just to make it through another day, always remembering that it won’t always be like this. Recessions do end and there will come a time when you will look back, and say “Remember when…” Until then, hang in there, don’t give up, and don’t lose heart!

Why buy fundraising products made in the USA? Why not make an effort and seek out US companies that sell fundraising products made in the US? Especially during tough economic times, buying ‘local’ makes a lot of sense.

To help promote fundraising products made in the US, we’ve decided to give fundraising companies that sell products “Made in the USA” some extra attention and give them free ‘advertising’ by mentioning them on our website! We will also add these companies to our fundraising companies list.

We hope you will click over to these companies’ websites and take a look to see if their fundraising products may be appropriate for your next fundraiser.

If you own a company that sells fundraising products “Made in the USA,” (or if you know of such a company) please contact us through our contact page and we will consider adding your company to our next “Fundraising Products Made in the USA” post. In order to be considered, your company must have a website with a privacy policy easily accessible from the homepage.

Depending on how many requests we get, we may not be able to list all companies, but we will try!

Most of our readers are based in the US, but if you’re reading this from another country, you can start focusing on fundraising products made in your own country just as well!

Please note: we did not actually visit these companies to prove with absolute certainty that their products are made 100% in the USA, but we think we got honest information and we hope that this will be a start to get all of us thinking about how we can support more companies that sell “Made in the USA” fundraising products. We do not endorse any fundraising companies listed on our site.

Fundraising products made in the US:

To start, take a look at the following three companies that sell fundraising products made in the USA:

Kim’s Key Lime Cookies

“KimsKeylimeCookies.com is an Indianapolis, IN based company that makes delicious, melt-in-your-mouth key lime cookies dusted in refreshing powdered sugar or dipped in sweet white chocolate.

Besides selling their famous cookies wholesale for fundraising purposes, they also sell to gift shops, department stores and individuals. Cookies come packaged in custom designed gift tins and have a 6 month shelf life.”

My Custom Gift Shop

“MyCustomGiftShop.com is a Colorado-based company that strives to offer quality personalized gifts that are made in America. We strongly desire to keep manufacturing in America and maintain American jobs.

In addition to the products we manufacture ourselves, we also work with a number of other USA manufacturers and artisans to bring you a wider variety of personalized products and keepsakes.

Low-overhead and small production runs allows us to create affordable gift items that can be used for fundraising and purchased from us in low quantities at large discounts. Ask us about how we can create custom gifts with your logo as promotional or fundraising items!”

For pet related fundraising products, visit their partner site at CritterGiftShop.com.

“Critter Gift Shop is dedicated to helping Animal Rescues in their fundraising efforts. With a wide variety of products and designs, there is a lot to choose from to make the perfect fundraiser. We have no minimum order requirements and large discounts start at only 10 affordable items. Most items are customizable with your rescue’s name at no additional cost. We are also able to add logos to most products.”

Mountain Mama’s Kitchen

“MountainMamasKitchen.com sells handmade soy candles in different scents such as Sugar Cookie, Holiday, Pumpkin Pie, Plain Jane and more. Each 8 oz. candle is poured in a tin, has a cotton wick and a 40hr burn time.”

Related posts:

• In-Kind Donations and Low Cost Products and Services for Your Group – Part 1
• In-Kind Donations and Low Cost Products and Services For Your Group – Part 2
• All Wrapped Up: Fundraising With Gift Wraps And Greeting Cards
• Who’s Who In Fundraising: Big Names In Quality Fundraising
• Coffee Fundraising

Do you have a question you would like to ask other visitors to this site? Then please leave it in the comments below and we’ll consider adding it to another fundraising survey.

Don’t worry, we’re not planning on posting a lot of these, but we thought it may be interesting to run a short survey once in a while.

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions! We wish you great success with your current fundraiser!

If you’re unable to see or work with the survey below, please click this link to take you to the survey website surveymonkey.com

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Related posts:

• Fundraising Survey – 7 Questions – Results

When you show your customers that you are selling something that is truly helpful and needed in their homes and their lives, like first aid kits and safety products, you grab their attention and their orders.

First aid kits and other safety products as fundraisers are hard for consumers to say no to because these are items we all use, or stock for emergency purposes in our homes and our cars.

We bring first aid kits along on trips, store fire extinguishers near our kitchens and in RVs and stock first aid supplies in offices and schools.

Ideas for first aid and safety products fundraisers:

* First aid kits for home and auto
* Boating and water sports first aid kits
* Automotive emergency kits
* Life hammers
* Kitchen and safety fire extinguishers
* Reflectors and roadside emergency kits
* Emergency lights
* Child proofing safety items such as outlet covers
* Earthquake kits

First aid kits are very useful and need to be replenished periodically which makes them an easy sale. They can be sold through a brochure catalog, or you can buy larger quantities through a wholesaler and also sell them as add-on fundraisers. Smaller items lend themselves well to year round fundraising items, like bike reflectors, life hammers and purse size band aid kits.

First aid kits are also perfect for some customization: you can easily ‘decorate’ them with stickers with your group’s information and marketing message on it.

Search for first aid kits, safety products, fire extinguishers, life hammers.

Promote safety when selling first aid and safety products:

Your supporters will surely understand when you promote ‘staying safe’ while raising funds. In fact, with this kind of fundraiser it can be the perfect message conveyed to your supporters when raising funds for a school for example.

As you’re promoting your first aid and safety fundraiser, you can include messages on how to stay safe on the way to school, going on field trips and to football games etc.

Organizing a first aid and safety product fundraiser is also the ideal opportunity to review safe selling and fundraising practices – keeping sellers safe is of the utmost importance during any fundraising campaign.

If you organize door-to-door fundraiser, review the following safe selling practices with all participants:

- No sellers should sell alone; always partner with a friend and use the ‘buddy-system.’

- Never go inside the home of a potential buyer, no matter how friendly they seem (this also includes time of product delivery).

- Do not carry large amounts of cash; ask buyers to pay by check when possible.

- Try to fulfill selling goals by selling to family and friends first.

- Be polite and courteous.

By reinforcing these selling safety tips, all first aid fundraiser participants can have a positive and safe fundraising experience. And by supplying family, friends, and neighbors with the safety products they need, you’re also providing a valuable service.

(Image: ©iStockPhoto/Lusoimages)

Related posts:

• Book Aid International Uses eBay Live Auction To Raise Funds
• Angling In On Fundraiser Marketing
• Put The Fun Back Into Your Fundraiser!

Why A Cookbook Fundraiser?

Cookbook fundraisers are beneficial in many ways:

• Cookbook fundraisers become a “community” group project that brings everyone together

• Group members and volunteers can participate without having to spend money (making this a fundraiser for all income levels!)

Create custom cookbooks at Lulu.com

So what’s the downside? There is quite a bit of organizational work to be done, but overall it is comparable to that of many fundraisers. Also, a cookbook fundraiser generally requires an up-front expenditure for either printing supplies or wholesale purchase from a cookbook fundraising company, or local printer and that cost can be difficult for cash-poor groups to manage. The other disadvantage is that there is no guarantee the cookbook will sell at the desired quantity, so there is the potential for loss or low profits – unless you use an on-demand printing service (see below).

Options For Cookbook Fundraisers:

1) Use an online cookbook fundraiser company

Online cookbook fundraiser companies offer support, online resources, programs and downloads. Basically, your group collects the recipes, turns them over to the company, and they do the rest. Some provide software that you use to enter recipes and then the company will organize and print the cookbook. Additionally, some companies offer both services (you do the typing and entry or they will), but also offer a discount if your group does the entry work.

Some cookbook fundraiser services also give you the choice of either using only your own recipes or choosing from a selection of stock recipes to add to your cookbook.

2) Use cookbook fundraiser software and you print the book yourself

Providers of cookbook fundraiser software offer a program similar to that used by the online companies with entry fields that automatically format recipes; but you do not have to be online to use it (similarly, some online programs can be downloaded for use offline and then the data can be uploaded later). After the information is entered and proofed, your group handles the printing and binding.

The downside to a software cookbook fundraiser is that your group is responsible for all the work, and the cost of printing, ink, papers, and binders may be higher than ordering through a dedicated cookbook fundraiser company. The upside, though is that there is never a minimum order because you control the process.

3) Use an on-demand book printing service

If your group has access to someone with graphic design experience and software programs, you might want to try an on-demand book printing service. Once you upload your book files to the service’s site, you can then link to your book from your group’s website and your supporters can order directly online, or you can order any amount of books yourself to sell at any of your fundraising events.

There is no downside here if you have someone who can format the pages and upload them to the site. You can buy as many books as you like whenever you like, and you can also easily sell single copies through your website.

4) Collect and organize recipes and hire a local printer to make the books

Requirements for hiring a printer will depend on the printer your group chooses. Be sure to get samples of other books they’ve printed and decide together with the members of your group if quality and pricing are acceptable for your project.

A cookbook fundraiser is a fun community project that, with good organization and a strong sales-effort, can turn in some very good profits while providing a keepsake for group supporters. It’s a great way to create a lasting impression of your fundraising organization.

(Image credit: iStockphoto/dkapp12)

Related posts:

• ‘Print-on-demand’ Calendars and Cookbooks For Your Next Fundraiser
• Fundraising With Cheese Cake And Other Baked Foods
• Who’s Who In Fundraising: Big Names In Quality Fundraising
• Box Tops For Education Fundraiser
• CD Fundraiser

“Switching” causes, or adding a new one to their list means extra work for potential supporters when they do their due diligence to see if your cause is worthy, and it may also mean having to scrape out a bit more from their budget.

Anticipating your donors’ thought processes and integrating potential solutions to them into your fundraising strategy is vital when trying to encourage people to donate to your cause.

Use the following tips to help you encourage people to diversify in their charitable giving, and present even reluctant donors with a reason to support your cause:

Make your cause personal to make it relevant

When you ask people which charity they donate to, many will happily give you the name, and explain what it means to them. We all tend to help charities which have some personal relevance to our own lives. Ask yourself how your cause is personally relevant to your potential supporter. Does your work affect them directly? Or their family or professional or ethnic group etc.?

It may not be obvious right away, but many causes that seemingly have nothing to do with our lives can make an impact if you look at the bigger picture. A great example of this is raising funds for an after school program. It doesn’t just help the kids and their families, but the whole community.

Tell a story about your charitable work

Besides explaining the connection of your cause to the greater good, it also helps to tell a real story about your work instead of simply asking for donations. A true story about how change came about because of your hard work will let your donors know more about your group and will lift their confidence in you. People like to know exactly where their donations are going and what they will achieve by giving money, so make it easy for them by being explicit about how you put their donations to work, and the good which it will do.

Leading charities use this tried and tested method in advertising, by using real case studies to describe what they do, and how funds are used within the group to make a positive difference. Take a page out of the successful marketing campaigns run nationally, and give the whole picture about your cause instead of just asking for a donation.

Erase doubt and confusion and encourage potential
supporters to say “yes!” to your cause!

Make your cause enjoyable for volunteers and donors

There’s nothing like raising a feeling of community and good spirits to get volunteers engaged and willing to participate fully in fundraising. Don’t forget that your fundraising volunteers present part of your cause’s image. Having arguments during a fundraising event, or engaging volunteers who aren’t fully prepared or informed, or not being well organized in general is bad publicity and will turn off donors. Take care in how you present your cause by being well prepared, training your volunteers and putting on a smile.

Be clear about your finances, needs and results

Just as city councils demonstrate how their budgets are spent on policing, waste collection and other initiatives, so your group should be able to show exactly how money is used to make a real difference in the lives of those it supports. Be forthcoming about your finances and let potential supporters know where they can find more information online, especially from sites like CharityNavigator.org and Guidestar.org. But if your non-profit is not included in these databases, be sure you make your finances available on your own site. If someone is seriously considering donating to you, they will do some research anyway – make it easy for them to get the right information.

Also, don’t be afraid to show your pragmatic side when it comes to financial matters. Your idealistic side can only reach so far before it gets to the point where words alone just won’t be enough. One way of achieving this is by demonstrating how a specific amount of money has turned around someone’s life for the better. It will also make it easier to encourage people to offer that specific amount, because they’ll be able to see a direct link between what they give, and what benefits they will achieve with their donation and also make it easier to budget their charity dollars.

Show professionalism

Another way of encouraging people to give to your cause is by representing your cause in a professional way. You can gain more credibility by appointing a well-spoken person to interact with the press and the public, have a well organized website, have all your printed materials, website and emails written in a concise and professional way, use letter head, possibly have ID badges or branded materials. Having said this, take care to avoid giving the impression that you’re spending too much money on marketing your cause.

Last but not least, they “thank you!”

If you’re known to be the charity that actually appreciates and thanks its supporters, it will not only encourage your current supporters to give again in the future, but it will also show potential supporters that they will be appreciated should they decide to give to your cause. (Sample fundraising letters.)

It may be tough to encourage people to start donating to your cause when they’re already giving to other causes, or if they don’t think your cause is important enough. But staying on track, accounting for every dollar and demonstrating over and over again how your cause makes a difference not only for certain people, but for your community as a whole (or another greater good) will over time build a solid base of supporters you can count on.

(Image credit: iStockphoto/bookmama)

Related posts:

• Motivating Volunteers & Donors: Show What You’re About
• What Donors Want to Know Before They Give
• Write: Thank You For Donation Letter

If you’ve done an event fundraiser before, you’ll find that planning for a golf fundraiser involves many of the same familiar tasks: finding a location willing to host the event, getting a great discount off regular fees, publicizing the event well in advance, planning for add-on fundraisers, making sure you have a capable and competent leader in charge on the day of the event etc.

To make sure that all golf players feel like the time spent playing for your cause is worth their time, take extra care to plan all the details of your fundraising event and incorporate something special, like prizes. Here are a few tips to help make sure your golf fundraiser is a success:

Offer different ways for people to participate and sponsor your golf fundraiser

Make sure you have several options available for people to support your group, even if they’re not going to play golf. Besides offering hole sponsorships, marking up greens fees (weekdays are usually priced lower), or corporate advertising sponsorships, you could offer sponsorships on your website and in your newsletter, a silent auction during the event, t-shirt and candy sales and a raffle.

In other words, offer a way for supporters of any age group to donate to your cause before, during and after your event. And don’t forget to offer food and refreshments, possibly from your own cart, or directly from the golf club with your group taking a percentage.

(Image credit: iStockphoto by ImagineGolf)

Blog about your golf fundraiser

Blog about your golf fundraiser before the event, during the event and after the event. It seems like it may be a lot of work, but one dedicated writer volunteer will be able to accomplish this task. Of course, having two writers makes things easier and gives you a back up solution should one writer not be available. If you don’t have a blog on your site, this is a great excuse to add one. (Read more about how to create a blog or other website.)

Start a new ‘category’ for the event and start by posting about your fundraising event, even if you don’t have all the details yet. If you don’t have a date yet, this is a great way to get feedback about what would be a good day for your event.

If you decide blog and get social media involved, be sure to look at considerations listed in our Social Media Strategy Checklist.

Anyone in your group who is involved in communicating with the public, directly, or through blogs and social media, should know exactly what’s expected of him or her and should play by your rules in order to assure that everyone conveys your message in a manner that’s consistent with your group’s principles and mission.

A blog is also a great way to write about your sponsors and place their advertisement as part of a sponsorship. Before you post any sponsors’ names or advertising, be sure to ask first. Some sponsors may prefer to remain anonymous or require particular wording or copyright information.

Get media involved

A golf fundraiser has the potential to not only raise a large amount of money, but to also attract a lot of attention for your group. Be prepared to create a press release, and designate a well rehearsed spokes person from your group for interviews with TV, radio and local newspapers. Create a video about the event beforehand and post it on YouTube, so news channels can link to it for more information. Also post any videos on your website.

Designate group members for each aspect of your fundraiser

To make sure things run smoothly, designate one person to coordinate volunteers, one person to oversee finances, one person to be the main contact to the golf venue etc. This way your event will be easy to oversee and remain organized. Be sure to put all your personnel choices in writing, date it and hand a copy to everyone involved. Our checklists may come in handy when creating your own ‘master planner.’

Have prizes for the winners

Getting some quality prizes donated for your event is a great way to secure extra sponsors and publicity. If you can’t get sponsored prizes for your event, consider investing in some high quality prizes that will make your players feel appreciated.

If you have a larger budget consider giving away something small to all the players with your organization’s logo on it, that they can remember you by and as a token to say “thank you.” As the saying goes, sometimes you have to spend money to make money. Still not sure? Then consider giving out prizes for wacky contests, like Silliest Golf Hat or Worst Score Ever. Or, try making it more of a raffle than a prize for the winners; that way anybody who plays has a chance at a great take-home door prize. However you work it, make sure that the people know how thankful you are and how much you appreciate them taking their time to help you and your charity.

Have a meal afterwards

Depending on what time of day your event is taking place, you might want to have a lunch or dinner following your tournament with your key sponsors. You don’t have to arrange it at a fancy, expensive restaurant and you may even consider getting one or more of the ever popular food carts to park in a convenient location nearby, but you do want to take the time to eat together and let your key players know how much you appreciate them.

This will also be great opportunity for the players to meet each other and network and for you to make those connections for sponsors for your next fundraiser.

At the end of the golf tournament fundraiser, be sure to have the chairperson or another leader stand up and say a few words about your organization, thank the sponsors and volunteers, and talk briefly about how the funds raised will benefit your community. To wrap up your fundraiser follow up with individual thank you notes to your main sponsors and with thank you messages through your blog and any social media and print channels.

Related posts:

• Ways To Make Money With A Poker Fundraiser
• Let The Games Begin: A Carnival Fundraiser
• Bowling For Dollars: A Bowling Fundraiser
• Online Cancer Fundraising Campaigns
• Organizing A Raffle Fundraiser

But more electronics recycling programs have become available recently, not just for cell phones, but for many different types of electronics, including, mp3 players, digital cameras, calculators, gaming systems, Blu-Ray players, camcorders, camera Lenses, computers, laptops, digital cameras, external hard rives, GPS devices, home audio equipment, LCD monitors, movies, PDAs, projectors, satellite radios, video games, e-readers etc.

It’s best to check with each company directly, to see which items they will accept and how many items they will accept at a time.

Recycling programs

Best Buy has recently announced their buy back program and Gazelle has been paying for used electronics online for a few years now. Buy.com and MacMall also offer trade-in programs and now there is another big player in the mix, the Amazon Trade-in Store.

When we looked at the criteria for items to be turned in, none of these companies accepted water damaged items. But as long as an item is still in working condition, even electronics with severe scratches were OK to turn in. Other criteria, like how many items they will accept and which ones differed from company to company, so be sure to check the small print before you send anything.

It’s also very important to shop around for the best price! We’ve checked several of the online recyclers to see how much value they assessed for a MacBook Pro laptop and a desktop computer and got vastly different price offers. Make sure you have the exact model numbers of your item(s) on hand before you start your search.

Even though the number of electronics recycling programs are increasing, not all them them make sense for every fundraising group and not all of them pay cash.

All of these programs can be used for smaller fundraising efforts, but what if you’re planning a larger fundraiser with higher earnings potential?

Options for larger electronics fundraising events:

Local electronics recyclers:

Recycling programs offered through local recyclers vary greatly. An advantage of using a local electronics recycler for your fundraising event is that you will most likely get paid cash and it doesn’t matter if the electronics being turned in are in working condition or not. This saves a lot of time and volunteer power, because the individual electronics don’t have to be scrutinized.

- You can search for a local electronics recycler, either online (including your city’s website) or in your local yellow pages. Some recyclers offer tailored fundraising programs that help with promotion, collection and disposal. (Use the search box at the top and search for “recycle electronics for cash”.)

- When working with a local electronics recycler, be sure to ask what the rules and restrictions are as to what items will be accepted.

- Also, try to find out what other groups have used a local electronics recycler, then contact these groups and ask for references and tips on this fundraising opportunity.

- Companies that take non-working electronics are usually working with state recycling programs. Each state has different laws, programs and rules.

Even though these types of programs don’t require you to check each item, it may be to your advantage to separate at least the newer working laptops, computers and smart phones from the other electronics, because you’ll receive much higher value for them through the online recycling programs:

Online electronics recyclers:

Online recyclers require you to either collect the electronics and then mail them in, or allow you to set up a ‘group’ through their website; then anyone who’d like to take part in your electronics recycling event can send in their own electronics.

Currently we’ve found only Gazelle’s online electronics recycling program and Funding Factory’s recycling program to accommodate larger groups specifically for fundraising. But check with the others listed at the top as well, as this is a fairly new way to raise funds and programs are continuously changing.

Whichever program you choose, make sure you get all the details, including how you will get paid, in writing. Whereas one program may simply send you a check to cash in, another may only send you gift cards to an online store.

How to prepare electronics for recycling:

Any electronics that contain personal information, like cell phones, hard drives and computers, should have all their data erased. Cell phones should also have their SIM cards removed. Remove ink cartridges from non-working printers and recycle them separately.

How do you get paid?

Local recyclers will issue a check to cash once your items have been sent to them and weighed. Find out how to estimate the weight of donated recyclables as you’re collecting them, so you can estimate your fundraising income before the check arrives.

Online recyclers have different options when it comes to paying you, which don’t always include cash. We’ve found that currently only Gazelle and Funding Factory offer cash payments, all other online recycling programs offer gift cards or credit to their online stores.

This may not be a problem, unless you’re raising funds for building renovations or an individual’s healthcare costs for example. All trade-in programs we’ve checked that do not pay cash, issue gift cards that can be used at stores that are selling electronics equipment like computers, printers etc. If you choose to receive gift cards through Amazon’s program you’ll be able to use them to shop on Amazon.com which sells just about anything you can imagine, including books and teaching materials.

What happens to the used electronics?

Companies that take used electronics in working condition either resell them through channels like eBay, Amazon, or wholesalers, or send unusable items off to recyclers who will properly dispose of them.

If you have items that won’t be accepted by the program you’ve signed up with, you can check with Gazelle’s recycler network for places that will take them.

Local recyclers usually work together with a state recycling program. Each state has their own recycling program and not all states recycle all electronics. This also means that items that can’t be recycled will still end up in a landfill, unfortunately.

(Image credit: iStockphoto – Don Nichols)

Related posts:

• Green Fundraising: Recycle Ink Cartridges
• Recycle Bottles And Cans To Raise Funds
• Monthly Contributions Improve Fundraising Cash Flow
• Recycle Ink Cartridges And Cell Phones – Tips For Success
• Fundraising with Gift Cards

Accepting donations online is an excellent way to convert interest in your group from online visitors and to greatly expand the outreach of your campaign to far-off friends, family, alumni, supporters, or other individuals with a desire to help further your cause.

When accepting donations online, it’s imperative to give a donor the option to pay with a  credit card. Asking a potential donor to write and mail a check to you after they visit your web page, probably won’t result in the amount of donations you’re hoping for.

The problem for most non-profits when it comes to accepting online donations is that they don’t have the technical means to process them safely online. Obtaining the technical, security, and programming skills to manage an online donation campaign can be costly and time consuming. But with today’s internet tools, groups can safely, easily, and effectively solicit and accept donations online to either supplement a fundraising campaign or to run a campaign completely online.

There are different ways to go about accepting donations online with the help of third party companies. It can be as simple as adding a donation button to your website, or you can sign up with one of the many online fundraising services. The ideal way to take advantage of these excellent online options may  be to implement a combination of them.

Following are several ways to help you accept online donations:

Accept online donations with a donation button

- Probably the easiest and fastest way to add a payment solution to your website or blog and start accepting donations today is to sign up with PayPal. You get a snippet of code for a button for your website and  anyone who clicks on this button will be able to make a donation instantly. There are no sign-up fees or monthly fees; your donors don’t have to have a PayPal account to make a donation and you only pay a small fee per transaction. And if your group has registered for 501(c)(3) status, you’ll get discounted rates.

You’ll get reporting tools, you’ll be able to export reports to Excel, Quickbooks and Quicken, accept foreign currency. You can also accept donations with PayPal through your Facebook page.

- Google also offers a donation option through their popular Google Checkout service. Google Checkout also offers low per transaction fees, allows you to accept donations from different countries and even waives fees altogether if you’re a Google Grant recipient. In order to implement a Google Donation button, you have to identify yourself as an IRS Certified 501(c)3 organization.

Accept online donations via Facebook Causes

You can also sign up with the online platform Facebook Causes to solicit donations. If you already have a Facebook page, you can simply add a Causes Tab and start collecting donations.

Read about how to create a Facebook page for your group and how to add a Causes Tab. Cause donations are processed by Network for Good.

Accept online donations via online fundraising services

There are dozens of companies that offer services for accepting online donations. They usually also offer reporting tools and back office tools whereas some customized or additional services may be optional and will be available for a fee.

Click over to our article 15 Most Popular Online Fundraising Services or search for “accepting donations online” to find companies that help you accept online donations.

Requirements to start accepting donations online through any of these services may vary slightly, but you usually have to be registered as a 501(c)3 organization and have to have a profile in the GuideStar database.

Often the service is offered for free or for a low monthly cost and a small transaction fee for each processed payment is added. Even if the company charges a set-up fee or monthly fee, the cost is usually minimal compared to the expense of implementing and maintaining donation and accounting services on your own.

Generally you will receive a free fundraising web page for your group that you can send your supporters to, a widget or payment button to place on your website and tools to track and manage your donations and donor information.

When signing up, you’ll basically go through the following steps:

• Your group registers and provides information
• The site automatically creates a web page for your group and/or widgets and donation buttons you can add to your group’s website
• Visitors to the site use your customized page or the button/widget on your website to make an online donation
• Visitors are taken to a secure third-party site for processing of the donation and collection of account data
• Visitors are returned to the original web page once the transaction is finalized
• The funds are deposited into their account (There may be a holding period)

Visit EasyFundraising for further online fundraising ideas and services. (Sponsored link)

Making it all work

OK, so now you’ve set up donation buttons on your website and created fundraising pages on one or more third party service’s website. Now what? You’re ready to start accepting online donations, but to actually receive donations, you’ll need visitors and then you need to convert these visitors into donors. This sounds very simple, but does require some work.

To start, make sure you have all pertinent information about your non-profit, like your financials, mission, goals etc. easily available on the web. If you have your own website, make this info easily accessible and also add links to other websites that a have information about your group, for example news sites and sites like Guidestar and Charity Navigator. That way, when you do have a potential donor on your site, he or she will be able to find all important info about your group right away and without too much work on their part. Make it easy for them to get information about your group, so they feel confident to make a donation!

Once you have all your info readily available, create social networking accounts, like a Facebook Page, connect your online and offline marketing strategies, and keep improving your website!

Note: Regardless which option you choose, we recommend you consult your legal adviser before accepting any donations online.

Related posts:

• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 1
• PayPal Donate Buttons Illegal in Florida?
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 2
• The Basics Of Running An Online Auction Fundraiser

You can now download our fundraising app – it’s free!

Or search for ‘fundraising ideas’ on your iPhone, iPod or iPad. Please do leave your review within the app store! If you have any questions or suggestions, please comment below.

Note: If you’ve clicked over from Apple’s website, please ask any questions in the comments below.

To read more about how we got started making this app, click over to Mobile App on a Small Budget. If you’re curious about getting your own mobile app, read Are You Considering a Mobile App for Your Non-Profit?

Our fundraising app

Since it’s a do-it-yourself service, Appmakr.com doesn’t provide endless features, but the ones it does provide are essential and are pretty good! For example, if you have a WordPress blog, or any other kind of blog, you can simply add your feeds to deliver your articles.

We’ve used our most popular feeds and added tabs for fundraising ideas, internet related articles (like this one), fundraising letters and our main feed to browse through latest articles. We’ve also added one static About page. Very simple!

As mentioned in another article about mobile apps, you don’t need an app if you want people to be able to access your site on a mobile device. If you’re running a blog, you can simply install a plug-in to format your blog for mobile access and you’re all set.

The advantage of having an app is that your website, your group and message can be marketed through a whole new channel that millions of people all over the world have access to. Another advantage is that you could add functionality to your app that your website can’t offer, like location services, push notifications etc.

Are you ready to create an app with Appmakr.com? Here is what you need to know or do to get started:

1. Learn about what a ‘feed’ is and how it works. ‘RSS’, ‘feed’, RSS feed’ etc. all stand for the same functionality. If you have a blog that uses WordPress, or you’ve signed up for a blog through Blogger or Blogspot for example, your blog already has a feed which is marked by this familiar icon

(More about feeds.)

A feed automatically broadcasts any article you post through different channels: it let’s the search engines know that you have a new post, it triggers emails to your blog subscribers if you’re signed up through a service like Feedburner, it sends your article to anyone who has signed up to your blog’s feed with a feed reader, and it also broadcasts your articles to any place that you’ve added your feed to, like this free app, and also websites that allow you to add your feed.

For example, the feed address to our articles is http://www.fundraisingip.com/fundraising/feed.

You will be asked for your feed URL when you create your app. Yours may simply look like this http://www.yourblogsURL.com/feed. You can also add feeds for different categories of your blog, which would look like this http://www.yourblogsURL.com/category/feed. Go ahead and try it out with your blog’s web address!

You can also add your photo feed from sites like Flickr, a location feed, simple static pages, or your Ning social network (for a fee).

2. If you simply want to add static pages, you have to know some HTML to format your pages. A good place to start learning for free is w3schools.com. In fact, this is a great website to learn about any web related technology for free!

3. Create graphics for your mobile app: this includes a button that will appear in the app store at 512×512 pixels, a welcome screen or splash screen at 640×960 pixels and a header graphic at 640×88 pixels.

4. Sign up for an iOS Apple Developer Account at $99 per year. This is the only expense that you can’t get around. In order to get your app into the app store you have to have this account and you have to renew it every year.

Important: Appmakr.com has a functionality in place so that you don’t necessarily need an Apple computer to create the app on their website, but to actually upload the app to the Apple store you need a Mac.

5. Within Appmakr.com you will be asked to create Developer and Distribution Certificates in your Apple Developer account and upload them to Appmakr.com. You have to make sure you follow the instructions to a ‘t’ and in the right sequence, otherwise it won’t work. We had already unsuccessfully tried a few times when a developer friend recommended to delete every certificate we had created and then simply start from scratch. Then it worked!

You can sign up with Appmakr.com to do this part for you, but it can be pricey. It still may be worth it to you to have your app out there.

Bottom line for creating your mobile app in Appmakr.com:

If you know a little bit of HTML and feeds and can get the graphics done yourself, the process is pretty simple and your only expense will be the $99. If what you just read is all new to you, you can still get your app done by hiring a graphic designer to do the simple graphics (should be fairly inexpensive) and a programmer through a site like oDesk.com to help with the process of creating the certificates (this should also be inexpensive, because you’re not asking them to program anything).

If you don’t want to deal with any of the above, you can simply hire Appmakr.com to do it all for you! (We’re Not affiliated with Appmakr.)

Whichever way you decide to go, or if you have questions, please let us know in the comments!

Related posts:

• Mobile App On A Small Budget
• Are You Considering a Mobile App for Your Non-profit?
• Google For Non-Profits, Mobile App, and Other Updates
• Video Volunteers, Mobile Phones And Your Cause
• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service

Raising funds in the form of in-kind donations may not be as straight forward as simply asking for cash, but can be lucrative and help your group through a slump when cash donations don’t meet expectations. However, in-kind donations are not just an alternative to cash donations, but should be considered year round as an additional way to complement your regular fundraising activities.

(Ideas on where to get in-kind donations.)

Make it easy for the donor to give to you

- The easier you make it for the donor, the more donations you will get. If you have restrictions on when you can pick up items for example, you’re already putting a strain on the donor. Don’t make your donor change his or her schedule – change your schedule to accommodate your donor’s.

- If you nit-pick through items that aren’t perfect, you may come across as not appreciative. Present yourself and your cause as being grateful for the donations you are receiving, even if they’re not perfect. Especially when you first start out, it’s important to keep an open mind and just go with the flow. In time you’ll be able to identify which companies or industries generally have the most useful items to give away.

- If you have room for storage, consider taking items that a donor would like to give you, but you don’t necessarily have any use for. You’ll be doing them a favor and you can sell the items or trade them later on. Just make sure the donor knows that you may be selling them. If you go this route, you have to also make sure you have the volunteer resources to handle and sell these items.

A great example of an organization that takes in-kind donations is Habitat for Humanity. They take just about any building material or home related item. They will happily pick up items from your home or business, store them, and, if they have no immediate need for them, resell them in their ReStores resale outlets to raise funds. If you have a ReStore location nearby, you may be able to pick up some low cost supplies or furniture you may need.

Ways to use in-kind donations

- Support your cause directly. The most popular way is probably using donated goods to help individuals directly, like collecting and donating gently used clothing or canned foods. But whatever your cause may be, you may be able to get the materials you need donated: donated roof shingles and nails to fix up a house for a returning vet; donated trash bags for a river clean-up, etc.

- Offset your operation expenses. This of course depends on what you’ll be able to get donated. But if you can tailor your search for in-kind donations that directly offset office expenses like a computer, printer, paper and other office supplies, you’ll be able to free up more donated funds that can go directly to your cause. Professional services, donated meeting space and public service announcements also usually count as in-kind donations.

- Sell donated goods to raise cash. If you’re planning on holding a silent auction for example, you may be able to solicit donated products, event tickets and so on from local businesses. New businesses may be especially eager to donate goods, gift cards or gift baskets to get their name out.

You may also have a source that can give you good quality items (whatever they may be) that you have no use for. Do not turn these items down. Assuming you have a place to store them, use these items to trade for other items (you can use your local Freecycle group), or you can sell them outright on sites like eBay, or through classifieds. Be sure you let your donor know that you may sell the items for cash or trade them in.

Advertise your need

This may be obvious, but can easily be overlooked! Start with good old fashioned networking with your personal and business contacts and make it known what items you’re looking for. Advertise in your local classifieds, your newsletter, emails, website, your social networking accounts and so forth. You may also have local mixers or meet-ups available to you that are organized by the city or private parties for the purpose of networking and exchanging information.

Simply asking for what you need may be all it takes to attract generous donors. If you run a non-profit, remind donors that their donations might be tax deductible, and that they’ll receive a mention in your newsletter.

Don’t forget to publish a “wish-list” of items that would be useful to you, but leave it open for other items as well, as you may be surprised what can turn up!

Show your appreciation

Beyond saying thank you and sending a thank you note, keep in mind that everyone loves to get something for free! So what can you offer your donors in return for their donations that’s easy for you to give? Considering offering free advertising in your print or email newsletters, your website, a shout out on your social networking accounts, fliers etc. For someone who donates consistently to you every year, consider reserving a special place for them in your newsletter, or give them more advertising space, if it’s feasible.

(Image: iStockPhoto)

Documenting in-kind donations

For each in-kind donation you receive, issue a receipt that the donor can keep with their files and keep copies of the receipts and a list of in-kind donations for your own files as well. This will make it much easier for both parties come tax time.

The receipt will act as an acknowledgement that a donation was given/received and should include the name of the person who gave you the donation, their signature, date, description of the item (and possibly a photo), location of the donation and your group’s information. The actual valuation that will be reported to the IRS by each party is up to each party. Consult a tax professional to determine the value of the donated items and expected depreciation, or read IRS publication 561. IRS Publication 526 has information on what type of donations can be deducted.

If your group is not a registered non-profit be sure to disclose this fact well in advance and before any donation takes place. If you’re honest and up front you may receive a donation anyway.

Managing donated items

Because you may be dealing with used items, or items that have been stored for a while, an important consideration for in-kind donations is safety and usability. For example, if you take furniture, opt for the non-upholstered kind, unless you know for sure an upholstered sofa was stored in a clean location and isn’t infested with bugs. You should never take any pillows or other personal items that could cause some kind of infection or infestation. It’s not recommended to take used car seats for children unless you’re sure they’ve never been in an accident. When taking a used computer, make sure all information from the previous owner has been deleted. In short, consider where the items have come from and where and how they’re going to be used.

Initially, asking for in-kind donations will take some effort and strategy, just like asking for cash donations. But in time you will have the frame work of another great way to support your cause in good times and bad. Don’t leave this opportunity to support your cause on the table! If you make looking for in-kind donations a part of your regular fundraising strategy, you will not only help your charitable group succeed, but you will also give more opportunities for people to get to know you and give to your group.

What are some in-kind donations you have received? Please share with us and leave your answer in the comments below!

Related posts:

• In-Kind Donations and Low Cost Products and Services for Your Group – Part 1
• 5 Low-Cost, No-Cost Fundraiser Ideas
• 5 More Low-Cost, No-Cost Fundraising Ideas!
• Low Cost And No Cost Marketing Tools For Your Fundraiser
• Don’t Forget About These Simple And Low Cost Fundraisers You Can Run With Few Resources And Few Volunteers

Asking for in-kind donations isn’t as straight forward as asking for cash, but will be another way to support your cause: when funds are hard to come by, in-kind donations will be a source of support for your group; when your funds are sufficient, it takes the strain off of your budget and allows you to fund more projects.

For the sake of simplicity, we’re combining resources for in-kind donations and for very low cost products and services in this article. Generally, donated items and donated professional services count as in-kind donations.

Following are some considerations and ideas about in-kind donations and low cost products and services:

Places to find free or low-cost items

- Store closures: when stores close, and after their initial sale, the owners are often anxious to get rid of remaining inventory, clean out the space and leave. You may get a hold of free shelves, signs, cash registers, computers, desks and more. Even if you can’t get these items completely free, you can usually get them for pennies on the dollar. Be sure to be ready to pick up items on the spot, so have a truck with you and helpers to load it if you’ll be getting bulkier items.

- Manufacturers: stop by your local Chamber of Commerce, or search online and find out what is being manufactured nearby. You may be able to get products donated that directly help your cause, depending on the manufacturers in your area. (For example, supplies for your school’s music department, or flooring for your new youth center?) Even if their products aren’t directly useful for your cause, you may be able to get other materials like plastic wrap, boxes, paper, imperfects, etc. that you can use for your office operations.

- Offices: you may already know someone who works in a large office. Find out if they have any discards from presentations or proposals. Often there will be excess paper, binders, folders or other materials that are not needed anymore once a project is finished. Rather than throwing these things away, they may be happy to hand them off to you. Maybe you can make arrangements to come by once a month to pick up any of their reusable or recyclable materials.

- Copy shops: they may have paper left over from a special order, supplies that were ordered but never used, materials for signs and so on. Speak with the manager and see what you could take off their hands and use for your cause. It may save you money and give them a tax write-off.

- New Stores and businesses: if you’re planning on having a silent auction for example, local stores and businesses may be willing to donate items, event tickets and gift cards for gift baskets. This would be a great way for them to get the word out about their products or services while helping a good cause.

- ReStores resale outlets, Goodwill etc.: these stores don’t offer free items, but any store that takes donations will have incredible deals on the items on their shelves. For larger purchases they may be willing to give you an even better deal.

- Taprootfoundation.org: Taprootfoundation.org you can apply to receive pro bono professional consultation services if you’re within the Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. metro areas.

- Wholesale stores and outlets: you may find sharply marked down sale items, or get free supplies like plastic and paper bags that have been used to ship items and are not needed any more. Sometimes outlets will even discard unsold merchandise. Yes, some companies will throw away unsold merchandise (incl. clothing, food), because it may cost too much to dispose or recycle the items otherwise. Make it easy for them to donate to your group and you may make a big difference in your group’s budget.

- Other charitable groups: maybe there is another charitable group you can share resources with, even if it’s just display tables for a fundraising event.

- Your local Freecycle group: sign up for your local Freecycle group and see if you can get any items that will help your cause, or if you can trade items you don’t need. Like any other site that offers free items, be careful who you’re dealing with. The group’s manager may not scrutinize new members or not manage the group very well which can make using your local Freecycle group challenging. It may be worth a try though, especially if you need specific items on a regular basis.

- Try Listia: a website that works like eBay but without the exchange of money. List items you don’t need to receive credits which you can then use to ‘buy’ items you need. Granted, Listia offers lots of collectibles and other small items, but there are also electronics like DVD players, cameras, computers and small furniture. You currently get 450 free points for signing up.

- Individuals: one of the most popular in-kind donations are food items which are often asked for from individuals. But supporters maybe be more than happy to donate other items as well. If you advertise your need on your website, your email list or a local newspaper, someone may come forward with the item(s) you’ve been asking for.

(Image: iStockPhoto/mangostock)

You could also ask for professional services as in-kind donations. Accountants, tax professionals and consultants may be willing to donate their time and services to help you out.

- GrassRoots.org: Grassroots.org provides web services like hosting, web design and consultations to non-profits.

- Volunteer sites: You could try volunteer sites like Idealist.org or Volunteermatch.org to not just find volunteers, but also to find someone who might donate their professional services.

Other places for finding free or low-cost items: any outlet store, restaurants, local contractors and builders for residential homes, designers, auctions, public sales of abandoned storage spaces, local classifieds, paint stores.

What sort of in-kind donations you can ask for

This will depend much on what your cause is, but some items (like gift cards) are universally useful:

- Universal: coupons, gift cards (even $5), tickets/passes to events (for auctions), empty ink cartridges
- To help individuals: clothing new and gently used, school supplies, furniture, tools and supplies for home repair, toys, housewares, pet food, professional services
- For your office: paper, pens, pencils, trash bags, computer, printer, paint, professional services

There may be items for in-kind donations that you haven’t thought of yet: Find out what kind of manufacturers are nearby, browse a Freecycle group, or post an ‘open’ request on your website and your other communications. Someone may want to donate a valuable item and need help determining its value (get official appraisal), or transporting it to you.

For more tips on in-kind donations, please click over to part 2.

What are some in-kind donations you have received? Where have you been able to get valuable in-kind donations? Please share with us and leave your answer in the comments below!

Related posts:

• In-Kind Donations and Low Cost Products and Services For Your Group – Part 2
• 5 More Low-Cost, No-Cost Fundraising Ideas!
• 5 Low-Cost, No-Cost Fundraiser Ideas
• Low Cost And No Cost Marketing Tools For Your Fundraiser
• Don’t Forget About These Simple And Low Cost Fundraisers You Can Run With Few Resources And Few Volunteers

Whether your program is teaching kids about growing vegetables in a school garden, playing sports, or art for the purpose of emotional healing, the challenge is the same: to make potential donors understand the importance of your program, even if they don’t have children or don’t feel it’s important.

(More about donation request letters, including free to copy sample donation request letters.)

Helping your potential donor understand

Because not everyone understands the purpose of after schools programs you will have to explain. Launching directly into talking about your programs may make the topic too impersonal and distant from the reader’s experience. It may be better to start out with a specific personal story, or a detail about your program that many may not have thought of.

Because personal stories that talk about specific individuals who have benefited from such programs make the subject of after school programs more real, they take the reader from thinking about donating to a ‘program’ to donating to ‘individuals in need.’ Taking this a step further, give examples about how after school programs can ‘help the whole community’ and not just individuals. For example, after school programs may help kids stay in school, give them inspiration to achieve more and thus become highly productive members of the community.

Grab your reader’s attention

But before trying to get your message across, get your readers attention with a catchy opening. If someone takes the time to open your letter and take a look, he or she may not make it past the first few lines if there is nothing interesting or novel for them to read. A heartfelt or otherwise intriguing opening may just hold their attention for a few more lines. Make your letter worth their time.

Provide general details

Once the reader has a more personal involvement in the need for after school programs then you can give a brief but thorough general overview of what your after school programs do and who they are for. Relay this information only after you have tried to make your potential donors understand the importance of your after school programs. Do give enough details to show that you are running your group in a professional manner and that any potential donors can trust you will use their donations wisely.

Tell your potential supporters what their donation will do

Just as you made after school programs personal with individual stories, make it real again by telling the reader what their donations will do. You want your donors to know exactly what their money will be spent on. If they can imagine their money helping people in need then they will give it.

Keep asking for what you want

You do not want to overdo your requests for donations but do not be afraid to ask more than once. In fact, your requests should be spread throughout your letter so that the thought of giving stays in your readers’ minds. Ask from the beginning and ask after you make points about why these donations are so important. You need to find that delicate balance where you do not ask too often but you ask enough that your reader never forgets why they are learning how essential after school programs are.

A donation request letter for an after school program is an exercise in helping people understand. Not everyone knows why these programs are so important. You have to help them see just how much a donation to your after school program can help not just individuals, but also your community as a whole.

Related posts:

• How To Write A Donation Request Letter For Youth Arts And Sports Programs
• How To Write A Donation Request Letter For An Animal Charity
• Sample Donation Request Letter To Parents
• Write: Thank You For Donation Letter
• Template For A Donation Request Letter

Google’s updated non-profit suite of products

Google has re-launched a suite of products and services tailored to the needs of non-profits. If you’ve created videos for your non-profit before, or used Google Apps, now you can make use of all these services under one roof and with special enhancements relevant to non-profits.

Google has added online training videos, case studies and offers a one-stop application for all its non-profit services. If you get approved you may qualify for up to $10,000 a month in free Google Adwords advertising, free or discounted Google Apps (depending on the size of your organization), premium YouTube features and mapping technologies to help raise awareness of your cause.

For more information on Google for Non-Profits, click over to Google’s blog. In order to qualify for this program you must have current 501(c)(3) status.

Related: Is it time to turn your PTO into an official non-profit?

Do you have a Twitter or Facebook account?

You can follow our updates on Twitter and now also through our brand new Facebook page! Our Twitter updates also contain volunteer opportunities available through Idealist.org. To receive our updates vie email, click over to our subscriber options.

Did you know…

…that we update our articles on the site as new information becomes available? For example, our article on the 15 Most Popular Online Fundraising Services has been updated several times already, because some services shut down and new ones have spring up. We do this because one goal for our site is to create a reference for you that’s easy to use and isn’t cluttered with outdated information.

Another example of a continuously updated article is the one on how to Create a Website. As services have changed and blogs become the standard for websites, we’ve updated this article to reflect the most current information available. Having said that, if you see something on our site that you think could use an overhaul, please let us know through our contact page! (Browse through all our articles or the latest ones.)

Our first app:

Have you been following our updates on creating our own iPhone app? We’ve finally been approved by Apple which means we can submit our app for inclusion in their app store! The first step for us is to test the app, then once it’s determined that it works the way it should work, we’ll submit it and hope that Apple will approve it right away.

Lesson learned: get registered for Apple’s iOS Developer Standard Program as soon as possible (you can enroll as an individual or company), because it can take a while to get approved. Also, learning about how the whole process works of testing the app, giving others (like developers or anyone else who might help you with this) access to your account and reading their terms will save you time once your app is ready to go. We’ll let you know as soon as our app is live and available for distribution!

Easter fundraisers:

Are you planning on holding an Easter fundraiser? For ideas click over to Easter Fundraiser – Do the Bunny Hop! and Easy Profits with an Easter Chocolate Fundraiser. Don’t forget to use one of our checklists to help plan your event!

Donating to Japan’s Disaster Relief Efforts

If you’re planning on making a donation for the victims of the disaster in Japan, get some information about the charity you’re considering on Charity Navigator. And while you’re there, be sure to check if the information on your own non-profit is correct and up-to-date.

Related posts:

• Our Fundraising Mobile App is Live!
• Mobile App On A Small Budget
• Are You Considering a Mobile App for Your Non-profit?
• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service
• How To Apply For The Google AdWords Advertising Grant

Admission

Admission is the first thing to consider when making money from a poker fundraiser. Offer ‘early bird’ pricing and a higher price for admission at the door. Be clear about how much of each admission will go into the ‘payout pot’ for prizes (the more people you expect, the more prizes you should offer) and how much will go towards your cause.

In order to keep as much admission income as possible, find an inexpensive place to rent, or team up with a restaurant that may like the additional exposure. When shopping around for an appropriate space don’t forget that you will need a gambling permit and that some public places may already have one.

Food And Beverage Earnings

Your food and beverage earnings can be a significant addition to your overall earnings. Think in terms of what your guests will enjoy and what you can actually provide. Make sure the food is high quality and diverse. Offer enough of a food selection to ensure that all guests find something to suit their taste.

See if you can partner up with a restaurant to secure lower prices on food. You can offer the restaurant great exposure and publicity in exchange for the lower prices that will improve your bottom line. Many restaurants would jump at the chance to help a good cause.

If you decide not to partner with a restaurant, or you’re planning for a more casual event, consider partnering up with one or more of the popular food truck companies. You could offer several types of food, like burgers, Chinese, or cup cakes and you’d only have to make sure you provide a place for them to set up and enough garbage and recycling cans. The food truck companies could donate a percentage of their earnings and would receive great exposure for their businesses.

As for beverages, these can easily be a lucrative enterprise with all the excitement of poker chips being brazenly bid and both winning and losing hands hitting the table throughout your event. Consider very carefully if you should offer any alcohol, especially since this kind of event will probably last longer than just a couple of hours. If people get out of hand, it will show up in the news the next day.

Business Sponsorships

This is a fantastic way to raise money. Company sponsorships allow you to tap into the resources that are right in your community. Businesses can pay a certain amount of money to sponsor a poker table, buy advertising in a printed newsletter, on a website, or a banner.

Each business could have a small trinket (key chain, mugs, etc.) or other branded item, that dealers can hand out to the players. This way businesses get some quality advertising and your fundraiser has more money coming in. If a business decides to sponsor a table, make sure that their donation covers the cost of that table and the dealer working it.

You could go one step further and have sponsors create their own custom made poker chips or even table felts that are emblazoned with company logos. These items help to make sure that each sponsor’s presence is visible throughout the whole event. You may have to be aggressive in your pursuit of business sponsorship if you want to secure highly profitable ones but a few of the right sponsorships can make your event an even bigger success that you had thought possible.

Raffle Tickets

Depending on your local laws, you may also be able to sell raffle tickets. See if you can get prizes donated in exchange for some free publicity. All the income from the sale of the raffle tickets could then go to your cause as well.

A poker fundraiser can raise money in a number of ways. As you’re weighing your options, consider the cost of each feature or line item on your to-do list and how and if you can get it covered through donations or volunteer time first. Good planning plays a big part in how much money you will raise and maybe one of our checklist’s would be useful to you. The bottom line is that the more involved you get in the process and the more initiative you take the more funds you will raise. In the end all this effort will stack the deck in your cause’s favor!

Related posts:

• Make Money With a Valentine’s Day Fundraiser
• Organizing A Raffle Fundraiser
• Let The Games Begin: A Carnival Fundraiser
• Silent Auction Fundraiser
• Different Ways To Fundraise With Pizza!

Before creating and marketing the DVD montage, it is very important to get legal consent from the parents of the members of the sports team, as well as the members of the team. Depending on the school and the laws of your state, failure to get legal consent could put the school, you, and the people taking the photographs in serious legal trouble. If possible, ask the parents, and the team members to sign a release form at the time of signup at the beginning of the season. Be sure to identify which student the parent is signing off!

1.) Gathering the photos:

Assuming your crowd is actively engaged in Facebook, Flickr, or another form of photo uploading services, this is incredibly easy. Simply download high-resolution versions (with permission from the photo-taker!) of the photos they upload to these services. You could also have the community submit their photos to an email address. Several area schools have the local newspaper taking photos of the game; by offering credit to the company and asking them for permission you could use their photos to get some excellent shots.

2.) Marketing the product:

Announcing your plans for the product is doubly important because it will get people involved in the production process through submission of their photos and videos from each game and help generate more sales once the DVD is completed. Post signs and sign up sheets where the crowd will see them! Be sure to send a purchase form with the football team, as well. Chances are good that most of the purchases will come from the families of the players on the football team, so advertise to them when possible.

At the end of the season, (or during the tournaments,) start marketing the finished product, offering it over the counter. Another time to sell the montage over-the-counter is during the awards banquet. People tend to be a little more prone to purchasing a product when they can receive it right away. If possible, display a sample of the unfinished product during each game. Have the announcer make mention of the product during halftime and before each game. Also be sure to be active on Facebook. Show off some of the photos for the finished product online and constantly encourage the public to get involved! Doing things like asking what kind of music should be played can make all the difference.

3.) Creating the product:

If you’re running windows, you can create the montage using Windows Movie Maker. If you’re on a Mac you can use iMovie. As long as you organize the photos and videos throughout the season you can have a completed video with music, videos, photos, and effects in a matter of hours.

Creating the cover for your case can be tricky, but there are several places online that provide templates for creating accurate designs. I advise using the ultraslim DVD case style because the printing only requires paper in letter-sized sheets (rather than legal-sized); and this will save you money when it’s time to print. Print test sheets to make sure that you have the cover cut to the right size; then have a professional print the proper amount of covers you will need at the end of the season.

4.) The music

It is highly recommended that you use royalty-free music. There are several great websites, as well as label-free artists that will be more than happy to see their music put to use like this. You can find a lot of these artists at soundclick.com. It’s recommended that you start the search for music early on, since finding the right song can prove to be somewhat time-consuming. Always be sure to contact the artist for permission to use their music, and be sure to give credit where credit is due.

If you’re looking for more information on choosing the proper music, please visit Choosing Photos, and Music for Your Montage.

Getting started:

-Your sign up sheet needs to ask for the name, address, phone number and signature for each contributor. A line of communication between you and the contributor is important.

-Create release forms for photographers and subjects with room for signatures of parents and kids

-Working on the montage and case throughout the season is advised, because it will give you more time to make adjustments. Doing so will also give you material to advertise on a screen during the games. Also, if the montage can be completed before the end of the season, selling copies over-the-counter will help boost sales.

-Be sure to mention that the proceeds will support the team.

-Create a minimum of 5 extra copies of the montage. You never know when you’re going to have a last-second order.

Generation-X Albums created a montage for a local school. If you’re looking for some ideas, help, or are ready to get this fundraiser started, feel free to contact Generation X Albums through their website.

Related posts:

• CD Fundraiser
• Fundraisers To Raise Funds And Team Spirit
• Fundraising: Creating A Page On Facebook
• All Wrapped Up: Fundraising With Gift Wraps And Greeting Cards

But how can you convince donors to give more than just a few dollars? What kind of information should you make readily available and how should you present it? What would donors like to know before they’re willing to make a larger donation?

Relevance:

Is your group relevant in a way that it makes a real difference in society? Unless you’re raising funds for an individual or a specific short term goal, does your group affect a larger group of people? If a potential donor feels that your cause isn’t really needed they will not come forth with support.

If the group benefiting from your cause is somewhat limited, it is especially important to lay out all the good that you’re doing in a way that shows how your cause doesn’t just benefit a seemingly small group of people, but how it benefits the community as a whole. In other words, spend some time explaining the big picture. After all, helping the disadvantaged or needy within a group doesn’t just benefit them, there is always a domino effect whereas others are helped and supported as well, directly or indirectly.

Activities and people:

Does your group have a blog? Do you regularly report about your activities and how you make a difference in your community and in the world? This plays right into the previous point: if you continuously report on your activities and the good you do, your cause will become much more relevant to potential donors. And don’t think you should only report on successes. By also writing about the challenges you face every day, your cause goes from being just words to becoming a group of individuals working hard to make a difference in the world.

If you do have a blog (or other website) make sure you include proper terms of use and a privacy policy which includes information about how you manage names, email addresses, and other information collected through the site. Your website is also an excellent place to add information about your board members, staff and volunteers.

A well run website or blog with lots of information about your activities, staff and volunteers will give your supporters a broad picture of what your group is all about. Be sure to continuously update your site.

(If you need a website with or without a blog, read Create A Website.)

Financials:

Are you clearly stating your financial information on your website and in print documents meant for interested parties? If your financial information is too hard to find or to decipher and a potential donor feels that you might not want to share them, it will be a turnoff. Make your finances easy to access and explain your numbers. Also display and link to your most recently filed IRS Form 990.

If some expenses seem high, explain why they’re high: maybe you’ve incurred a higher outlay because of a major repair. If you explain that donor money wasn’t wasted, but why some program, administrative or fundraising expenses turned out higher than expected, most donors will appreciate your honesty. If the extra expenses are justified, they will still give.

If your group is a registered non-profit, have all your reports been properly filed? Can supporters go to a third party website to find out more about your group if they choose? Simply staying on top of tasks you’re supposed to do anyway will make a difference and will give you an edge over others who don’t have their accounting in order.

Your to-do-list:
Maybe you already have some or most of these points in place – congratulations! Then you could simply make a to-do list of what kind of other information you’d like to add to your website and marketing materials and how you’d like to change the way your information is currently presented. Be sure you add information about what you’d like staff and volunteers to say when prompted about your cause. What are they currently telling potential and current supporters? Is the information they have about your cause up-to-date and relevant?

Also think about your own giving: Which organizations have you donated to in the past and why? Or why have you decided not to give a specific group? Take these clues from your own behavior and consider them in your group’s strategy.

By making sure you offer enough and sought-after information about your cause you instill a sense of trust in your supporters and assure that they feel comfortable and confident giving to your cause now and in the future.

Related posts:

• Motivating Volunteers & Donors: Show What You’re About
• Motivating Volunteers & Donors: Get The Word Out And Increase Profits
• Let It Be Known… Recognizing Charitable Donors
• How to Encourage People to Donate to Your Cause
• Tweak Your Group’s Website To Attract More Visitors

As you’re uncovering opportunities and gaining experience with these kind of fundraisers, be sure to record the information somewhere for the next set of volunteers to draw from. (Using swipe files…)

Rent a table at an event:

One of the easiest ways to have a mini fundraiser is to have a table or booth at an event. See if there are plans within your community for a carnival, race or other locally organized event this year. Your city or local government will have information on upcoming events and opportunities available to rent a table or space.

There may be restrictions on what you can sell, but that’s not a problem: you have to make sure whatever you decide to sell offers enough of a profit margin to make it worth your effort and the items you sell don’t conflict with the message of your cause. For example, if your cause has anything to do with the environment, or health, selling drinks in non-recyclable styrofoam cups would be an unwise choice. On the other hand, selling rulers or pencils made from recycled paper or denim would be a good fit.

If you need ideas, think of what would complement what others are selling at the event. That way you can eliminate or restrict competition for your items. It’s also important to find out what the demographic of the audience will be like and tailor your offerings accordingly.

Even if you’re not allowed to sell anything, consider setting up a table anyway. It may be worth having a presence to create a awareness for your cause, handing out free stuff customized with your group’s logo, or fliers with information of your cause and own upcoming event.

Preparing for this mini fundraiser: In order to take advantage of quickly arising opportunities, you need to have a foldout table, upright displays for current flyers, and a cash box ready to go. Depending on the product you will sell, identify sources were to get them quickly for this mini fundraiser: snacks and candy at a wholesale discount store, gift wrap also at wholesale stores or at craft stores etc. Having a supply of custom printed t-shirts at hand would be great, but may be too expensive for some groups. But how about pencils, or even cotton canvas bag and other supplies which can be bought fairly inexpensively through online sources like inkhead.com and stocked?

Selling snacks year round:

Where could you set up a small display of snack bars and a gumball/bulk snack machine? If you have a suitable high traffic area, consider selling a selection of snacks, including fairly healthy ones like nut and fruit bars, and even drinks. A strategically placed pistachio or small candy dispensing ‘gumball’ machine for example could yield $50 or more per week. Although this fundraiser counts on many small purchases and requires getting a display, once it’s set up this ongoing mini fundraiser only requires that the shelf or machine be periodically restocked. Be aware that many small snacks, nuts and candies pose a chocking hazard and should be handled with care around very young children. Also take into consideration that some people have allergies to nuts, especially peanuts.

Preparing for this mini fundraiser: Having some sort of display is necessary to keep things organized on a counter or a shelf. It doesn’t have to be expensive and can even consist of sturdy re-purposed office supplies. A good quality gumball machine that can also be used for other bulk snacks can be had for under $100. You may even consider investing in a vending machine, but the expense and upkeep may be to great if you have a small group. To restock shop at wholesale retail outlets, or take in-kind donations in the form of snacks and drinks for even greater profits.

Pet snapshots:

Even if you don’t run an animal related cause, taking pictures of family pets could be a lucrative mini fundraiser when piggybacked with another event. It’s important to have a photographer at the ready when an opportunity presents itself. You may even be able to get a photographer to donate part of his or her services in turn for displaying his or her name in your newsletters and on your website. Even if you’re not working with a professional photographer, make sure that the person you’re choosing has some skills in making the images look good: lighting, background and potentially props all need to be considered for a good picture.

But to make this truly a mini fundraiser, the pictures should be printed and sold on site. (Usually a ‘regular’ portrait fundraiser requires that you charge upfront and then schedule your supporters to have the images taken.) You’ll be able to take advantage of the spontaneity and even give people the choice to buy or not to buy the image, if you have a digital camera. If you make this an annual or otherwise recurring event, people will remember the great pictures they’ve received and will be likely to come back the next time.

Preparing for this mini fundraiser: Have available one or two photographers you’ve worked with before. When an opportunity comes up, make sure the photographer has flyers and information about your group that can be displayed at the event. The photographer needs to have a digital camera, a photo printer, possibly a laptop, a table, supplies like paper and ink and needs to be near a power source. A volunteer to help with set up etc. is also necessary.

50/50 Raffle:

Some groups hold a 50/50 raffle at every meeting they have in order to raise as much money as possible. This doesn’t have to be a public event. The idea is this: Sell raffle tickets at the door/at a booth of your event/meeting/gathering with the understanding that the winner will be drawn before the event is over. The winner gets 50% of all the money that is raised. The rest goes to the organization. All you really need is a roll of the double-sided raffle tickets. The winner must be present when the winning ticket is called.

Preparing for this mini fundraiser: In order to hold any kind of raffle, make sure you comply with local laws and get legal advice if necessary. This is the most important part to consider before you start. Other than that, all you need is tickets, a cash box and a volunteer to sell the tickets.

How many in the jar?

This is another mini fundraiser that’s easy to manage and perfect as an add-on to another fundraiser or an ongoing fundraiser. You fill a jar with something small (marbles, chocolates, etc) and sell tickets for a chance to guess how many are inside the jar. The longer you can leave the jar, the more money you’ll collect, so this one works best just sitting on the counter at your organization. Make sure participants fill out their full contact details when entering guesses. You can make the actual counting of the items another event and another opportunity to raise funds. There should be at least two or three volunteers counting at the event to make sure sure you get an accurate number.

Preparing for this mini fundraiser: This simple fundraiser may also require that you check your local laws first, to see if it falls under any complex gambling rules. Then all you need is a see through jar and something fun to fill it with. Make sure that whatever you use is small enough to present a challenge when guessing the amount, but large enough to make it possible to easily count it. You’ll also need some tickets to collect contact information. This may also be a great opportunity to add addresses to your e-mail list.

As you can see the opportunities for a mini fundraiser can be endless. They require some planning, but once they’re in place, running several mini fundraisers per year with some of them on an ongoing basis provides another opportunity to fill some of the holes in your group’s budget.

(Image: ©iStockPhoto/PeterAlbrektsen, photo-dave)

Related posts:

• Ideas For Holiday Fundraisers
• Church Fundraising Ideas
• 5 Low-Cost, No-Cost Fundraiser Ideas
• Ways To Make Money With A Poker Fundraiser
• Portrait Photography Fundraiser

So let’s get started: In order to get our mobile app done for free or a low budget, we’ve been looking for do-it-yourself ways on the internet. We’re going for an iPhone app, since they’re currently the most popular.

Creating our first mobile app!

To keep it simple, the plan for our very first mobile app is mainly to deliver our content and to make it easier to access our articles via mobile devices.

If you’re planning on creating a mobile app just to make your website easier to read on mobile devices, you actually don’t have to have an app. You can simply install a mobile plugin if you have a WordPress blog, or you can create a mobile style sheet and add it to your website. The advantage of having a mobile app is that you can offer it through Apple’s iTunes store which means your content is being presented to a much wider audience compared to simply offering it in another format on the web.

As we’re trying to do this on a small budget, we’ve decided to give the online app maker service Appmakr a try. Note that you can use Appmakr only for apps that deliver content from a site that has blogging software installed, or uses a feed in some way.

So if you have a blog on your group’s website, you can use this service to make your own app!

Once you log in to Appmakr, (registration is free) it asks for a graphic for a splash screen in 640X960 .png format (the screen that shows when you open the app) and a 512X512 .png button for the icon that will appear on the iPhone.

You can also change the font color, header bars and make some other tweaks. The site gives you the option to add push notifications (a message pops up when a new article is published, even if the app isn’t open) and advertising. There are also lots of videos to help you through the process. When you’re done you can even have Appmakr submit the app for you for a fee.

We will submit it ourselves which means we had to open an Apple Developer account for $99 per year. You can use all of Apple’s software and resources for free, but in order to submit your app for approval and to distribute it through their app store and iTunes, you have to have an Apple Developer account.

To get our splash screen (first screen when you open up the app) and buttons we’ve decided to work with a designer to make sure the app will look professional. Appmakr displays links to professionals who can help you design your app, or you could look for a designer through one of the many freelance websites, like ODesk.com, or vWorker.com. There isn’t that much to design, so if you know a graphic designer, he or she may even do it for free.

The design work for our app will be done this week, but then it still needs to be tested and sent to Apple for approval. So far our only expense has been the $99 for the Apple Developer Program (which includes all kinds of software, how-to videos and sample code) and whatever our designer will charge us.

Here’s a screenshot of one of the pages inside Appmakr:

We will keep you updated on the progress!

Update: It’s been 2 weeks since we’ve applied for the Apple Developer Program. We’ve had to send some forms and are waiting for approval. Maybe applying for the program should be one of the first things on your to-do-list, since it can take a while.

Have you tried Appmakr yet? Please let us know in the comments!

Related posts:

• Our Fundraising Mobile App is Live!
• Are You Considering a Mobile App for Your Non-profit?
• Google For Non-Profits, Mobile App, and Other Updates
• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service
• Video Volunteers, Mobile Phones And Your Cause

So often, nonprofit organizations are looking to “hit it big” with large grants from big, well-known foundations.

The competition for those grants is fierce and an organization can spend countless hours tracking and applying for these grants that they may have little chance of getting.

Instead, a tighter focus on a secret source of local grant money is a very effective strategy to pursue.

But what is this fantastic local resource? It’s your community foundation!

What is a Community Foundation?

A community foundation is usually a not-for-profit corporation set up to act as a manager for funds from multiple donors with multiple interests. Despite the number of donors and wide-ranging interest areas, there is a common theme – the funds are intended to benefit a specific geographic region.

Donors establish funds for a wide variety of purposes, ranging from scholarships, to benefiting specific charities, to supporting a particular cause. Other funds have been allocated for an area of interest (for example, animal welfare, community theater groups, or education), while other funds are for unrestricted grant making.

The real secret about community foundations is that they don’t often make big splashy announcements about their grant deadlines, and they don’t always make information about all the funds they manage obvious to the casual observer. But a little homework in this area can really pay off for your organization:

1. Let’s assume you are starting at the very beginning of your research. First, find your local community foundation. The easiest way to do this is through an internet search, just type in your city or county name, followed by the term “community foundation”.

2. Once you’ve located a foundation, first review their geographical area of concentration to make sure that your organization will qualify for funding. If your city or unincorporated region does not have a community foundation, your county most likely does have one.

3. Now that you’ve located a foundation and confirmed your organization is within their region of interest, review their grant deadline dates and funds. A community foundation can have several grant deadlines throughout the year. Usually there are at least two deadlines during the year for the larger unrestricted funds. Then there may be several other deadlines for the smaller, more specific funds. The key is that these deadlines are recurring, meaning that once you’ve identified the application dates, they generally hold true year after year so you can plan your grant application schedule accordingly.

If you are having difficulty determining what the funds are and when applications are due, first check the website site map. This is generally a listing of the pages on the website and should give you a pretty big hint about what pages will contain applications and deadlines. If you still can’t find the information, contact the foundation staff for assistance. They are there to help you and a little relationship building with foundation staff never hurts.

4. Now, as with all grants that you are applying for, review the guidelines and application very carefully. The smaller, specialized funds may have their own guidelines and application, so be careful not to assume that the general foundation guidelines also apply to the smaller funds.

5. Once you have zeroed in on the foundation and researched the funds and guidelines, you’re ready to start writing those applications. And get ready for another “secret” about community foundations – they usually offer free grant writing courses, to help you with their application and with your overall grant writing skills. What a great resource!

—

By: Rachel Unell, Grant Gopher CEO. Drop by the GrantGopher website for the latest available grant announcements and free resources!

Related posts:

• Guidelines For Using Grant Money
• Finding The Right Grant Opportunities For You
• Grants: Find Free Government And Foundation Money For Your Non-Profit
• What Grant Foundations Are Looking For
• To Use Or Not To Use: Grant Writers

With more and more of us using smart phones it makes sense to consider using mobile technology to reach more people and more new potential supporters. It may be especially useful to connect with the younger generation in that way, who has been growing up with the internet in their pockets.

If you think increased usage of smart phones isn’t enough of a reason to take mobile traffic serious, then consider that statistics project that the number of users accessing the internet from their mobile devices will surpass the number of users who access it from their PCs within five years.

To be prepared to reach potential supporters through different channels on the internet, wouldn’t it then make sense to move at least part of your fundraising and marketing efforts to the mobile sector?

Can you use mobile apps to collect donations?

There’s been an ongoing debate and petition to Apple to allow non-profits to collect donations from mobile apps. Apple maintains that the reason for not allowing this functionality is because the process of weeding out legitimate applications from scammers’ apps is currently too complicated.

Having apps that make it easy to give from your phone would be a great way to harness a donor’s goodwill right when they’re ready to give; no need to wait to get to a PC! By then the potential donor may have forgotten about the plea for help all together. And going to an actual website from a mobile phone’s small screen to make a donation can also be cumbersome to the point where the donation simply is never made.

Hopefully Apple will figure out how to scrutinize bogus non-profit mobile apps from legitimate ones, but in the meantime, how else could you connect with mobile users?

So what else could you try?

If you already have a budget for an app, you could use an app itself to raise funds. You could create a useful, or simply fun game app and sell it or put it up for free in the app store. You could sell an app for 99 cents or more, but taking into account that currently the majority of downloads are still free apps, you may want to consider giving your app away for free as well.

Now you say it makes no sense to give the app away for free, but free apps can actually create income through advertising opportunities and also in-app purchases. If you currently own a smart phone and have downloaded some free apps, you can see first hand what kind of advertisers are prevalent and how the advertising is presented. Would this work for your own app? You’ll have to decide for yourself. (More about mobile apps and earnings potential.) Many free apps also offer the option to add on premium services for a fee, another way to create income from an app.

What kind of mobile app could you create?

It could be something as simple as creating an app that presents the content from your website. A simple game, or useful utility (f. ex. a price checker) would have a much wider appeal, but would also cost a lot more to create.

Since apps aren’t cheap to come by, maybe it’s possible to strike up a marketing partnership with an app developer? Think about it: a useful and/or fun app could be a great marketing tool and also create income. With so many people owning smart phones, who wouldn’t want to help by downloading a fun app for a good cause? We certainly would!

If you’ve already worked on fundraising partnerships in the past, your experience with getting sponsors and working with companies to promote each other will come in handy.

How much does it cost to build a mobile app?

As opposed to building a website as an interface to interact with visitors through a web browser, a mobile app is actually software that needs to be meticulously planned out, merged with design elements and tested. It needs to be updated as operating systems are updated and continuously managed and marketed.

Software development costs upwards of $100 per hour within the US. In other words, you need to have a pretty large budget to create and manage your own app. If you happen to have the budget for a mobile app, you have to ask yourself, how long it would take to earn the money back, and how you will keep it updated and interesting so people will actually keep using it.

Can you create a mobile app on a budget?

There are some affordable do-it-yourself services available (like appmakr.com) that let you build apps based on the content of your website. Note, that to get your website content formatted for mobile phones and displayed on a small screen, you don’t necessarily need to have a mobile app. You can simply use a plugin if you use WordPress for example (This is what we’re currently using. To try it out, go to http://www.fundraisingip.com/fundraising/ on your smart phone.), or have a mobile stylesheet created and added to your current website.

However, if you have your own mobile app, you’ll be able to market and distribute it (along with your content) through many more channels than if you simply make your website available for small mobile screens.

That’s why we’ve decided to try one of the do-it-yourself services available and report back to you with what we’ve learned! We’ll let you know what’s involved and how much it costs and how well it works. Look for more posts on this topic in upcoming weeks and months!

If you have already tried any of the free app creators out there, or have otherwise created or considered your own mobile app, please let us know in the comments.

Related posts:

• Mobile App On A Small Budget
• Our Fundraising Mobile App is Live!
• Google For Non-Profits, Mobile App, and Other Updates
• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service
• Video Volunteers, Mobile Phones And Your Cause

What was popular on FundraisingIP.com in 2010?

Our free checklists have continued to be very popular in 2010. Including our new social media strategy checklist, that together with our post Does Your Group Have A Social Media Strategy? offers ideas and helpful do’s and don’ts for groups getting started with social media.

Also popular this year:
>> How To Create a Website
>> List of Fundraising Ideas
>> Fundraising Events
>> Writing Fundraising Letters

Challenging year for raising funds creates new opportunities

2010 has been another tough year for raising funds. A sharp drop of donations at big charities is a reflection of what has been happening to smaller charities as well. To find new ways to raise funds, charities are using technologies like mobile phone apps to increase awareness and solicit donations (for example, search for Salvation Army Kettle and Bellringer apps in the iTunes apps store) and new commercial fundraising products are being developed, like SwipeGood, an ATM card that rounds up your purchase to the nearest dollar and donates the difference to charities.

The future of giving is also changing as more wealthy individuals are pledging more of their money for good causes. Bill Gates’ “Giving Pledge” has so far signed up 40 billionaires who have pledged to give away 50% of their wealth by the time they leave this world. And you’ve certainly heard of Mark Zuckerberg, one of the billionaires on the list and the founder of Facebook, who has decided to donate 100 million dollars right away to Newark schools.

Cause marketing campaigns by Target, Chase and Pepsi have been creating a buzz around winning charities but are still controversial because of how votes are solicited. Maybe the next generation of these campaigns will be more sophisticated and will benefit even more groups.

Mobile donations in 2011?

Charitable groups are anxiously hoping for Apple to clear the way for mobile apps that let them raise funds. The main issue holding Apple back from allowing these type of apps is that it currently has no way to track if donations go to legitimate charities. If Apple works to resolve this issue and in fact goes through with allowing donation apps in 2011, this will be another great fundraising opportunity for charities. You can sign a petition addressed to Steve Jobs to let charities collect donations via their mobile apps and devices.

Our own mobile app!

With all the changes going in charitable giving, we can all agree on one thing: that we can’t be static and keep relying solely on traditional fundraisers. We have to find new ways to harness donation dollars and get younger generations involved. One way of doing that is to take advantage of new technologies.

So we’ve decided that this year we will create our own mobile app and pass on all that we will learn about it to you, our readers! We figured the best way to learn and write about this topic is to actually do it. So if you’re stuck with your traditional fundraisers, because you don’t know where to start with all this new technology available, keep an eye out for our posts on mobile apps. This is new for us as well and we will start out with simple options that won’t break the bank.

We thank all of you for your continued interest, support and feedback and wish you a great new year 2011!

Related posts:

• 2009 Recap: New Challenges, New Ways To Raise Funds
• 2011 Recap: Diversification Important for Fundraisers
• In The News: Record Profits, Mobile Donations – Using SMS To Raise Funds, New Online Fundraising Service
• 2008 Recap: Most Popular On FundraisingIP.com
• Are You Considering a Mobile App for Your Non-profit?

FundraisingIP.com is a free site and our sponsors and advertisers help us to keep it that way!

Specifically we’d like to thank the following:

Mountain Mama’s Kitchen: Mountain Mama’s soy candles come in all kinds of delicious scents like ‘Very Vanilla’, ‘Fruit Slices’, ‘Holiday Spice’ and ‘Coconut Lime Verbena’. You can reach them through their site, or by calling 1-800-570-3664

Mountain Mama’s Kitchen also gives back to the community by being a member of 1% For The Planet,(blog) which means they contribute 1% of their sales to environmental groups.

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Funding Factory: Recycle your empty printer cartridges and used cell phones and redeem your fundraising earnings for over 100,000 products in the Rewards Catalog or request a check. Funding Factory’s program is simple and works great as an ongoing fundraiser.

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TalkSpot’s Websites For Fundraising: Create a customizable website for your group allowing you to collect money for all your fund raising efforts. Just choose from one of our pre-built websites, personalize the text, upload your images and product information and you will up and running and generating money for your charity. You can get started for only a dollar for a limited time!

Features include setup in only minutes, growing library of pre-designed websites, setup to collect credit cards, PayPal, or Amazon Payments, your own domain name and more!

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Taste Book: Create the ultimate fundraising cookbook! It’s a beautiful, archival quality, FAMILY cookbook that will be a keepsake for years to come. From a cookie exchange book for your school; easy family meals for your church, to a collection of energizing, healthy recipes to benefit your sports team, TasteBooks are easy to create, fun, and highly profitable.

Select from more than 100,000 recipes from leading recipe magazines and web sites including Bon Appétit, Gourmet, etc. or upload your own favorite recipes including photos!

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Note to our readers: if you’ve used any of the above for your fundraising campaign, please leave your feedback in the comment section below. Your comments are greatly appreciated and will help others when looking for the perfect fundraising product.

Related posts:

• Thank You To Our Sponsors And Advertisers!
• Cookbook Fundraiser
• ‘Print-on-demand’ Calendars and Cookbooks For Your Next Fundraiser

Getting donations and help and making the most of them for our rescue dogs and a few cats and kittens who are dumped on the nearby highway is a daily ongoing process, helping to maintain a dog rescue of 24 dogs – and a few squirrely cats – in south central Nebraska.

With a small financial budget, providing adequate care to our animals is only made possible through generous donations of food and supplies and local help. We are not a non-profit agency that receives help for the care of our dogs. We survive on what money, food, and necessary products we can gather. (When we first started, we were told by state officials if we lived closer to larger cities we could possibly receive some assistance.)

However, for eleven years we have lived on this small one-acre place out in the country where unwanted or elderly dogs have slowly entered into our life. They are free to run and play and we are free to rescue who needs help. At times, it feels as if the arriving dogs and cats are God’s messengers sent to us for safekeeping until they go home to him. Over the years, not only have we been able to care for our own dogs but have started Nebraska Pets Meals on Wheels for struggling pet owners in this troubled economy, and recently merged with the national organization Pets of the Homeless for Nebraska pet owners.

Cartoon by Nancy.

The needs of our dogs

The feed requirements for our animals are approximately 200 pounds of dry dog food and 50 pounds of cat food a month, plenty of fresh meat and two to three cases of canned meat per week. We add vegetables and rice for nutritious purposes, diet requirements, and flavor. Medicine is purchased on an ongoing basis for whichever dog is in medical need. We use about 20 bales of prairie hay for doghouse bedding every couple of months for the larger outdoor dogs, each having a 6 x 10-foot pen and a 50 x 50 foot exercise pen. The hay is placed on their individual run floors so they do not have to stand in ice or snow during the winter.

We have several dogs with bad or no teeth, and according to our vet are too elderly to survive surgery. They require softened dry food mixed with meat that they easily consume, something many of them have never had before. When many arrive here, they have various levels of malnutrition with health issues, parasite problems, and rotting teeth. It is our job to make sure their nutritional needs are met with the correct diet.

We start all our dogs with their own bowl of food and fresh water every day, each dog having their own necessary diet. Some use their bowls as chew toys so we need to keep a spare in addition to the rope toys and balls they enjoy. Others couldn’t care less … each dog is their own dog and we treat them accordingly.

Donations of food and hay

To provide plenty of fresh meat for our dogs, we go onto our Yahoo Group through Freecycle for donated out-dated game. We put out an online request in Yahoo groups for nearby towns (you need to join your own town’s group to participate and be accepted) and people call us up and ask if we want deer, pheasant, fish, elk or duck that is about a year old, as they are getting ready to hunt again. Sometimes the donation consists of outdated beef, as they are getting ready to butcher again. We boil the meat and add the rice and vegetables, along with some dry food. Otherwise, the meat we buy in canned dog food is through 4Health, a natural canned food that is similar to Blue Buffalo, through our local feed supply store who keeps an eye on specials for us.

Dry dog food is purchased through a commercial company in Kansas through our neighbor, who has her food brought in. She pays the shipping for us and buys bulk for us to keep our prices down. We used to pay her every time we would get one of our bags, but recently we have been lucky enough to pay for all 200 pounds at once. We buy a dog food that has no corn or soybeans in it, a natural dog food that is mixed with a 4Health dog food (exceptionally healthy for our dogs). We save about $720 a year as compared to shopping at local stores.

Sufficient hay is absolutely necessary as without it our dogs are not warm enough in the winter or dry enough in the rainy season. One small bale in the feed stores will usually run anywhere from $10 to $15 each, an unaffordable price for us to pay. Many bales are broken or covered with too much snow, which we are able to pick up at a discount. But we needed a steadier source, so we began calling around for farmers who did their summer hay in small bales … which are very few. Most bale in the large wrapped rolls for cattle and horses throughout the winter, or to use in silage for cattle lots.

We had friends who also began calling and emailing around for us … kind of like a friend chain letter… and eventually we found a gentle and very kind middle-aged man who lives about 45 minutes away. He offered us small bales of prairie hay $4 each for our dogs, plus he would deliver it and unload it for us free in our hay shed. He told us the prairie hay was better for our dogs than wheat hay as it was not loaded with mites that would affect our dogs. His mother lives north of us about 20 minutes and the hay money he receives from us pays for a special dinner for them both. We save $7 or more a bale, which means every load we save $120 plus gas and labor. Without him, I do not know what we could do.

Tilly

Lowered rent money for our rescued dogs

We pay very little rent money for our place, mainly because it was to be dozed down before we moved in. That first year my sons’ friends came out and fixed it up for us … saving us lots of money in the end. One could do electrical work, another could do flooring, and another could do roofing. Those boys I had helped raise as children were now paying it forward by helping us out.

In a jiffy, we had moved into our “farm house.” When we shared with our elderly property owner that we did rescue work with elderly dogs, he reduced our rent $50 a month to put toward the dogs – a savings of $600 a year. In fact, this past week he is also putting a new roof on our house and has trimmed/carted away old trees out of the dog pens for us, a task we had been dreading.

Rosie

Lowered vet money for our rescued dogs

We have a wonderful vet about half a mile down the road who works with us all the time for our old dogs. Many times he gives us medicine at cost or does not charge us for a visit. He knows the work we do and is always there for us with the highest quality of work at the lowest prices. He has become our right-hand man and is vital to the old dogs we have.

Donated maintenance labor

For several years, my sons would put out the word for help and everyone would come out on my birthday to work on large projects we needed done for the dogs. Over the years they’ve put up a long privacy fence so kids could not drive by and throw beer and pop bottles at our dog, they put up extra pens for me, they built dog runs for exercising, and repaired wooden sheds for hay storage. The strength of these young men was invaluable for us.

As you can see, we receive donations in many ways, and there is not one tried-and-true method that alone will work, but without the help of so many generous people we wouldn’t be able to care for all our animals! We wish to thank everyone who has entered our life over the past 11 years and donated in every way possible, making our life better by increasing the quality of our dog’s lives … where every little bit means a whole lot to those who had so little.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from our four-legged charges and their two old caretakers!! ?

Together with her sister, Nancy runs a dog rescue for elderly and sick dogs – and some kittens too! She writes about dog related issues at Way Cool Dogs.com.

Related posts:

• Start With A Small Fundraiser: Why the Yappy Hour Should Come Before the Fur Ball
• Fundraising For A Dog Park With Dog Houses and Doggie Bowls
• In-Kind Donations and Low Cost Products and Services for Your Group – Part 1

Why? Many individuals and companies wait till year end to take advantage of tax breaks and other tax advantages. By year end they know where they stand financially, how much they can afford to donate and how a donation could actually help them save money in other areas of their finances.

Not every donation incurs tax advantages though, because each individual’s and business’ tax situation is different. Also, if your group is not a registered non-profit, donations to your group are most likely not tax deductible. Take care to not make promises for tax advantages in your appeal.

We have lots of free-to-copy-and-paste fundraising letters posted on our site. To help put together your final fundraising appeal for year end that you can send out per mail, print in a newsletter, or other communications, consider the following resources:

Thank your supporters and add a request for a final donation for the year:

• A Sample Donation Request Letter To Current Supporter
• Sample Donation Request Letter To Parents
• Write: Thank You For Your Donation Letter
• Thank You For Donation Letter – To Parents
• Thank You Letter For Donation – Community

Specific fundraising requests:

• How To Write A Donation Request Letter For An Animal Charity
• How To Write A Donation Request Letter For Youth Arts And Sports Programs
• Sample Fundraising Letter For An Event

Help for writing your fundraising letter:

• Fundraising Donation Request Letters – A Writing Guide
• Template For A Donation Request Letter
• Words: The Least Effective Communicator?
• Sample Donation Request Letter To A Company
• Fundraising Books
• Let It Be Known… Recognizing Charitable Donors

Regardless if your appeal is sent via mail, newsletter, or Twitter, don’t forget to include clear and detailed information on how and where to make a donation. This is also important, if you send your supporters to your website to make a donation: A 2008 donorCentrics Internet Giving Benchmarking Analysis stated that on 17% of the fundraising sites tested, users couldn’t find where to make a donation! If your supporters can’t easily find where and how to make a donation, they may not make one at all.

Related posts:

• Thank You For Donation Letter – To Parents
• Fundraising Donation Request Letters – A Writing Guide
• Sample Donation Request Letter To A Company
• How To Ask For Donations From A Large Company
• Sample Donation Request Letter To Parents

If you’re thinking of skipping this fundraising opportunity, because of the tough economy, or you think you don’t have enough time, think again: About half of all charitable contributions are being made during the holiday season. Part of the reason for this is simply good tax planning. Donations can reduce taxable income and tax payers and companies are taking advantage of this by showing their generosity at the end of the tax year.

Even if you’re not part of an official 501(c)(3) non-profit for which donations can be tax deductible, the holiday season puts people in a giving spirit that is unmatched the rest of the year!

To plan a fundraiser quickly is a test on how well organized you are. If you feel that you’re group could have been better prepared for some aspects as you’re preparing for this fundraiser, take note and make it your first project on your to-do list as soon as this fundraiser is completed.

Assess your resources and options

Get together with your volunteer group and assess your resources and options: how many volunteers do you have available and what are their talents and connections? Can you partner with companies, or other organizations you have partnered with before to organize a fundraiser that’s been done before? Or is there a new business or organization in town that you could partner up with and that would appreciate the extra exposure? Is there enough time to reserve space, a booth or table to sell fundraising items (f. ex. holiday decorations) or services (f. ex. gift wrapping)?

Plan your fundraiser depending on your current resources and time frame. If you have only a few volunteers available, you may think it’s not worth raising funds. But even a small fundraiser can yield a few hundred dollars which will boost your bottom line. One of your volunteers may have a great connection with a business, an individual or another organization that you can use to your advantage and may give you an edge, even if you don’t have a lot of volunteers or funds available.

The idea is to use your resources to their fullest potential, which you should always do of course, but this becomes even more important when you don’t have a lot of time and you have to put your fundraiser together quickly and efficiently.

Agree on a fundraiser

Regardless of how much time you have to prepare, or which religious holiday you celebrate, decorative items for the home, wrapping paper for presents and items representative of winter make appropriate fundraising items that are easy to sell and just about anyone will find useful. Beyond these ‘traditional’ fundraisers and provided you have a substantial volunteer base, consider raising funds with odd jobs like raking leaves, shoveling snow or even having a mini winter carnival with food sales and snowman building. If you have a connection with a business for example, you may be able to set up an in-house fundraiser that lets your volunteers sell holiday gifts to their employees throughout their offices.

Visit Ideas For Holiday Fundraisers for some simple holiday fundraising ideas; or Greenery Christmas Fundraiser for ideas on how to make money selling Christmas green decorating products, such as wreaths, evergreen swags and roping.

Market your fundraiser

To support marketing your fundraiser, make sure you have all important information, including financial information, about your group readily available online and in print. Potential supporters of your cause want to know what happens to their donations, how much of their donation will actually support the cause and how much will be spent for administration and materials. Simply having this information available is important and can be the ultimate reason why people decide to give – or not.

Even if you’re just running a small gift wrapping fundraiser at the local book store, if you’ll be able to use 100% of the donations for your cause (because the wrapping paper was donated for example), then make up a sign and let people know!

And now is also the time to make use of your e-mail list, or social media accounts. Especially if you’re planning your fundraiser short term, there may not be enough time to print and distribute a flyer, or you may have already missed the deadline for your last newsletter.

Once you have a time and place (if applicable) specified, spread the word! Even if you only run that small gift wrapping fundraiser, the more people know about it the better.

For more info on marketing your holiday fundraiser, read Fundraising Through The Holiday Season.

As mentioned before, quickly planning a holiday fundraiser, or any fundraiser for that matter, short term is really a test on how well organized and prepared your are: maybe your e-mail list wasn’t large enough to make an impact, or you didn’t have one, or your volunteers didn’t know how to answer questions on how the money will be spent and missed out on a donation because of it. If you’ve noticed some short comings like these, take care of them as soon as possible, so your next quick fundraiser can benefit from it!

Related posts:

• Ideas For Holiday Fundraisers
• All Wrapped Up: Fundraising With Gift Wraps And Greeting Cards
• Gift Wrap Service Fundraiser
• Fundraising Through the Holiday Season

No Time To Be Discouraged

There are a host of reasons why fundraisers don’t yield the income you need them too. Your task now is to find out why, and take steps to recoup your losses. After all, you had a mission and a goal, and unless something major has changed, your need for funds has not.

You’ve probably earned the right to a momentary self-pity party. Allow yourself that moment, but keep it short and sweet and not too negative – you still have work to do!

Appreciate that everything is not always in your control, see what you can do to make the best of the situation, and brainstorm some ideas that can help save your fundraising project.

Tips For Recovering From An Unprofitable Fundraiser

Placing blame is pointless and entirely counterproductive. Finding out what went wrong and taking positive steps to remedy your situation will give you the chance to save your fundraising program so that you can find the profit you need now and in the future.

• First, try to pin point exactly why your fundraiser didn’t generate enough income. Was the problem with the product? Organizational? Not enough help? Is your fundraiser dated and stale? Was your timing off?

• Next, work with your group of volunteers to fix your problem. Make this a group effort, get member input, and work cooperatively.

• Optimize your volunteer base. Maybe you’ve assigned jobs to volunteers based on availability only, which will work to a point. But you would lose out if you have a volunteer with excellent communication skills making poster boards, when they could be helping writing letters or recruiting other volunteers.

• Look for other ways to either cut costs or organize mini fundraisers. Hold on-hand sales at area events if you have been left with costly inventory, downsize your project so that you can do with less, ask area donors for in-kind donations of supplies rather than cash.

• Make changes to your funding schedule so that you don’t need as much cash now and you can take the time to put on a really good fundraiser next time.

• Realize your own limits and make sure you and your group are working within them – don’t burn yourselves out!

• If you are convinced your fundraiser is good, save the ideas and materials and put off the project until a better time.

• If the fundraiser just isn’t worth the effort, scrap it and move on to something more promising!

Whether you are a leader or a group member, stay positive and keep your eye on your goal. Remind yourself and your group that you are doing a great thing trying to raise money for this good cause. Be confident, and reflect that to your peers and supporters. And as the old saying goes…try, try again!

Related posts:

• Put The Fun Back Into Your Fundraiser!

When you run a non-profit animal rescue group, you can’t do it all alone. But time and time again people try. A few months ago, I was talking to a woman who runs a small dog rescue group in California. With only two or three volunteers, they have managed to pull hundreds of dogs out of shelters and find them new forever homes. Of course, doing this type of work requires money.

So like the old saying goes, to raise some money, they decided to put on a show! Unfortunately, unlike Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney, they didn’t have the whole town backing them up. Armed with only a few volunteers, for their first fundraiser, they opted to put on an elaborate and expensive black-tie “Fur Ball” event.

Can you say burnout? The worst thing was that even with all this effort, after the dust settled, the fundraiser didn’t turn out to be a financial success. It was an exhausting, demoralizing let down for everyone involved.

Start with a simple fundraiser

The moral of this story is that you have to crawl before you can walk, and walk before you can run. If you have a small organization or you’re just starting out, realize that you have some learning to do. And experience is the best teacher.

I always suggest that people start out with simple, easy fundraisers that have low overhead. On the National Association of Pet Rescue Professionals Web site, there’s a download called “Paws-i-tively EASY Fundraisers” PDF we give away when you sign up as a free Helping Paw member.

One of the easy ideas is the “Paw Print” fundraiser, which basically works like the Muscular Dystrophy shamrocks you see in grocery stores around St. Patrick’s Day. You go around to businesses and ask people to sell Paw Prints for a dollar and hang them on the wall. The only out of out-of-pocket cost is one ream of paper (about $10). Yet you can earn hundreds of dollars using this simple fundraising technique.

Then graduate to host an event

After you’ve done one of the super-easy fundraisers, you can graduate to an event. But again, start slow. Don’t do an extravagant fundraiser to start. Talk to a business about doing a simple “Yappy Hour,” where people get together and schmooze with their dogs. This helps you establish a community or “fan base.” As any band member will tell you, it’s impossible to get a stadium gig, if you haven’t played a whole lot of small nightclubs first. You need to get your name out there and build a volunteer, adopter, and (potential) membership base. Only your most passionate fans will attend the big “black tie” events, so you need to establish a base of support first.

Once you’ve cut your teeth on a few small fundraisers and events and have some success and money in the bank, consider the big black tie “Fur Ball” event with a big-money silent auction.

Remember, not every fundraising idea is going to be right for your group. Look at your situation and resources first, then decide. Don’t jump into something complicated and demanding before you’re ready.

About the Author:
Susan Daffron is the author of “Funds to the Rescue: 101 Fundraising Ideas for Humane and Animal Rescue Groups” (Visit FundstotheRescue.com) and the founder of the National Association of Pet Rescue Professionals, an organization that is dedicated to helping animal rescue groups save more lives.

Related posts:

• Starting Up Fundraising Campaigns For Animal Shelters
• Start Your Fundraiser Right By Setting Clear Goals
• Is Wilbur In The House? We’re Having A Kiss The Pig Fundraiser!

We know that people respond best to events and initiatives that capture their imagination and encourage an element of fun and participation, but how do we go about it? How can we get volunteers and donors excited about taking part in our next fundraising event?

The following fundraising projects have managed to do just that, by showing off and using original ideas for raising funds, all while having lots of fun! Be sure to use the internet incl. social media to promote your event!

If you’re short on ideas or need some inspiration, take a look at the following:

Show off: Firefighter’s Calendar

South Florida’s Firefighter’s Calendar is one of the most successful calendar fundraisers to date. The idea of having buff firefighters model for a fundraising calendar “was destined to light fires in the South Florida public and raise awareness of important community issues”.

To date the non-profit organization has raised over $240,000 to benefit charities such as the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, Habitat for Humanity’s Hurricane Andrew Fund, Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities, Neighbors 4 Neighbors, Best Buddies, Cystic Fibrosis, Safehaven for Newborns and Here’s Help.

If you’re planning on a calendar fundraiser like this one, be sure to include a calendar signing event!

Try risqué: The Women’s Institute Calendar

A different sort of calendar fundraiser: In 1999, a group of Yorkshire women took part in the design, photography, production and distribution of a nude calendar as part of their local Women’s Institute. The calendar was created to raise funds for Leukemia research. The calendar proved so successful, with the women “wearing nothing but pearl necklaces, hats and strategically positioned floral displays and culinary equipment,” that it lead to the women being immortalized in the comedy Calendar Girls, starring Helen Mirren.

Set a world record: The world’s longest scarf

The Ty Hafan scarf, at 33 miles long, is the longest scarf in the world. It was hand knitted by over 2,000 people in Wales to raise money for Ty Hafan Children’s Hospice and then donated to Feed The Children, on the basis that having raised money for the hospice it could now help other children in other parts of the world. Read more about their fundraising activities, including their Midnight Sleep Walk.

Have fun: The Rubber Duck Race!

Another UK fundraiser, Claire House in Liverpool hosted an immense Rubber Duck Race, which released 40,000 giant rubber ducks in the Liverpool/Leeds Canal to race! Ducks could be sponsored and the winning duck owner received a cash prize. For more info and pictures, visit their duck race website.

Stick it to the principal: Duct Tape Fundraiser!

The “Duct-Tape-The-Principal Fundraiser” idea supposedly originated with a creative middle school principal in Kansas. Principal Mark Buck, of Medicine Lodge Middle School in Medicine Lodge, Kansas, challenged his students to collectively read 400,000 pages during the school year. He agreed that if the students could read that much, he’d let them duct tape him to the gym wall!

For lots of photos of fundraising and non-fundraising related duct tapings visit the Wall Taping Gallery of the Duck Tape Guys. Be sure to read the ‘warnings’ section.

Need more fundraising ideas?

* Rooftop Fundraising, Cows and Spelling Bees

* Fundraising for a Dog Park with Dog Houses and Doggie Bowls

* Print on Demand Calendar and Cookbook fundraiser

* Design Marathon Fundraiser

Related posts:

• Sample Fundraising Letter For An Event
• Keys To A Successful Wine Tasting Fundraising Event
• Walkathon – Walking For Charity Event
• Motivating Volunteers & Donors: Show What You’re About
• Put The Fun Back Into Your Fundraiser!

Yes, managing social media accounts will create another item on your to-do list, but if you keep a few simple things in mind (use our social media strategy checklist to help get you started), you’ll be able to put them to good use without too much hassle! The following is focused on social networking sites, but the information can also help when defining guidelines for posting comments, creating blog posts, or taking part in forums.

Choosing a social media platform

There are many different social media sites to choose from. It’s probably best to start with one of the currently most popular social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter. If you already have a personal account with either one of these, why not start your fundraising social media account with the same one: You already know how to use it and you could easily recommend your new fundraising page to your current followers through your personal account.

Once you’ve created your account(s), link the updates to your website and vice versa and cross promote them through any other channels you may already have, like your e-mailing list, your newsletter, other social media accounts etc.. (More on linking online and traditional marketing strategies.)

Define the purpose of the social media account

Your social media sites need a purpose or perhaps different but overlapping purposes. Do you want to increase awareness and build a community of people interested in your cause? Do you want the page itself to inspire donations? Do you want to use the page to bring more visitors to your website? Pinning down the purpose of your social media page will help you form an effective social media strategy.

Create social media rules

Your social media pages will be part of the public face of your fundraising efforts so you need to decide what you want that face to be. You may enjoy a certain degree of familiarity but a lack of professionalism can make it seem as though your efforts are not serious or as though your cause is not deserving of real attention.

Decide on the tone of your posts and how you will convey your mission statement. The best way to do this is to appoint a social media leader so that all your posts are consistent. Be sure to convey these rules to anyone in your organization who might use their personal social media pages to talk about your cause and your fundraising efforts.

Updating your social media accounts

Social media sites are not phone trees to be activated only when you need help. They are most effective when you update them regularly and provide information that is relevant to your cause in a captivating way. This keeps people checking in and your cause always on their minds. Simply adding random bits of information won’t help you reach the goals you have set for your group and then it simply becomes a massive waste of time. Regular updates show that you care about your cause and your followers before and after an actual fundraiser.

It’s also useful to create guidelines for whom to follow back. You will always encounter spammers who will follow anyone in the hope to get a follow back upon which they can spam you with sales messages. Scrutinize each follower; decide if you will follow others who do not have any updates; will you follow other non-profit – why or why not? and so on.

Getting started

An easy way to get started is by simply updating your social media account with the posts from your blog. You can entirely automate this process. Each site will have instructions on how to do this or you can use twitterfeed.com which works with other social media sites as well. Once you see how your posts are being found and retweeted or reposted and who your followers are, it may make it easier to start your social media strategy from there.

To help you get started and create a comprehensive social media strategy, click over to our social media strategy checklist!

Give yourself time to create a social media strategy. Each post will be an ongoing representation and promotion of your efforts. Make sure that each one promotes your fundraising efforts the way you want the world to see them.

Related posts:

• The Power of Social Media
• Promote Your Fundraiser On The Web With Social Media Marketing
• Nominate Your Charity To Win A $25,000 Social Media Makeover
• “Tweet To Beat” Social Media Fundraising Experiment
• Tweak Your Group’s Website To Attract More Visitors

Use checklists

If you’re still in the planning stages for this season, our collections of checklists may help you decide which fundraiser might be the most appropriate, help you establish clear goals for your fundraising efforts, or help you get organized when planning your next fundraising event. Are you ready to get started with social media? Before you send your first tweet, plan ahead with our social media strategy checklist. Or maybe this year is the year your group will apply for non-profit status? Our checklist will give you a basic overview of steps that have to be taken to start a non-profit.

Save money

Every year the need to be more efficient with your resources becomes even more important and you can start by saving money on your phone services and other office related costs. If you’re running a website browse the free website tools section over at Rankraiser.com for free resources to manage and optimize your website.

Write donation request letters and thank you letters

If you need some inspiration for your next donation request letter, click over to our fundraising letters category. You’ll find free-to-copy fundraising letters, sample thank you letters and writing guides.

Get organized

Are you using swipe files for your group? Swipe files are simply a collection of your ads, fundraising letters, slogans etc. Using swipe files can be a huge time saver for your next fundraising season and help tremendously when you have a new group of volunteers to work with every year. If you haven’t used them yet, why not start this year?

Also consider evaluating whichever fundraiser you’re going to run now after it’s completed. Our post fundraiser checklist may help with that. Just like with swipe files, evaluating each fundraiser and establishing what worked and what didn’t can save a lot of time when it comes to planning your next fundraiser.

Align your marketing efforts

Does your group use social media marketing yet? Whether you’re using Facebook or Twitter or any other social media account, be sure to align and coordinate your online marketing efforts with your traditional marketing efforts. This will assure a more consistent and targeted marketing message.

More fundraising ideas

We continuously update our fundraising ideas and events category – how about a wine tasting fundraiser this year? Or browse through our list of fundraising ideas, which include ratings on earnings potential and fun factor!

If you’re planning on taking part in an online charity contest, read about the Pepsi Refresh Project here.

Are there other resources you’d like to see on FundraisingIP.com? Please let us know!
We wish you a successful fundraising season!

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• Tapping Community Volunteer Resources
• Fundraising Through the Holiday Season
• Don’t Forget About These Simple And Low Cost Fundraisers You Can Run With Few Resources And Few Volunteers
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Focus on accessibility rather than distance

Although many walkathons walking events enable people to be sponsored per mile walked, this can alienate people with poor mobility or fitness levels. By choosing to enable donors to sponsor walkers for set amounts instead of distances, you open up your walking event and make it more appealing for people of all age ranges and abilities.

Walking events do not have to be set from place to place to succeed. You could consider setting up an event walking a race track, and introduce quirky themes such as holding the walk at night, using fancy dress to draw crowds and publicity, or even bringing in egg and spoon racing, or pets to liven things up.

Use publicity

Local press and media are more likely to feature your sponsored walk if you make it accessible, engaging and quirky. Pick a theme for your walkathon and let people know about it to raise awareness and generate public interest. Holding the walk in a central place and inviting the local press increases your chances of generating sponsorship and donations.

Ways to generate funds

A popular way to generate funds is to sell t-shirts as admission for participants and ask non-participants for sponsorships. Consider selling advertising space on your t-shirts. You can also encourage donations by actively involving the general public: volunteers can hold collection boxes along the route of the walkathon and sell concessions which can help make a surprising amount of extra money from supporters. This gives people who do not want to take part in the actual event the chance to get involved in a different way. You can sell anything from customized reusable water sports bottles to food or t-shirts.

Plan a route and work with your local government

Consider at least two or three different routes for your walkathon. Walk them yourself first and then mark them on a map. One you’ve nailed down your options, work with your local government to approve one of the routes. Your route may need permits, or may not be feasible for your walkathon because of upcoming construction work, etc.

When planning a walkathon, it’s important to keep costs down at every stage of planning. It’s easy for spending to get out of hand when you consider renting tables, laying out money for t-shirts and fundraising items and so on.

Decide from the beginning what the absolute necessities are (organization and safety should be at the top of your list) and focus to get those handled first. Be aware that it may not be in your best interest to get your most important items donated. It may be best if they’re handled ‘in-house’, or contracted, so the foundation of your fundraising event doesn’t rest on a volunteer who may or may not take his or her job too seriously. Recruit volunteers for manning tables, selling fundraising items and drinks and ushering participants and spectators to the right place.

Related posts:

• Keys To A Successful Wine Tasting Fundraising Event
• Silent Auction Fundraiser
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• Show Off And Have Fun At Your Next Fundraising Event!

The good news is, with some planning, you’ll be able to form a strategy that incorporates all the seemingly disparate elements which can benefit each other and reinforce your overall marketing message.

Developing a strong brand for your group and fundraising efforts

Linking all of your different marketing activities together makes it much easier to deliver a consistent message. One of the first tasks to undertake is developing a strong visual brand for your communications by using the same logo and themes throughout all of your on- and off-line activities. This will help make your brand and your cause more recognizable within each published item, gradually building up awareness for your cause.

Another way to strengthen your brand would be to use a tagline consistently throughout all your communications. This could be taken from your mission statement, but it has to be something that will work for different projects and for different communication channels. It’s not as easy as it sounds, because it has to be unique to your group (do your research), shouldn’t sound ‘generic’ and has to be simple and somewhat memorable.

Target content delivery to audiences at different channels

The best way of linking all your communications is by drawing up a plan for your content delivery. Not every article, call for donations, or other communication may be ideal for every audience across all channels, or to be delivered at the same time. Target each message or communication to a specific audience channel and at a specific target date. For example, a formal call for donations may be appropriate for mail delivery, maybe an e-mail campaign, but may not work at all for your audience on Facebook or Twitter.

Conversely, design messages specifically for your target audiences at different channels. For example Twitter lends itself to get snippets of information about your group to the public, or keeping your followers informed about a current campaign.

Differentiate your messages by audience and content and tailor your communications for each media you publish to. You don’t have to communicate the exact same words with everyone at the same time.

Coordinate your various online and traditional media channels

Coordinating online efforts

Your website acts as the main hub that contains all your group’s background information and that you can link to from all your other online activities. E-mails, blogs and social media channels all refer back to your main website. That way if anyone would like some more information about your group or fundraiser, they’ll be only a click away. You’ll also be able to keep most of your messages short, sending those interested in more detailed background information to your main website.

Conversely, your group’s website should link out to all other channels available: your social media accounts, newsletter sign-up, physical address and map etc. Social media icons make sharing of your posts easier and inform your audience about your different social media groups at the same time. Don’t forget to add social media icons to your e-mail signature.

Coordinating with traditional or ‘offline’ activities

All of your traditional marketing activities that take place on-site at your group’s physical location can follow a similar principle to your online marketing activities. Networking presentations, paper messages, newsletters and business cards should all direct people to your online activities by adding your website URL and/or social media addresses. (Reminder: keep all your URLs and social media account names as simple as possible.)

Consider your offline marketing as a conduit to your online activities. Your audience can take your printed communications, look you up online, get a ‘bigger picture’ about your brand and your group’s key messages, or connect with you through social media or your blog. Make sure that your traditional marketing strategy always includes all information about your group as well (incl. contact information), since not everyone can or wants to go online for more information.

Monitor your marketing efforts continuously

Have your latest posts on Twitter – or lack of them – resulted in losing followers? Have you received negative press? Have donations been unusually low? Have you not been able to reach as many people as you hoped with your latest fundraising efforts? Causes for any of these can be many and even though a knee jerk reaction is usually not to your advantage, listening and acknowledging what’s going on is, especially when you have received complaints or any other kind of negative feedback. You can use several tools to monitor your online reputation; but when it comes to how to react you should have a plan in place, especially when you’ve had negative press. How exactly you will address it may be subjective, but to address it at all and in a positive and timely manner will be very important.

Get started!

It can be quite a handful to get organized and coordinate all marketing efforts into one complete strategy. How to get started? Make a list! For example, list all your upcoming events incl. calls for donations (leave plenty of space underneath each point), then add the channels that each event will be held at or communicated about next to the events.

Or you can start out with a list of your channels (website, social media accounts, printed newsletter, e-mail newsletter etc.) and then add to them news, upcoming events, calls for donations and how or if you’ll communicate them through each channel. Finally, assign responsibilities based on each channel or based on activity.

Even though it takes some time to get organized, coordinating your online and traditional marketing efforts will pay off in the long run with a more consistent message for your group and more efficient use of your time, because your efforts will be more targeted and there will be less room for errors or miscommunications.

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• Promote Your Fundraiser On The Web With Social Media Marketing
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 1
• Does Your Group Have A Social Media Strategy?
• Low Cost And No Cost Marketing Tools For Your Fundraiser

- A blog
A blog will allow you to easily add information to the site, regarding your group, your fundraising efforts, your sponsors etc. Blogging software is free (most popular is WordPress), easy to learn and will allow you to create separate accounts for members in your group. Having a blog also allows you to keep all your updates well organized and uncluttered.

- About page
The ‘About’ page on your website should include information about your organization, its mission and accomplishments.

- Contact page
A contact page that includes a form instead of simply an e-mail address is also essential. Not displaying your e-mail address will prevent spam in your inbox and having a form will allow you to collect specific information you’d like to have from people who contact you. There are free contact form plugins available if you’ve installed a WordPress blog.

- A clear call for help or donations
This seems obvious, yet some groups still do not have a clear call for donations on their sites. It’s a fundraising website, don’t hold back – people want to help a good cause! Make it easy for people to give. If you choose to add a “Donate” button to your site, we recommend that you get legal advice before doing so. (See article about donate buttons and the State of Florida.)

It may be easier to simply sign up with a site that will manage your online donations for you.

In any case, make it easy for visitors to your site to give to your cause by placing a button or a link to a page or site with information on how to do so. A 2008 donorCentrics Internet Giving Benchmarking Analysis stated that on 17% of the fundraising sites tested, users couldn’t find where to make a donation! For more information about online donations and tweaking your website, visit Fundraising Website Checkup.

- Pictures
A picture tells a thousand words. Regularly include pictures in your posts and updates from your group, your fundraising drives, volunteers and beneficiaries (with permission only of course), key people in your group and so on. If you subscribe to a photo sharing site like flickr.com, include a link to it in the sidebar, or add a widget that continuously shows your photostream. Update pictures regularly, so that people keep checking the site to see new pictures and stay updated with your cause.

- Video
The only thing better than pictures, is moving pictures. If you’ll be raising funds for a brief time or more than a few months, it might be very useful to make a short (2-3 minute) video to put up on your website. The video can introduce your cause, present your accomplishments and your needs and introduce key people in your group. With most hosting services, you can upload the video directly to your site; or, you can upload it to YouTube and put a link to it on your site. Regularly adding short videos about special events, speeches or talks by key people in your group would also be a great addition to your site.

Finally, since online fundraising is a relatively new, the laws governing it are sometimes cloudy and are still changing. You may want to check with other non-profits in your state as to how they have proceeded, but we recommend to also get legal advice before soliciting funds directly online.

Related posts:

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• Create Your Own Website!
• Fundraising Website Checkup
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 1
• Raise Funds Online – With Or Without Your Own Website! Part 2

How Much Are Cell Phones Worth?

The value of cell phones varies. For example, a top-of-the-line recent model cell phone that is in perfect condition will be worth more than an old cell phone that has seen better days. This does not mean that you should exclusively aim for the cell phones with the highest values. It is just something you should be aware of.

How Do You Select A Company To Recycle The Cell Phones You Collect?

Choosing a company to send your donated cell phones to takes some thought. Of course, you want to go with the company that offers you the most money for phones but don’t just want a company that offers a good amount for the expensive phones you collect. You want a company that will also offer you some money for older phones too as this is likely to be the bulk of your donations. You may make larger amounts off a few of the phones that are more expensive and that have all the latest features but you need to make sure that you are earning at least a small amount with every old and possibly outdated phone you send in as well.

Of course, you could also check eBay.com to see how much the cellphones you’ve collected sell for, but even if you’ll get a few dollars more per phone, would you really want to go through all the work of taking photos, listing and selling the phones to individuals? Don’t forget you’d also have to wrap and ship each phone separately as well. When you add all the man hours this requires it may not be worth it to you.

Don’t Forget About Shipping Costs

Shipping costs could eat into the funds that you raise if you are not careful. After all, these cell phones do need to make it to the company that you are sending them to. If you did not think ahead then you could end up paying for boxes and shipping out of your own – or your group’s – pocket, cutting into your potential profits.

Find a company that will supply you with prepaid shipping boxes so that you don’t pay for shipping costs. If you can get these boxes already labeled to get where they need to go then so much the better.

Securing Cell Phone Donations

To make money with this type of fundraiser you need a lot of cell phone donations. You have to let as many people as possible know what you are doing and what the money raised will be spent on. People will go out of their way to donate their old cell phones if it is for a good cause. Collection boxes at cell phone stores are a good idea too.

A cell phone fundraiser can be a success if you collect a lot of phones and if you make money on every phone. This type of fundraiser is easy. People don’t need their old phones. They just need a reason to hand them over to your cause.

—

Sponsor link: FundingFactory recycles cell phones and ink cartridges. Redeem for cash or products.

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(More about donation request letters, including free to copy sample donation request letters.)

Use a personal writing style

It may be tempting to make your donation letter sound like an official school mailing but this may be the wrong way to go. You do not want your letter asking for donations for youth sports and arts programs to sound like an institution issuing a form letter to the unnamed masses but more like a personal letter from one friend to another, living in the same community.

Include the reader

A part of using a personal style in a letter such as this is including the reader. While it is the school or other organization that runs the arts and sports programs, the donor is an integral part and it’s important he or she feels important and needed. You can achieve this by addressing the letter to the donor by name. However, in this day and age of trying to protect one’s personal information, it may be a good option to not use a person’s name. To test this for yourself, send your letter with the name to half your mailing list and a version of your letter without a personal name to the other half of your mailing list. Then measure your results. (This is also called A/B or split testing.)

It is important to be personal however, if you use a name or not. Use the word “you” often to indicate that you are in fact talking directly to the reader. The best donation letters use this technique. To write and sign the letter, consider choosing a person who regularly deals with the public and whose name may be familiar to your potential donors.

Make it an emotional cause

People respond when you bring their emotions into the matter. In the case of asking for donations for youth arts and sports programs this means talking about the students who will benefit from these programs. But don’t stop there.

Include personal stories of individual students or graduates of the program. If you want to get your readers’ emotions involved then you have to make the cause real. Talking about students as a whole is fine but a bit abstract. Adding some specific examples takes your ‘general good cause for kids’ to one that supports real students whose lives have been bettered by these programs. (If you’re planning on using names make sure you get proper permissions and releases.)

Show that your program also serves the community as a whole

Let your supporters know how their donations will not only help make the lives of students in their neighborhood better, but how their donations will also help and affect the community as whole: when students are inspired, they will stay in school longer and receive a diploma, go on to receive a higher education and in the end will be able to contribute to your community in positive ways. At this point, adding statistics from your program will not only be helpful, but are a must to support your point.

Detail the problem and offer hope

Tell you reader what will happen without sufficient donations. Explain any problems that will result or that are already manifesting. Show what will happen if you do not receive their support.

But always keep your requests hopeful. People do not want to be fighting a losing battle. They want to help save the day and to be on the winning team. Stay upbeat and let them know that their donations can and will improve lives.

Asking for donations for youth arts and sports programs is easy when you remember that your letter needs to focus on its audience as much as the cause that inspired it. Remember that people want to help. All you have to do is give them a reason.

Related posts:

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Dear Mr.___,

First of all, I wanted to thank you for your faithful support. Over the years, [your group's name] has helped many people, but that doesn’t mean we ever forget anyone who has helped make that possible. You are one of those people. It doesn’t matter whether you have given $5 or $5,000 in the past—it takes all kinds of thread to make a quilt.

A quilt—a patchwork of material sewn together into a blanket—what an apt comparison to what we do here at [your group's name]. People whose lives have been ripped apart by cancer, made whole again through the generosity of people like you. People like Edward, diagnosed last year with a rare cancer.

But [your group's name] heard about his predicament, and we were able to help. Through cash and in-kind donations, we were able to raise the money needed for his last-ditch operation. As of this date in 2009, Edward is doing fine, back home with his wife and daughter, by all appearances a recovering cancer survivor. But it wouldn’t have been possible without folks like you.

Which brings me to the main point of this letter. We’ve recently been selected as the non-profit organization of the month by _______. That means that for every dollar that’s donated in May, ______ will match it with a dollar of their own. Obviously, we’re excited about this wonderful opportunity to have the chance to help twice as many people as we normally do!

But, like an unopened gift, if no one takes advantage of it, it is worthless.

Would you be able to help this month with a little extra? We’ve enclosed a special response card with all the necessary information, and a self-addressed stamped envelope, so that all you need to do is write a check and drop it in the mail (we know you’re busy).

Or, if you’re online, you can go to our website [your group's website] and click on “Donate to the May Fundraiser” to make sure your donation counts toward the double impact.

Once again, thank you for your continued support, and know that Edward, and many others like him, may not be alive today were it not for you.

Sincerely,

__________

P.S. Please accept my personal invitation to join us for the annual [your group's name] Banquet in _________ on _________ from 6:00-8:00 PM. I’d love to see you there!

————

The response card should have information about who to make checks out to as well as suggested amounts for donation. Break it down for potential donors: “$25 buys 4 turkey dinners/$50 buys 10 turkey dinners/$100 buys 25 turkey dinners”.

The SASE (Self-address stamped envelope) is always a good idea if your organization can afford it, because it’s one less step for people to have to do themselves. Consider pre-printed envelopes so that you’re only charged for the mailing if people use the envelope, rather than wasting a stamp in each mailing.

Related posts:

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The Key To A Successful Wine Tasting Fundraiser

The main ingredient to a great wine tasting fundraising event is great wine of course! Yes, it is important to find an appropriate venue, have plenty of volunteers at hand and plan for decorations and music, but getting the best possible wine for your event should be at the top of your list.

Getting great wine can most easily be done through merchant partnerships. Be picky when you shop for a supplier and select partnerships according to the merchant’s wine expertise and their ability to get you the best wines and good prices.

Also make sure that you ask your wine distributor to help sell tickets to your event. They are sure to know plenty of wine lovers!

Wine Experts

It is important to pick a merchant who will not only be able to supply many great bottles of wine at a discounted price, but the wine expertise as well. Not everyone who attends your event will be a wine aficionado that’s why it’s important to make sure you have experts there to lead the tasting, to answer questions, and to give the event the feel of an official wine tasting.

Discuss with your wine experts how you would like the event to go ahead of time. You can equip these experts with microphones as they educate the guests on each wine. They can stroll from one table to the next as they describe the wines to make the whole event more engaging. But before the tasting event begins make sure that the bottles are already present on the tables so that guests can inspect and discuss them. This will encourage conversation at the tables and get the party going.

Publicity Is Essential

This type of fundraiser – even more than other types – depends on publicity. You need to generate excitement about your wine tasting fundraiser while making sure that you encourage both wine connoisseurs and those who can only tell red from white to attend. This is a fundraiser so you need to work extra hard to advertise in such a way that does not make those who wish to attend feel that they are not wine savvy enough.

Join up with other charitable organizations to include their supporters. You can do the same for them the next time they have a fundraiser. Issue press releases and run TV and radio spots if possible. Advertise early and often.

A Note About Tickets

Make sure that tickets to your event are available not only through your organization directly but that you also sell tickets through local merchants. People are more inclined to buy tickets from merchants they already know. Many people will seek out your organization but it’s to your advantage to make getting tickets easy for everyone.

A wine tasting fundraiser takes a little extra work to publicize but is an elegant way to raise money. You can associate your charitable organization with a classy event such as this and attract donors with the desire to give and the ability to do so. This unique fundraiser lets you raise money in style!

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Event Fundraising Committee

Dear …,

Do you remember going to the … Festival when you were a kid? I know I do. It was the first time I tasted cotton candy; the first time I rode the Ferris Wheel; even the first (real) date I ever went on! In fact, the … Festival has been creating memories for people, young and old, for more than 40 years.

This year’s … Festival is going to be bigger and better than ever, with a whole theme park devoted to rides, guests from all over the world at the Grandstand Tent, and of course, lots and lots of wonderful food.

But our … Festival wouldn’t be possible without corporate sponsors. It is only through partnerships with local companies that we are able to provide such high-quality entertainment at such a low price. In return, the Festival is able to offer high-profile advertisement to corporations on a variety of levels.

This year’s Festival will have three levels of corporate sponsorship available to partners this year. Each level will have increasing amounts of exposure and free advertisement included as part of the sponsorship package.

• Silver—$1,000. Your company name/logo to be featured in all printed advertisements for the … Festival and on all banners at the … Festival grounds.
• Gold—$5,000. Same as above, plus a free 30-second television spot to be shown during … Festival week, plus a free booth for your company to use during the Festival.
• Platinum—$10,000. All of the above included, plus exclusive rights to be listed as the primary sponsor for … Festival in all publications, advertisements, and media.

Would your company be interested in participating as a partner at one of the above sponsorship levels?

I know that together, we can make this year’s … Festival the best yet, and make wonderful memories for a generation to come at the same time.

Yours truly,

…
Chairman

P.S. Thank you for supporting us in the past. We couldn’t do it without you.

———————

Writing a fundraising letter to a corporation is only the beginning. Call about a week later, but no more than two. As you go along, be sure to update the potential sponsor on the progress of the scheduled event. If they end up becoming a sponsor, be sure to send them a thank you letter as soon as you receive the money. If they call, make it a point to call back within 24 hours. You need to “court” your sponsors, and that means pay attention when they call.

After the event, when you’re exhausted from all the hard work that’s finally come to fruition: you’re not done yet! Send out a final letter updating them on how the event went, how much money was finally raised, etc. Be sure to include pictures, if possible pictures with their company name in it. Cultivate your sponsor relationships, and keep asking yourself: how would you like to be treated if you gave a donation to a cause? Treat others how you’d like to be treated and you’ll find that next time you need to raise money, it will be that much easier.

Related posts:

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Still, the main strategy for a successful church fundraiser, or any fundraiser, is to motivate volunteers and get everyone in unity and working toward the same goal: Set a clear and tangible goal in mind that people can understand, like a new children’s playground or nursery for example, and then update the volunteers regularly on the progress.

Because church members already give on Sundays in the offering basket, they may feel “put out” if asked to give any additional money. But if you can convince them to spend some of their time instead, you could possibly get double or triple of what you would have received if you had just asked for money. There are hundreds of church fundraising ideas on the internet, but the list of possibilities is really endless. Find out what talents, gifts, and abilities church members have to offer, and motivate them to use those:

Some of the best ideas for church fundraisers include:
• Bake sale. An old standby. Volunteers bake cakes and pastries to be sold at any venue you choose.
• Community cleanup. Requires a fair amount of planning, if you’re going to solicit pledges for each pound of trash collected.
• Candle fundraisers. The latest in church fundraising. People will buy candles anyway; why not buy them for a good cause?
• 50/50 Raffle. This one is good for a last minute fundraiser: no planning required. Sell some tickets (you can even sell them at the event where the raffle will be drawn) andthen pick a winner. Winner gets 50% of the pot; the church takes the rest.
• Car wash. A regular Saturday car wash for donations or a fixed amount can raise several hundred dollars a week.
• Church carnival. Lots and lots of planning here, but if you can pull it off, everyone will be chomping at the bit to do it again next year.
• Scratch cards. The upside to this method is that there is no product to be delivered, like pizza, or candles, for example.
• Yard sale/Garage sale. Most suburban churches are filled with people whose garages are full of junk they never use. Tell ‘em to bring it to church (or you’ll pick it up) and sell it.
• Cookie Dough. Who doesn’t love just thinking about fresh cookie dough? M & M’s and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup and Oreo Cookie flavored cookie dough, oh my…
• Pizza. You can do this one of two ways: order in bulk and sell by the slice at a 100% markup, or using do-it-yourself kits where the group takes orders in advance, then delivers the goods at a later date.
• Order taker brochure fundraising. Selling things from brochures provided for free can have fabulous returns.

Whatever you do, make having fun a priority, so that they’ll be willing to sign up again next time.

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