Successful fundraising requires following certain fundamental steps. Here are two things you have to do with every fundraiser:

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1) Increase community awareness of your need

2) Increase community awareness of your offering

Everybody reading this instantly thinks, “Yep, we’ve got that covered. Everybody in our group knows what we’re doing.”

Let’s take a closer look and see, shall we?

Creating Awareness Of Your Fundraising Need: 1) Can your need be expressed in a single sentence? 2) Has everyone in your group memorized that sentence? 3) Is expressing your need a part of your approach to all supporters?

Test your group from top to bottom.

Randomly ask individuals to tell you why your group is raising money.

I absolutely guarantee you that you’ll be surprised at how weak the various answers are.

In many groups, more than 50% of those involved with the fundraiser will not be able to tell you in a single sentence the specific reasons why they are raising money.

What about outside your group?

Can you honestly say that you’ve exhausted every possible approach in getting the word out to the community about your fundraiser?

Does everybody know why you need money?

Have you done each of these?

Flyers Posters Press release Roadside signs Newspaper coverage Public service radio announcements Pre-kickoff letter, postcard, or email campaigns

Or, are you assuming that all you have to do is tell someone that you’re doing a fundraiser and that they’ll be glad to help?

Two problems with that approach. One is that most of your group can’t effectively communicate your need.

The second is that you are already assuming that your group has more than enough prospective supporters to meet your goal.

Both these problems limit your potential results.

Consider these three points:

One, if your need isn’t communicated clearly and concisely, it will not be understood and internalized as a deserving cause by your prospective supporters.

Two, if your sellers don’t really understand your group’s need, then they won’t push as hard to meet that need.

Three, if your need isn’t general knowledge in your community, then your fundraising job will be that much harder.

Think of “getting the word out” as being similar to softening up the beachhead during the Normandy invasion. If you don’t do the advance prep work, you’re much more likely to meet a hostile response.

Creating Awareness Of Your Fundraising Offering The second fundraising fundamental goes hand-in-hand with creating an awareness of your need.

Creating an awareness of your offering is just as important as telling people why your group needs money.

Your fundraising need and your fundraising offering should be closely linked in all your communications.

At the same time you are getting the word out, you need to make sure the message gets through on exactly what your group is doing to raise funds.

Just as with expressing your need, everyone in your group should be able to sum up your fundraising offering in a single sentence.

That sentence should also reinforce the emotional foundation that is derived from recognition of your need.

So what in the heck does all that mean?

Put simply, if someone believes your need is real and agrees with the value proposition of your offering, they will help you.

And what’s your fundraising value proposition?

It’s a summation of your offering, combined with a reminder of your need, that’s expressed in a way that informs each prospective supporter of what’s in it for them.

In other words, your prospect needs to:

1 – Be aware of your need 2 – Be linked to it on an emotional level 3 – Be in agreement that your offer has real value in it for them

Getting your need and your offering across to as many potential supporters as possible is the essence of fundraising.

Take the time to develop single sentence statements for your fundraiser covering both of these fundraising fundamentals.

Teach everyone in your group how to communicate these basic value statements when they talk to prospective supporters.

Conclusion

Executing well on these fundraising fundamentals — communicating your need and communicating your offering — ensures that your fundraiser will be a smashing success.

Little Souls dolls are valuable and unique treasures created by children who are in need. Sales benefit those very children and part of the sales go to the Children’s Hope Foundation.

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Little Souls dolls are valuable and unique treasures created by children who are in need. Sales benefit those very children and part of the sales go to the Children's Hope Foundation.

The concept behind the toys is as sweet and endearing as the faces themselves. Each doll is created by hand, just as you would suspect. The beauty lies in who makes the Little Souls Dolls and who benefits from the sales.

They reminded me of something my great-great grandmother would make by hand for a beloved child. When I read about the history to the Little Souls Dolls, I knew that I had to have one.

Little Souls Dolls look like folk art, each one with a unique and loving face that is sure to warm your heart. Upon looking at the collection of dolls available online, I immediately fell in love with the quaint toys that beckon the onlooker to another time and place.

The children create the dolls while staying in the hospital. Each child is given instructions and materials necessary to create the doll. They also make up a story about the Little Souls Dolls they build. Many of the children who make the dolls are quite ill and they find great joy in attending the doll making class and they find great joy in creating a new friend.

The Little Souls Dolls that you buy are not the same ones created by the children. Those stay with their makers, but the doll company takes photographs of the dolls and they write down the stories that accompany the toys. The photographs and stories are sent to Ardmore, Pennsylvania where they are duplicated by the employees of the Little Souls Doll Company.

Proceeds from each sale benefit the very children who make the precious toys. The concept behind the toys is quite brilliant and moving. It takes quite a bit of time and money for the company to send employees to various hospitals across the United States. The materials for the dolls are donated by the company as well.

The stories, on the other hand are completely free. Perhaps the stories created by the children are of more value than the dolls themselves. I find the Little Souls Dolls to be of great importance. They represent the many lives of children who struggle with illness at such young ages. They are reminders of how very delicate our lives really are.

When your youth group needs to raise money quickly, you need a fast free fundraiser that you can rely on to generate the necessary revenue. The amount you make on these free easy fundraisers will depend on how much time you have to prepare and how we

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Here are three time-tested projects to raise some fast cash:

1 – Car Wash 2 – Yard Cleanup 3 – Community Cleanup

Car Wash Fundraiser Car washes have proven to be great fundraisers in virtually every community. All you need are willing volunteers, a high-traffic location with good visibility, and some attention getting signs. You can put your car wash fundraiser together on short notice.

Here’s what you need to do:

1 – Line up a location with good main road frontage 2 – Ensure it has water access 3 – Assemble supplies list – hoses, buckets, wash towels, dry towels, squeegees 4 – Assign each volunteer an item from the supplies list 5 – Make 8-10 poster board signs in high-contrast colors 6 – Arrange your volunteers in 2-hour shifts 7 – Wash cars for six hours (Saturday preferred) 8 – Have dual lines so you can wash two at once

Your car wash fundraiser’s success will of course depend on the weather. If you can wash 12 cars an hour (one every 10 minutes in each line), you can easily raise more than $500 in one day.

Remember to put together a quick flyer that includes the reason why you’re raising funds and clearly states the price. You can even offer some extra services such as Armor-All tire treatment or interior vacuuming for an additional fee.

Alternatively, you can advertise a free car wash and just ask for donations for your cause. Often, this can raise more cash than stating a specific price, because people will see a group of volunteers working hard and having a good time, and may pay more than you would hav asked.

Keeping safety in mind, be sure to get volunteers to hold and wave signs toward passing traffic, not just volunteers to wash cars. If you have time, advertise your car wash event in the local newspaper, and post signs a day or two in advance.

Yard Cleanup A yard cleanup fundraiser is extremely fast and easy to put together. Simply create a set of instructions for your group detailing what to offer, what to say, and how much to charge.

Like most fundraisers, the target market is family, friends, and neighbors. Depending on the age of your participants, your offerings can range from simple lawn care all the way up to mulching flower beds or pruning tree limbs. In many climates, autumn is a great time to do this fundraiser, because leaf clearing is always a needed service during those months.

Create a flyer describing your fundraiser and clearly list your prices for the various cleanup options. Assign a fundraising quota to each participant.

Offer some individual and group performance bonuses. There’s nothing like a team pizza party or movie passes to motivate a youth sports group.

Community Cleanup A community cleanup, also known as a trash bag fundraiser, performs a valuable community service while also providing a significant revenue opportunity. Organizing a community cleanup project is a way to raise funds and send a positive message about your group at the same time.

This type of one day or weekend fundraising event is very similar to the Athlet-A-Thon or Fun-A-Thon concept. Here your group’s participants solicit pledges from the usual suspects – family, friends, and neighbors. Have local businesses donate trash bags and recruit parents and relatives with trucks to haul what you collect.

Pledges are tied to a specific attainment goal such as the number of pounds of trash collected or the number of road miles cleaned of debris. You’ll need to create a one-page overview of your cleanup program and a pledge signup sheet.

It works best if your overview specifies a suggested range for donations, say anywhere from a penny to a dime a pound for a large project. An amazing amount of garbage can be collected from a local stream or illegal dumping area, so it’s not a bad idea to also put a maximum limit on pledge amounts of $20.

Have local businesses donate trash bags. Recruit parents and relatives with trucks to haul what you collect.

Do the math. You’ll be surprised at how much money you can generate. Assuming 50 participants, each of whom has five pledges of a penny a pound, if you collect a ton of garbage, your group will raise $100 per participant or $5,000.

That’s not bad money for a free fundraiser! You’d be surprised at how easy it is to collect a ton of garbage.

Each of these fundraisers is fast, easy to put together, and a reliable revenue generator for your group. As with any youth group event, an adult should be in attendance at all times for safety purposes. Get started on your free easy fundraisers today!

Cheerleading fundraisers are the ultimate in small group fundraising. Cheerleaders possess boundless energy, determination, and loads of contacts (for potential supporters).

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Cheerleading fundraisers are the ultimate in small group fundraising. Cheerleaders possess boundless energy, determination, and loads of contacts (for potential supporters).

Harnessing all this energy and enthusiasm can be a challenge,but having the right cheerleading fundraiser is a great start. You want to leverage their skills by giving them an exciting fundraising product to sell.

So, what cheerleading fundraising ideas will generate excitement?

In this article, we’ll consider three types of cheer fundraisers. Each involves doing something a little different, each of them are easy to do, and each fundraiser packs a profit punch.

Cheer Fundraiser #1 One unique approach for a cheerleading fundraiser is offering custom posters of school sports teams or of the cheerleaders themselves.

For instance, feature the team photo of the football team, or use a series of action photos. Each can be turned into a wall-sized poster or a fundraising calendar.

Add some allure to these cheerleading fundraisers by including your game schedule or team slogan printed on it in a contrasting color.

You could also design one to celebrate your championship teams, commemorate your previous titles, intensify a cross-town rivalry, recognize all of your school’s sports teams on a spirit poster, or feature the cheerleading squad in action.

Any of these items is sure to be popular with a wide range of students. Local businesses will often buy one to put in their front window. Players will want a souvenir copy suitable for end-of-season autographs. Proud parents and grandparents will want their own keepsake copy.

The posters can be sold easily at pep rallies, sporting events, through the school store, and by the cheerleaders themselves via a merchant table at a high-traffic location on a weekend.

Think of creative ways to design and market your own unique set of cheerleading posters. Consider adding merchant sponsor logos to reduce the cost. You could also cross-promote with another school on a rivalry poster and double the overall market.

Cheer Fundraiser #2 Another idea for cheerleading fundraising is selling customized Holiday Greetings CD’s. This is a brochure or order-taker sale of a personalized selection of holiday music favorites.

One of the nice things about this product is that a purchaser selects their ten favorite holiday songs by checking off boxes on a list of thirty classics.

Included in the choices are favorites such as Let It Snow, White Christmas, Jingle Bells, and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.

These are licensed copies of the original recordings by the original artists, assembled on a personalized CD that costs your group a mere $4 each.

A retail price of $10 coupled with the ability for the customer to order a personalized message on each copy, make these a great cheerleading fundraiser.

The CD’s are available in six basic designs – Singing Snow Men, Rudolph, Christmas Tree, Peace On Earth, Kwanzaa, and Happy Hanukkah.

There is room for a holiday greeting of up to thirty characters on each design. For example, the Christmas Tree version has the phrase “Merry Christmas” in green and red, with space below it for a “From the XYZ Family” greeting.

Shipments are sorted by salesperson and customer, making your delivery a very simple task indeed.

Cheer Fundraiser #3 A third type of cheerleading fundraiser that creates an air of excitement is selling flowering “airplants.”

Airplants, or more properly, Tillandsias, are unique, soil-free plants that absorb nutrients and water through their leaves. All they need is air, water, and light.

Tillandsias are attractive and fascinating members of the pineapple family (Bromeliaceae). Their native habitat is the southern United States, Mexico, and Central and South America.

Bromeliads – Tillandsias – can be placed in anything: rocks, shells, pottery, driftwood, around water fountains, fish tanks, etc. They like bright, indirect lighting, and a heavy spraying or soaking two or three times a week.

They have a growth cycle starting with one plant growing to maturity, then blooming. One to two months after the blooming has finished, new plants form around the base of the “mother” plant. Each will continue growing and reproducing if given the proper care.

A cheerleading fundraiser Airplant package consists of a beautiful example of the Bromeliad family, comfortably ensconced in a natural seashell holder.

Your group pays $3 per Airplant, including the seashell holder, shipping and handling. Each Tillandsia retails for $6, so your cheerleading fundraiser is ensured a good profit margin.

You can organize your sale as a special event or as an add-on to a regular gathering. Set up a table with your sales display and place a colorful Tillandsia poster on the wall behind to let your prospective customers see how beautiful these Airplants are in full bloom.

You can also conduct your cheerleading fundraiser as an order- taker from a sales brochure. Each brochure contains colorful pictures of these exotic, but easy to care for, plants.

Simple text explanations are included describing the simple steps involved in nourishing these fabulous specimens.

Summary All three of these fundraising products will add some excitement to your next cheerleading fundraiser.

When all the participants are enthusiastic about offering something new and unique, it packs a powerful profit punch.

Heres to making your next cheer fundraiser a resounding success.

Cheers!

School fundraisers are necessary even though many people and parents complain that the local school is always fund raising. The money raised through school fundraisers goes into such things as field trips and equipment that the school cannot afford t

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Schools are always trying to find different fund raising ideas so that they have fundraising events that offer something unique and make people want to attend. Bake sales and car washes are old-fashioned fund raising ideas that people are getting tired of. While school fund raisers are necessary, neither the administration nor the parents want to have the children always going door to door selling different items.

Some of the popular fund raising events that draw a crowd to the school fund raisers are those that offer an opportunity for the whole family to have fun and win prizes. A carnival day or a supper is one fund raising idea that brings in a lot of money if you can get some of the businesses in the area to donate the prizes. No matter how much money you raise when everything is donated, you don’t have any expenses.

School fund raisers often involve selling cookies, candy or calendars. One of the fund raising events that is always popular around Christmas is a flea market. This doesn’t even seem like a fund raiser because those who want to sell any used items or crafts for Christmas pay a fee to set up a table. At the same time the school can operate a canteen or sell hotdogs to add to the money being raised.

Another popular fund raising idea is to sell discount cards or coupon booklets. The discount cards can offer a percentage off common items that parents buy for themselves or school supplies for the children. The cost of the booklet of discount coupons is substantially less than the amount of money that you save. For this event the school simple has to announce that it is having a fund raising event and send home booklets with each student. If the parents do not wish to purchase them, they simply send them back. More often than not though, the students come back looking for more booklets to sell to their relatives. Family members are good supporters of school fund raisers.

School fundraisers are common, but necessary.

It seems like soccer fundraising is either a season-long effort or a quick hitter that doesn’t cover all your needs.

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Well, the good news is that there are some ways to make money quickly, or even all season long, that merit your consideration.

What are your fundraising goals?

Many youth sports teams and leagues want:

1 – Fundraisers that can be done with little effort 2 – Fundraisers that may be done sporadically 3 – Fundraisers that will produce significant results

Soccer fundraising programs In this article, we’ll examine several soccer fundraisers that are quick hitting and sure to score.

The three soccer fundraising programs are:

1 – Bottled water

2 – Shot cage and radar gun

3 – Fast-food discount cards

Soccer Fundraising: Bottled Water The first soccer fundraising program is selling bottled water. Consider for a moment that each team member will bring water to every practice and to every game. That’s at least a couple dozen bottles right there and probably a whole lot more.

Add in sales to spectators and you’ve got at least 500 bottles that could easily be sold. Sure, you can buy in bulk at a warehouse club, but you can add extra value to your soccer fundraising with private branding of your bottled water, either as a team or as a league.

The initial setup for each label is $75 and afterward, the unique label with your logo emblazoned in color costs nothing extra. Prices for the bottled spring water are wholesale, which allows your group a comfortable 50% profit margin.

When you think about it, doesn’t it make sense to capture the wholesale-to-retail markup for your group while building team spirit at the same time?

Soccer Fundraising: Shot Cage The second soccer fundraising program is best suited for a league-wide effort. On Picture Day, during a tournament, or at any other event with high attendance, set up a soccer “shot cage” with a radar gun to measure velocity.

Every player will want multiple chances to show just how fast their shot speeds toward the goal. You can set up contests with prizes for various age ranges, team awards, Top Gun, etc.

Soccer fundraising featuring a radar-equipped shooting cage is actually an inexpensive event to host.

Several companies rent the equipment by the week with radar gun, cage, and freight all included for less than $350.

You can also find suppliers who will put together a soccer fundraiser with a hosted radar cage and do a revenue split with your group, so there would be no upfront cost.

To maximize your soccer fundraising success, price shots in a multi-shot package, such as two for $1 or other combinations.

Count the number of players in your league or potential shooters at a tournament event and determine if this type of soccer fundraising is right for your group.

For additional information, you can contact national supplier Absolute Amusements.

Soccer Fundraising: Fast-food Discount Cards The third soccer fundraiser is one that your group can use once or use to raise funds all season long. And that’s selling fast food discount cards.

This is a simple item to sell. Each fundraising discount card contains a certain number of two-for-one meal packages at a well-known fast food outlet.

Participating companies include McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Subway, Taco Bell, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Dominoes Pizza, and other large fast-food chains.

Your group purchases a certain number of these cards in advance and sells them to families or individuals that will appreciate a substantial discount. The number of two-for-one deals on each card varies by company.

Pizza Hut’s card offers a free pizza with the purchase of another pizza up to a maximum of ten. The McDonalds card seems to offer the least number of “double deals” but its also one of the most popular.

Each card retails for $10 and costs between $1 to $2. Each one features the fast-food company’s logo on the front along with a message stating that 80-90% of the price of this card goes to support your soccer fundraising group.

It’s a nice way to tap into the consumer spending revenue stream with an attractive product that benefits both parties.

Find out more about fundraising discount cards from a supplier that handles all the different cards.

These programs allow your group to reap an excellent return by offering quality products that require only moderate effort. They are guaranteed to score a goal every time out with your players and your supporters.

There are many ways to market your travel business or team up with others in the travel industry for fundraisers. And some popular ways involve the use of travel vouchers.

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There are many ways to market your travel business or team up with others in the travel industry for fundraisers. And some popular ways involve the use of travel vouchers.

Travel vouchers are generally issued by companies in the travel industry like airlines for complimentary airfare, hotel stays and other perks. They might be given out for stranded travelers who’ve missed connecting flights or as bonuses or for any number of reasons.

You can also use vouchers in fundraising efforts. Here are some popular promotional ideas:

1 Invite your customers to get really excited about your business so they will tell their friends by giving them a free vacation voucher, certificate, a coupon, etc. Offer these vouchers at fundraisers at local community events and let your customers know to notify you when their own businesses and places of employment host fundraisers, too, so that you can participate by contributing vouchers to them as well.

2. The kind of award or rewards you want to donate as vouchers for fundraisers should depend on your budget and what your business can afford. Less expensive travel vouchers might be in the form of offering food coupons, gift certificates, movie passes or clothing accessories and travel items like suitcases and watches. More expensive rewards ideas might be costume jewelry, short vacations, complimentary bed and breakfast gift certificates, long distance calling cards.

3. You could donate something travel-related to a fundraiser, like a carry-on suitcase on wheels. And then tuck a voucher inside the suitcase as a free bonus gift. Or if flyers are allowed at the fundraising event, mention on promotional flyers an offer to potential customers with a free voucher, coupon or travel gift certificate as a back end product or service, a bonus item for sales that close before a certain deadline. (This can also help to increase your chances for repeat purchases.)

So put on your thinking cap and come up with creative ways to incorporate travel vouchers in with fundraisers. You will not only be giving back, but sharing valuable resources with others, putting plenty of smiles on faces. And that’s fun!

Looking for a good school fundraising idea?

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Looking for a good school fundraising idea?

Finding ‘something different’ can be a challenge. The good news is that there are other school fundraising ideas besides coordinating a special event or conducting a catalog-based fundraiser.

These often end up overwhelming your supporters with multiple fund raising products that aren’t everyday items for most people.

In this series, we’ll take a look at three school fundraising ideas. Part Two looks at Pizza Cards.

These are simple products that your group can offer that provide these benefits:

1) They are easy to sell 2) They offer good value 3) They produce excellent results

School Fundraising Ideas: Pizza Card

What is a pizza card and how is it different?

A pizza card is a discount card with an offer tied to a single merchant, usually a national chain. It often provides a two-for-one offer on every order and is tends to be priced at $10 for a card good for a one-year period.

Offers vary with most being tied to either a single location or a small group of outlets for a national chain. Pizza Hut cards are good for eat-in dining while most others are aimed at the take-out or delivery market.

Given how popular pizza is with younger children as well as teenagers, pizza cards are excellent school fundraising ideas.

The cards for Pizza Hut and those for some of the other chains place a limit on the number of times you can use the card,often 21 times. That is an awful lot of free pizza for $10. Usage is tracked via holes punched in marked spots on the card.

Some of the offers also specify that your initial order must be for a large pizza while your free pizza is a medium size. When you think about it, that works well for most adults because they usually want a different set of toppings than what their children enjoy.

Like the discount card, pizza cards can be obtained from many suppliers. Most offer the same set of national chains and prices can vary widely, so it pays to shop around.

All in all, pizza cards are among the top school fundraisers for profit and ease of sale.

Fundraising is both challenging as it is rewarding. Raising the needed fund for a worthy cause is indeed spiritually and emotionally satisfying. Every school organization may want to extend a helping hand to those folks who are in dire need. The pros

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When your school organization aims to help out through whatever possible means regardless of who or which is the beneficiary, fundraising is just the most precise thing to do. Is it not much fulfilling on your part to put out the best possible effort you can in order to earn money for a specific cause or if you’re earning money to help others? Of course it is!

Confused of which fundraising strategy to go for? There are a lot of fundraising ideas to opt for which may either be simple or a bit complicated. As a matter of fact, it is usually the simplest plan which works best.

What can fundraising do for you?

Due to the fact that fundraising stirs the best out from you, the feeling of being able to help the needy is particularly spiritually and emotionally gratifying. Fundraising campaigns are as well beneficial for your organization as it heightens the return of good and positive feedbacks that your group may get.

Apart from all other glorifying aspects which fundraising generate, one’s creativity, organizational skills, communication dexterities, and firmness as likewise enhanced. During fundraising ventures, you and your group mates get the chance to interact with people from all walks of life and be able experience for yourselves the real score outside of the world which you are traditionally confined in.

Fundraising Ideas

There are a number of fundraising ideas that your school organization can choose from. The most common fundraising ideas are selling sandwiches, candy and chocolate bars, shakes, beverages, meal coupons, concert tickets, basketball game tickets, discount coupons, personalized shirts, mugs, pens, and other collectible items, and so on. Cooking and then selling the output from the recipes you have collected can also be effective. You can try selling them to the school’s population or to the outside community. Your organization can even team up with the school’s sports games and earn profit from the ticket sales. Or, your organization may stage a concert for a cause. Garage sale and car washing is also among the trendiest fundraising activities these days.

Things to Consider in Fundraising

After finally deciding on which fundraising idea to go for, there are two major things which must be borne in mind. The first thing is to carefully think about the percentage of profit that you will make out of the fundraising activity. When your organization had opted to team up with another organization or some company, the agreement must be put into writing.

Next, it is significant to make sure that the products you put up for sale for the fundraising campaign are worth it. Once the people know for a fact the real cause for the fundraising activity, they tend to be exceptionally generous.

Any fundraising activity needs careful planning. For the campaign to be highly successful, it is important that all members of your organization should concert enough effort for the realization of the specified goals.