Fundraising can be hard, but it doesn't have to be. Use these tips to improve your fundraising and achieve your goal. And most of all, have fun!
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Key highlights to help you reach your goal... |
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- On average it takes 5 emails to get 1 donation
- People who personalize their page raise 4x more!
- Social is great but email is still more "personal"
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- Making your effort "personal" boosts support
- People are more likely to help you reach your goal when they know your goal
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Use the tips below to help you reach your fundraising goals and help those we serve. |
► What is the best way to raise Money?
The best way to increase your fundraising is to strategically ask your network to donate in order that they are most likely to donate with messaging that connects them to your appeal.
- 74.6 % of donors are more likely to give if asked by a family member and 62.8% if asked by a friend.
- As an individual fundraiser makes progress towards his or her fundraising goal, people will become more likely to make contributions.
1st: Segment Your Network |
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2nd: Customize Your Message for Each Group |
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► Kick-off your fundraising with a donation

Donors will be more inclined to give when they see you've taken the same step you are asking them to do to by giving a gift.
- Start your fundraising by making a donation on your personal webpage.
- If your company matches, be sure to complete the matching process at your company.
- If you have the ability to, offer to match every donation made to by your donors.
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► Make the personal ask to your inner circle
The importance of reaching out to your inner circle next is build a foundation for your fundraising. Future donors are motivated to donate if others have already donated, in addition the donation amounts already given will influence how much they give.
- Make a list of up 10 people in your inner circle that you are confident will make a donation. These individuals could be your parents, boss, or friend who already pledged their support.
- Contact each of those individuals in the way you communicate regularly with them. If it is digital, provide the link to your webpage with your ask. If it is in person or by phone, follow up with a link.
- Ask for a specific amount. “Will you please make a $100 donation…”
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► Share your connection

Why are you fundraising? Whatever has inspired you has probably inspired someone else. Find those connections within your networks and do more together.
- Identify everyone in your network that may have a personal connection. Focus on anyone who may have benefited from the services provided by the organization.
- Ask these individuals to make a donation and/or ask them to share your campaign with their friends. If they are passionate about the cause, it is likely they can influence their friends to donate as well.
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► Share your passion with friends and family

Your friends and family will give because you are asking them to. Your appeal should be personal in nature and share why you are fundraising.
- Ask on days that that your donors may be more likely to give, for example ask on traditional paydays (15th and 30th or Fridays) or when they have access to a computer. You want donors to be able to take immediate action when you ask.
- If you haven’t already done so, start using your social media accounts to make your friends and family are aware of your fundraising campaign before and after you send your emails. Always, provide a link to your personal webpage.
- Once you do start receiving donations, acknowledge your donors on the social network they use most. It will inspire others to donate.
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► Share your goal and progress!

This is when you ask everyone else you know that you haven’t asked yet. Cast your net wide and far; think high school friends on Facebook, professional colleagues on LinkedIn or local members of your community. You should ask anyone and everyone you have contact information for.
- Export your social media contacts lists and import them into your Participant Center to be able to send an email to everyone in your network. Both LinkedIn and Facebook have this option.
- Focus on your goal in your ask. “I am $200 away from my goal, will you make a donation today to help me reach it?” Follow up with a mission statement of how their donation will make a difference.
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► Plan to raise $500 in one month! Here's how...
- Week 1:
- Sponsor yourself for $25
- Send out fundraising letters to ten friends asking for $25 = $250 (Make sure they ask to see if their company has a matching gift program!)
Week 2:
- Ask four co-workers for $25 = $100
- Ask four family members for $10 = $40
Week 3:
- Ask three businesses for $10 = $30
Week 4:
- Ask five neighbors for $5 = $25
- Bring ice-cream to work on a hot day and put out a donation jar = $30
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Other Ways to Raise!
► Have a bake sale

Bake sales have long been one of the most popular ways of raising funds for schools, religious organizations and social clubs. They can be great moneymakers because there is little or no actual capital required. All of the baked goods are usually donated. Bake sales are also known community social events. People enjoy getting together over a common goal. Whether it's the people behind or in front of the table, they just love to mix and mingle at a bake sale. Here are several points to hosting a successful bake sale for your organization.
- Select a leader. It should be someone who has excellent organizational skills. The person should also be able to delegate responsibilities, which is extremely essential to a well run sale.
- Volunteers are imperative. The bake sale leader will need several people dedicated to organizing donations, handling publicity, setting-up tables and/or the booth, selling goods, collecting money and clean up.
- Donations are the key. Be sure to be specific in what baked goods will be needed for the sale straight from the start. As to not end up with all "chocolate cakes", make sure you know what is being donated. Pass out individual sign-up sheets with a list of the needed items. Ask for a first and second choice of what is being donated. Get names and phone numbers so that the person can be contacted to remind them of their donation and to specify which baked good is needed. Be specific on how you want the goods packaged. Some states have health codes stating that everything must be individually wrapped. Also, each baked good donated should have an index card prominently attached that has the name of the dish and a list of non-obvious and/or outstanding ingredients (such as coconut, nuts, candied or dried fruits or strawberries).
- Timing and location are important. Try to place your table and/or booth in a high traffic area. To guarantee a heavy traffic flow, plan the sale around other coordinating events. For school affiliated bake sales, sporting events and theater productions would be the perfect time to host a bake sale. Local craft shows may allow free booth space for a worthy cause.
- Presentation is everything. Set out nicely decorated and organized tables. Use tablecloths, but not in overpowering patterns. The baked goods should be your best decorations. Divide the baked goods according to type (cookies, cakes) and/or serving size (whole cakes, individual cookies). If you have several tables, separate them into just pies, cakes or even one just for chocolate goods.
- Know your customers. Are you selling to big families? Sell cookies by the dozen and entire cakes. Sales to children or singles will be higher with individual packages of baked goods such as one brownie or one cupcake.
- Think beyond baked goods. Serve coffee at bake sales in the evenings or on cold days. Selling cold bottled water or lemonade along with the baked goods at a football game would increase profits. If sales are slow have hourly specials. Group certain goods together for special pricing. Get recipes for all of the baked goods prior to the sale. Anyone with word processing knowledge could prepare a small, inexpensive cookbook for sale. Prior to the winter holidays, don't be limited to the typical bake sale. Try to coordinate donations of specially packaged baked goods that the buyer could in turn give away as gifts. Offering cookie ingredients or homemade granola in decorated jars would be the perfect sale for that time of year.
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► Do a carwash fundraiser

When planning a car wash fundraiser it’s essential to keep a few things in mind for your fundraising event to be a huge success. Below are some tips for a successful car wash fundraiser:
- Plan your car wash fundraiser carefully
When planning your car wash fundraiser be sure to pick a day and time that does not conflict with another popular local or even nationwide event. For example: don’t have your car wash on a holiday weekend like 4th of July because a lot of people may be out of town. Have your car wash fundraiser on the weekend before or after the holiday weekend. Check to see if any local events are taking place like a local parade or a farmers market. If you see that there is a farmers market happening it is a good idea to try to have your car wash near the event because there will be a lot of traffic which brings us to tip #2.
- Location, Location, Location
Perhaps the most important aspect of a successful car wash fundraiser is having it in a well traveled location. You will want to pick a parking lot on off a main road. When you choose a location this should be the #1 decision in your discussions. If you choose a great location it is also important to have group members who are willing to hold up signs on the street to lure your customers in. This brings us to tip #3
- Promotion and Marketing of your Car Wash Fundraiser
Be sure to make great fliers and the more colorful the better. Hang them on telephone poles and place them in areas that are highly traveled like supermarkets, 7-11s, the local mall and so on. You car wash will not be successful unless people know that you are having a car wash fundraiser. Make sure that your fliers tell people what the fundraiser is for so that they are more likely to help support your great charity or non profit organization fundraising cause.
- Be loud at your car wash fundraiser
Nothing attracts attention like a lot of noise. If you want people to notice your car wash fundraiser than you need to have your group members be as loud as they can. You could have cheerleaders or other people cheering for you car wash fundraiser to attract people driving by with their windows down who will likely look over to see what all the fuss is about. You could get a bull horn and announce the car wash fundraiser to all the cars that pass by.
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► Host a sports pool for the sports buffs in your circle

A sports pool is a simple and great way to raise money. Choose any upcoming game and create a grid with 100 squares. Write one team name across the top of the grid and the other team name along the left hand side. Choose a flat fee for each square and sell all your squares on the grid. Write down the donor’s name inside each square purchased. Before the game, randomly draw numbers for the horizontal and vertical axes of the grid. When the game ends, take the last digit of each team’s point total to locate the lucky winner. You can allocate a portion of the collected money for prizes, and the rest goes toward your fundraising.
You can also do this for multiple games and all-season-long . Keep the names in the same place but switch up the numbers each game. It sounds complicated, but trust us, it’s easy; if you need any help, feel free to contact us and we can help!
- What is a hundred squares football pool?
It's a form of gambling, usually organized by a group of coworkers in an office or by someone in a bar or restaurant..
- How much does it usually cost to play?
The cost varies from pool to pool. Most office pools will cost between 1 and 10 dollars per square.
- Do I have to know anything about sports?
No. Since the numbers are randomly drawn, everyone has the same opportunity to get any set of numbers. You don't need to know anything about sports, just watch for the score at the end of each quarter/period of the game.
- Resources:
This site has everything you need to start your own 100-square pool: 100squaresfootballpool.com
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