Are you looking for a different and unique way to raise money for your group or organization? This year, skip the usual chocolate bars and scented candles, and sell something that will increase your group's visibility in the community. Pens, mugs, t-shirts, hats and jackets that carry your organization's name and logo can be excellent year-round fund-raisers for your group.



There are a number of different ways to fundraise using promotional items. Here are just a few ideas for ways that promotional items can help your organization, school or group raise money to support your efforts.

1.Give a thank you item or gift for contributions. If your fund-raising efforts include door to door canvassing or soliciting in a public place, you can create visibility and interest by giving each contributor a little thank you gift. One very popular option for this type of thank you is a car sticker that designates the contributor as a Proud Supporter of your organization.

2.Are you fund-raising at a street fair or other public event? Let your thank you gift do double duty by choosing something with high visibility like a colorful balloon with your charity's name on it. The balloons will attract other contributors and visitors to your booth or table.

3.Sell club jackets. Apparel branded with your organization's name is always a popular seller, but club jackets carry a special cachet for organizations like dance schools or martial arts dojos. Your students and members will all be proud to wear them, and they often also sell well to parents and other family members who want to support your organization.

4.Need to raise quick money for a special event sponsored by your school club or organization? You can often make big profits with small items. Most schoolmates have enough spare change to buy a pen, keyring, ruler or water bottle with the school name imprinted on it. They cost very little, and even when you mark up the price by double, they're still affordable on even the tightest allowance.

5.Raise extra money by raffling off bigger ticket items like executive bags, USB devices or digital cameras imprinted with your organization's name. You can easily offer several as second tier prizes without breaking your bank.

6.Put together a flyer of items branded with your school or organization's logo, or with your PSA slogan and make them available for funding drives throughout the year. By including items in a wide variety of price ranges, you can give everyone a chance to contribute to your cause. Some possibilities for inclusion: promotional calendars, printed pens, bottle opener keyrings, promotional rucksacks and promotional umbrellas.

Most people will be proud to have contributed to a worthy cause, and when you offer them a way to show the world, they'll be even happier to contribute. By selling items with your name or slogan on them, or giving them as thank you gifts, you're extending the reach of your fund-raising efforts to include publicity and marketing. Remember, every person who wears or uses one of the promotional items that you sell to raise money for your organization also increases awareness of your cause. That's the kind of publicity that you can't buy ? but you CAN sell it.