Using a consultant Consider using a fundraising consultant to assist your organization with larger fundraisers, first-time events, or mission critical efforts. Among the benefits of using professional help are the following: increased market penetration, increased sales per client, higher average sales volume per participant, and smoother logistical flow.
Use a fundraising consultant to take the hassle out of organizing your event and put the 'fun' back in fundraising again.
Protect your reputation Offer only high quality products. Remember that no one feels good about overpaying for something or getting shoddy merchandise in return for a contribution. Take the high road and build loyalty within your customer base.
Profit percentage Place less emphasis on the percentage profit offered by the supplier and focus more on the total net profit generated. Higher unit prices will mean higher total sales revenue and often, higher profits per customer.
That’s not to say that percentage isn’t important, but consider other factors as well. Look at whether sales incentives are included, hidden costs that may arise, sales brochures that cost extra, poor quality merchandise that can hurt future sales, and so on.
Incentives Rewards will increase participation and that can positively effect the net proceeds from your efforts. The quality of the incentives is an important motivator. If appropriate, consider rewards from among the products you’re offering. Look to local merchants for supplemental prizes.
Insist on best value People will be more inclined to buy if you’re offering quality goods at the right price. Higher-priced goods will actually generate more net from each sales transaction to your organization than the cheap stuff that offers a higher percentage profit to your group.
Price points Many times, different organizations conduct similar fundraisers at coincidental times. Make sure that the prices asked are comparable to other fundraisers in your community. Check prices ranges via the Internet and with other nearby organizations. Look at other catalogs, retail merchant pricing for similar goods, and trust your gut instincts.
Beware of perfuming the pig There’s an old saying about making a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. It means that someone is trying to assign a higher value to an item than it is worth. Another phrase often used to reference the deceptive selling of overpriced goods is 'perfuming the pig.'
If you overcharge your customers for common items, they’ll resent it, consciously or subconsciously. Compare results with records from past fundraisers to check what price points were offered before on similar items. Be certain to give fair market value for the items your group is offering. You want those customers back the next time, don’t you?
Setup calling trees Once your fundraiser has begun, don’t forget to utilize your calling tree for immediate feedback. Ask if there are any problems, check on initial reaction from participants and their families, keep the enthusiasm level high, and don’t let your initial positive momentum slip away. Regular polling of team leaders and participants will keep you informed.
Doubling Up Double check all order forms and check payments to be sure they’re correctly filled out. Double-team all money handling facets of the fundraising process. Have double dates (makeup days) planned in advance in case of inclement weather or other unforeseen delays on delivery day.
Use co-chairs for each mission critical function. Cross train on all tasks. Keep duplicate records of important details in a different location as part of your backup plan. In the world of technology, this is called disaster recovery or disaster prevention. Double count all deliveries coming in and going out.
Record Keeping Accurate records are a lifesaver and a source of information for future fundraisers. Follow audit guidelines just as if you were a small business. As a non-profit organization, you have to be able to document the source of your funding as well as how those funds were spent.
Setting goals and deadlines Do this well in advance, mapping out campaign timelines and strategies before the school or fiscal year starts if possible. Your goals should be realistic and based upon solid data from previous results. Take some time to think what extra offerings you could add that would double the net proceeds from each customer.
Always have a hard deadline for the sales period to end, nothing more than 17 days. Seventeen days is two weeks plus an extra weekend, the prime selling time.
Don’t forget to smell the roses A well-planned and well-executed fundraiser will leave you time to bask in the glory of your success. Remember to have fun and good luck!
Being on the receiving end of this because we run hundreds of school fundraisers every semester, I can tell you my take on "WHY" most of these groups didn't meet their expectations. The only problem with me saying it is that most people will simply nod their head in agreement and then go on their way forgetting about it because it sounds to unbelievably simple to work or it goes against their own notion of what works and what doesn't.
I can say that without a doubt that as long as a school does a main stream product line, as opposed to some quaint product line you will find in the fundraising world, in their school fundraisers, they can and do have above average sales "IF" they do one thing. One simple thing, that's it. The answer to a great fundraising program can be summarized in three words... Do Great Prizes!
That's it! If you do average everyday prizes you will have an average everyday school fundraiser. If you skimp on prizes, you will have a poor sale. If you enter a partnership with your fundraising company and charge full bore into giving premium prizes at the right levels, you will make much more profit than you thought possible. Period.
The facts don't lie. This is not my opinion or bias, it's just a plain and simple fact. This is based on the results that even you could take a look at on our website. If you "Wow" the students and their parents with the prize incentives you offer with your fundraiser, they will "Wow" you with results that you did not expect. Pretty simply stated, if you make it worth their while to participate in your school fundraising drive, they will more than likely do just that... participate! And the level of participation is where you make your profit.
It is not getting more students selling 40-80 items, it's getting 50-100 more students that sold nothing last time to sell 5 or more things this time. Think about it, which would you rather have, 3 students selling 50 things or 100 students selling 5 things?
The method of going about how you put the "Wow" in your incentive program is a little more involved that adding a drawing for a 40 gig IPod, but it is pretty simple. In fact, if all you do is add a $200 Playstation or Wii game as your top seller prize, the only thing that will happen is you will waste a perfectly good two hundred dollar bill. However, there is a one way to structure your "Wow" factor that will greatly increase your participation and the level that participation goes to. In most cases, the first time you set up your school fundraiser incentive program in a "Wow" way, you'll more than likely see anywhere from a 40% - 200% increase in your previous sales.
Like I said earlier, this is just too simple and the claim just a little too far "out there" for many people to accept it. It's simple nature however, does not change the fact that it works to increase the results of school fundraisers almost every time that it is tried. Period.
Both Kimberly Reynolds & Juan Franco are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Kimberly Reynolds has sinced written about articles on various topics from Fundraiser, Fundraising and Fundraiser. Kimberly Reynolds writes about and tips on organizing your. Kimberly Reynolds's top article generates over 9900 views. to your Favourites.
Juan Franco has sinced written about articles on various topics from Fundraiser, Fundraising and Fundraiser. One thing that we at AIM Fundraising have done over the past 20 years is watch, listen and learn from the thousands of school fundraisers we have run. Why do some