Fundraising Ideas

There are hundreds of fundraising ideas. What we’ve done here is to break some of the best ones into categories. Depending on the dollar amount you need to raise, the length of time you have to raise it, and the funds you have available to begin, choose several fundraising ideas from the list below that most interest your fundraising team. Then break them down considering cost, complexity, and estimated results.

Some of the fundraising ideas below can be merged and held along with others.

Creative Example: Carnival Fundraiser

• Start your fundraiser by contacting local business and asking them to 1) donate prizes or the money to purchase them or 2) pledge to match a percentage or your proceeds.(e.g. Ask a merchant to donate a new bicycle or tricycle and raffle it off. Post a “Donated by” sign near the prize!)
• Hold a “carnival” with games like a dunk tank, fishpond, throwing rings over bottles, etc.
• Hold a hula-hoop-a-thon and have participants get pledges for the number of seconds or minutes they can hula before the hoop falls.
• Have a balloon pop.
• Fill a large jar with jellybeans (you’ll need to count them) and let carnival-goers guess the number in the jar.
• Sell canned soft drinks at your event. (You can also recycle the aluminum from empty cans!)
• Have several donation jars on hand for attendees that don’t want to “play” but may donate to your cause.

More Fundraising Ideas
Sales! Sales! Sales!

1. Garage Sales – Great spring and fall fundraisers. Hold one in conjunction with citywide garage sales or other community events. Wholesale Event Merchandise carries a huge selection of affordable great selling merchandise to sell at your event.
2. Bake and Craft Sales – Start your fundraising nest egg with donated goods.
3. White Elephant Sales & Silent Auctions – Ask businesses to donate close out merchandise.
4. Flea Markets, Collectibles Sales, Swap Meets – Sell space to participating vendors.
5. Door-to-Door Sales – A number of companies offer products for sale. If your group doesn’t have cash to purchase prepaid products, collect the cash up front.
6. Cook Book Sale – A great addition to a bake sale! Your group’s members “donate” their “secret family recipes!”

Sponsorships & Donations

1. Personal Donation Letters – Send a letter to members explaining your needs, your goals, and offering different levels of donations. (e.g. single donation $10.00, family donation $25.00 or supporting level $25.00, member level $50.00, sponsor level $100.00, partner level $500.00) Be sure to leave a space for “other”.
2. Ask area businesses to donate raffle prizes, silent auction products, and small prizes for carnival games.
3. Community Groups & Fraternal Organizations – Many groups such as Eagles and Lions Clubs support certain kinds of activities. Ask them for participation or donations
4. Matching funds – Local businesses and employers are often willing to match proceeds or a percentage thereof.
5. Grants – Especially for educational projects, your organization may find money available from institutions that have endowments for grants.
6. Donation Containers – No fundraising event should be without them! In addition, local businesses and employers will often let you leave them on countertops and community areas (lunch rooms, near copy machines, etc.) Donation containers are also another opportunity to ask for matching funds.
7. Engraved & Donor Bricks or Plaques – A frequent site in Churches, Hospitals and other Institutions.

Fundraising Events & Activities

1. Car wash – Ask a local carwash owner to contribute the soap and water.
2. Benefits– Ask a local band or orchestra to do a charity benefit or to donate part of the “gate" to your group. Your group takes care of promotion and collects entrance fees.
3. Handyman Job Bank – Spring and Fall, your team offers to do yard clean ups, painting, etc for a small fee.
4. Carnival: Host a car push, tractor pull, or tug of war. Include games like a fishpond, dunk tank, throw hoops over bottles, etc. Sell buttons as entrance “tickets” to your event.
5. Meals (Spaghetti Dinners, Pancake Breakfasts, Soup luncheon) – Another great occasion to sell member cookbooks, candies, during your event.
6. Ice Cream Socials

Contests & Raffles

1. Balloon pops and releases – Put tickets inside balloons. Give a prize away for a certain numbered ticket or write the names of prizes on slips of paper inserted into the balloons.
2. Ticket Raffles – Raffle off member made craft items or large items from contributing businesses.
3. Guess the number or weight – Jars of jellybeans, pennies, dried beans, etc. Give a prize for the closest guess.
4. A-thons: bicycle, swim, hula-hoop, bowling, etc. Get pledges for total miles, laps, hours (minutes), number of frames bowled, etc.

Drives & Collections

1. Aluminum Can and Glass Bottle Drives
2. Plastic Containers
3. Recyclable Paper
4. Phones
5. Precious (and not-so-precious) Metals
6. Inkjet Cartridges
7. Coupon Collections
8.  http://www.wholesaleeventmerchandise.com/

Back to Articles