Put some FUN in fundraising!

If you are looking for additional ways to fundraise for your charity walk or ride team, I am a huge fan of FUN fundraising! 
Here are a few of my favorite successful ideas.

• Tap into the cause. Work with a local brewpub. Ask the owner/manager to dedicate the sales from one or two kegs to your cause. Contact friends and family to join you for the evening. Tip the wait staff and ask them to enthusiastically recommend the “cause” tap! Have fliers, walk brochures, handouts from the organization, silicon bracelets, photos, just about anything, to raise awareness. Ask someone from the organization to be on hand to say a few words and/or answer questions. Set up a basket or large jar for casual donations. Set out a guest list and ask for names/email addresses so you can sent out thank yous!
• Dine out for the Cause. A variation of the first idea only better (in my opinion!) because you don’t have to decorate and someone else handles the clean-up! Contact a local restaurant to host a benefit night. Generally 15 to 20% of the night’s sales are donated back to the cause. This can be a huge win for your walk/ride team, the organization and the restaurant! Check with the major chain restaurants in your neighborhood like Chevy’s, Chili’s, California Pizza Kitchen, or Rubios. However, don’t limit yourself…you may find your favorite restaurant is more than willing to help – they will get new customers without the cost of advertising. Then…advertise, advertise, advertise!
• Throw a theme party! Hawaiian Luau, Old Fashioned BBQ, Make your own Burritos/Tacos, Spaghetti Feed, Game Night with pot luck are just a few ideas. Location can be as creative as your imagination!  Ask for $10-$50 admission and try to get food/beverages donated from a local grocery store, catering company, restaurant(s) in exchange for advertising. Ask for merchandise donations and hold a silent auction to add excitement and additional revenue. Send me an outline of your event and I'll donate a pair of Heart of Hope earrings to support your efforts!  Please include the text "Fundraising Request" in the subject line and give me at least 10 days notice!
• Bowl-a-thon or Tournament.  Work with your local bowling ally to organize an evening or weekend tournament when they have a little downtime from league play. They should be able to help you with the details. Ask if the pro would be willing to give a “clinic” prior to the tournament start. Charge an admission fee that will cover any expense charged by the bowling ally, plus a donation to the cause, and encourage participants to get their friends/family to sponsor them – say 10 cents per pin. Encourage friends to form teams. Get prizes donated from local merchants. Take photos/videos and post to your social media sites. Send photos and a story to the press for the local human interest section. Again, advertise, advertise, and advertise.
• Golf Tournament. If you are near a golf course or belong to a club, this can be a great event but should not be taken on by amateurs or the fainthearted!  Check with the club and ask the pro to help organize a Pro/Am event. No Country Club membership? No worries, find a local Miniature Golf course and organize a peewee tournament for your cause.

Here are a few of my favorite ideas that don’t involve event planning or really much effort at all!

• ChipIn.  Use the ChipIn widget to the left and make a donation of any size...THANK YOU!!  You can also set up your own ChipIn widget, using their easy-to-use tools and a PayPal account.
• Recycling. If your state has a redemption fee for soda bottles and aluminum cans, this is an EASY, painless way to raise money and be “green”. Have everyone you know save their soda and water bottles/cans in large 33 gal garbage bags. You can offer to pick up the collection or ask friends to drop them off on a designated weekend. Then you take all of the bags to your local recycler and collect the fee.
• Change the face of [your cause].  Ask everyone to save their spare change for a designated period of time – 3 months is just about right. Then have an event (Beer night, Dine out night) and ask everyone to bring their change. You can roll the coins, but I highly recommend letting the local CoinStar® machine count it out for you.  The 10% taken is totally worth the time and aggravation saved. Plus... not all banks take rolled coin from individuals anymore!
• Getting married and don’t need or want any more STUFF?  Set up a Charity Wedding Registry.  A charitable gift registry is a meaningful way to commemorate your special day. A charitable donation is the perfect way to personalize your wedding gift and inspire greater giving.
• Set up a Facebook cause page .  Follow the instructions - it's practically foolproof!

Speaking of Facebook...remember to post links for all of your fundraising efforts to Social Media Sites. Remember to add events to your Facebook, MySpace pages. Use Twitter to inform, recruit and generate interest. Take pictures and/or video and post up following the event. Thank your volunteers and sponsors publicly and remember to have fun!
My friends will tell you that I'm pretty organized and I've had work assignments as a Project Manager, so event production comes pretty naturally! However, if you were not born with the PM gene, no worries! You just need some extra enthusiasm and the ability to draft some uber organized friends! You can also check out any number of great books available to help you think through and organize a successful fundraiser.


What is your favorite fundraising tip? Please share it here!