Fundraising for Small Groups Newsletter

How To Get Free (Or Cheap) Entertainment For Your Gala by Dave W. Tanner

The fundraiser's dilemma: you want a good - and, if possible, famous speaker or entertainer to draw patrons to your annual gala. But - being a fundraiser (whose moneys are meant to help a charitable cause) - you want to spend as little as possible.

How do you do it? How do you get great speakers or performers, while still saving every possible penny for your charity?

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Are You Teaching Students These Important Lessons During a School Fundraiser? by Jim Berigan

When your school decides to pursue a fundraiser for a particular need, it is very easy to focus on that goal with laser-like intensity. The time and effort required to pull off a successful fundraising event requires this kind of commitment from everyone involved. However, I contend that there are also numerous opportunities for children to learn some very important life-lessons along the way. I believe that it is our responsibility as adult leaders to ensure these lessons are not glossed over in the rush to raise dollars. We should be coaching parents on how to discuss what goes into a fundraiser and why it is important for the students to be involved in a positive manner.

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Tracking Fundraiser Success by Cassie Kale

One of the most important tips for your fundraising events is to track and keep record of your fundraisers details. If this is your first fundraising event it will most likely be a trial and error process until you find out what works for you and your event. But if you have a fundraiser or two completed, below are some tips to help you track your success and use your completed fundraisers to help with your future fundraising events!

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12 Fundraising Product Sales Tips by Kimberly Reynolds

Planning on selling fundraising products and looking for some sales tips? These ideas will help improve the results of any fundraisers that involve selling. Use these quick tips in your next school fundraiser or youth sports team candy sale.

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From Control Freak to Dynamic Delegator by Heidi Richards

I admit it. I�m a control freak� at least I use to be. I use to have to do EVERYTHING. It never occurred to me that anyone could do things as well as I could, or at least not up to my standards. It took me a long time to realize the advantages and efficiency of delegating tasks. Doing hose things I was either not really good at or took too long to complete left me with less time for the tasks I love to do or that I am better at accomplishing.

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Workplace Fundraising Dos & Don'ts by The AFRDS

"Don't feel obliged. But feel free (and don't forget to leave $1)." So read a sign put up in an office break room next to chocolate bars for sale by one mom hoping to help her saxophonist son raise money to pay for a field trip. This is just one idea for how to raise money without raising hackles in the workplace.

More and more parents are looking at their co-workers as potential fund-raising customers. Likewise, more and more businesses are placing limits on what they consider appropriate for fund-raising among co-workers. Here are some ideas for tasteful workplace fund-raising to pass on to your parent volunteers.

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Five Steps to Fundraising Success by Cris Vosberg

One of the most common questions I get is, "How can I make the most amount of money with the least amount of effort?" I have here a 5 Step process that will you help you to be more successful with any fundraising opportunity.

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Safety in Fundraising by Deane Brengle

Last year America's school kids, scouts, sports teams and other nonprofit groups sold over 4 billion dollars worth of candy, gift wrap, candles and other fundraising products and services. They are in the business of raising money and it is big business. What child that you know doesn't have to raise funds for a group they belong to?

This sales force of primarily kids is present in every community, and we need to be ever vigilant of their safety whenever they are fundraising. Take fundraising safety seriously!

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Getting the Best Return on Investment for Your Fundraiser by Kimberly Reynolds

Return On Investment (ROI) is a fundamental business concept. Its also something that every fundraiser needs to take into consideration.

A business investment consists of working capital, physical assets, and peoples time.

ROI is the net gain that results from a business spending money and utilizing physical assets, along with the expenditure of employees' time, in an effort to produce tangible profits.

So, the investment in a fundraiser consists of: any up-front expenditures that are required the costs associated with the assets that are utilized the value of people's time spent fundraising.

Some key points about ROI in fundraising:

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What to Look for in Fundraising Agreements by the AFRDS

Ancient Romans called it a "pact." Webster's says it's "a binding agreement." Roget's Thesaurus offers a dozen alternatives - "deal", "arrangement", "understanding", "covenant", or "promise" to name a few. But to Shiree Lynch, Georgia State PTA President, it means only one thing: "A contract is a contract." And, when it comes to fundraising, she says parent groups should not do business without one. "Written agreements between fundraising companies and parent groups are absolutely vital," Lynch says. "They spell out for everyone exactly what the expectations are of the other."

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Reflecting Back on 2003 by Deane Brengle

For the majority of us fundraising is typically now done for the calendar year of 2003. Take time to enjoy the holiday season- appreciate your family, friends and co-workers and most of all the reason for the season. You deserve it!

This is also a good time to reflect back on the year and take stock of your fundraising efforts and how they went. Kind of an overlook of the situation now you have some down time from fundraising.

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When You Hear the Beep ... How Voice Broadcast & Other Communication Tools Can Boost Your Next Fundraiser by the AFRDS

A middle school in Connecticut is finding it much easier to meet its fundraising goals simply by tapping a familiar technology. The school subscribes to a service which broadcasts recorded voice messages over the telephone. Throughout the year, the school taps this technology to alert parents about report cards, progress reports, inclement weather and upcoming fundraisers. On the day of the fall fundraiser assembly, Principal Joe Scheideler spends a few minutes on the phone, dialing a special number, entering a few simple codes and recording a message reminding parents that the magazine drive is underway and that they should check their son or daughter's book bags for more information. Mr. Scheideler's secretary then logs onto a Web site and chooses what time (usually 6:00 pm) to send the message to the telephone numbers listed in the school directory.

"Before we started sending voice messages, I would hear from parents all the time who said they wanted to help [by supporting the fundraiser], but never got the information," Mr. Scheideler said. "Since we started using this technology, we've seen an increase in parent involvement." That increased support helped fund class field trips to Washington, DC last year. Voice broadcast is just a small part of a growing number of communications tools being used by schools today. Here are some other communication technologies that may help boost fundraising support:

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Parent Involvement With Fundraising by Howard Gottlieb

Parents of young children learn about fundraising very quickly as their kids enter elementary school. It does not take long before your student comes home with fundraising information. What you do with that information is more important than you think.

Unfortunately many parents simply take the fundraising packet and toss it in the trash. Other uninvolved parents never even read the information and instead leave it in their child's backpacks.

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"Day of the Event" Emergency Kit by Deane Brengle

You may think that I am going to talk about emergency first aid kits. You may also be thinking - DUH! Does he think I'm that stupid? Of course we will have an emergency first aid kit at our nonprofit event.

Surprise! What I'm talking about today is an emergency kit for your event, not the people that attend it.

An amazing amount of things can and will go wrong during your nonprofit event. You know - Murphy's Law. So it only makes good sense to anticipate those potential glitches and be prepared for them.

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Avoid Being a Victim of Fraud by the AFRDS

The amounts of stolen money are hard to believe. $131,000. $35,000. $20,000. These figures, according to police, are how much was embezzled by dishonest parent group volunteers in three separate cases last year. It�s difficult to swallow. But sometimes volunteers � people whom you may have known for years, people you trust � do not always have the best of intentions when it comes to safeguarding your non-profit group�s assets.

�Long after my term as PTA President, I would get these calls from vendors who hadn�t been paid and families who hadn�t received merchandise,� recalls Terry Barr of Redmond, Washington. �I started making phone calls, beginning with the treasurer who was very evasive.�

After further research, Terry learned that the bank account had been closed. The principal was in the dark. And the elementary school, which her children no longer attended, was out $24,000. It�s a story being heard more and more � but there are preventative steps you can take as a PTO leader to avoid becoming a victim of fraud.

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Fraud in Nonprofit Organizations by David S Roberts

It is unthinkable that a church member or leader would defraud the church of its finances. And yet, it happens every day. Nonprofit institutions are frequent targets for fraud, presumably because the controls on collecting, spending and recording the finances are so much more casual than those of the business community. Lax controls lead to others taking advantage of the situation and stealing.