Keys to Improving a Raffling Fundraiser by Caleb Bodden
Keys to Improving a Raffling Fundraiser by Caleb Bodden
Raffling is an interesting way to fundraise. It is sort of a combination of accepting donations and selling a product, as most tickets will not result in a prize. The most important factor in any type of fundraising is maintaining a clear understanding and motivation of the cause. Fundraising could be compared to begging that is often done by homeless and less fortunate people. In these cases there are generally three types of people that will be asked for money. There are those that will donate purely out of respect, and believe that their money will go to a good cause. There are those that will only donate once they understand the meaning and motivation of what their money will be going towards. Then of course there are those whom will simply not donate.
In the case of ticket raffling, the volunteer salespeople should leave a good impression on any of the people they approach; whether they buy or do not buy tickets. The salespeople should fully understand the cause behind the fundraiser, and be motivated by it. Sports teams often do fundraisers. Some athletes do very well with this, others do not. I recall going to door-to-door selling things for sports teams and my schools. I typically did better when I was raising money for my sports teams because I was more passionate, and understood the meaning of the money for my team. Age is also a key factor. In one’s younger years fundraising is perfectly simple with not much pressure from the purchasers. People become much more curious and suspicious with older people asking for money.
Another way that fundraisers could improve is by using social media. The most useful social media site is Facebook because of the amount and diversity of people that use it. By setting up a Facebook page you could accept money through PayPal for tickets and make posts on Facebook for those that had purchased tickets. This would mean that not only would the organization be able to sell more tickets; but also be able to reach more people through social media posts for ticket sales, prizes, and unrelated events. It would also create a larger group of possible donors. This does not mean that raffles could not be sold in person or at events. It is just another avenue that could bring in more money, and would create more exposure for the organization.
Many up-and-coming companies will use social media to give prizes away. They do not typically ask for money, but will ask for people to share the page for their companies. Once the person has shared the page they will be deemed eligible for the prize and will have their name placed into the raffle. The winner will be announced and shown by pages on social media. This does not immediately create new revenue for the company, but will often increase exposure for that company.
Deciding what kind of prizes people would want is something that could be very simple and convenient. Laziness and lack of creativity often defeats this step in the fundraising process. People typically buy gift cards, and electronic items to be the prizes. These are good prizes that tend to get people excited; however, just to be safe, one could do a survey. Surveys are quick and simple, and get information about the people whom are interested or following the organization.
I have not been a part of any recent raffling fundraisers. I can recall some from when I was younger, but I have been involved in many fundraisers that were not related to raffling. The most important factors seem to always be a good explanation of the cause behind the fundraiser, an intriguing item that is being sold or offered, and the ability to reach many people. Social media has worked extremely well for all of the fundraisers I have been a part of or seen in college. There may be other factors that will play a part in fundraising, but these are the most important. With these taken seriously and focused upon, the raffling fundraiser will be successful.
Help Caleb Bodden's pursuit of a scholarship award by clicking the “sharing is caring” buttons – click on this link:
http://raffleticket.com/blog/keys-to-improving-a-raffling-fundraiser/
Contributed by Caleb Bodden