Would You Like to Buy a Raffle Ticket by Kari Burns
Would You Like to Buy a Raffle Ticket by Kari Burns
“Would you like to buy a raffle ticket?” We’ve all heard those words while we are at a sports event, show, or at work. Most of us dread and sometimes hide from the raffle ticket sellers because we don’t want to talk to some person who is trying to shove some raffle tickets on us. I also know through personal experience that raffle tickets can be a very beneficial way to raise money for an organization or group.
Throughout my youth, I participated in a theatre organization called Christian Youth Theatre (CYT). We put on musical productions for the public and also had opportunity baskets filled with prizes that could be won through raffle tickets. During each intermission of the shows cast members in their costumes would walk around the lobby and the theater and sell raffle tickets. Do you know what made the raffle ticket selling so profitable? The cast members. Who can say no to an adorable 8 year-old girl selling raffle tickets? I’ll be honest, the older kids trying to sell tickets never sold as many as the younger kids. Kids capture peoples’ hearts and it’s hard to turn them down. Using young children to sell raffle tickets has been crucial in raising the money CYT needs to keep performing shows. Any organization that involves children should definitely have them be the ones to sell raffle tickets. Children are also good at convincing people about how incredible an object or opportunity is. Maybe it’s their cute face or their poor grammar, but people are much more willing to agree and give money to children than they would to an adult trying to sell something. Let’s be honest, when an adult calls us trying to sell something, most of us will fake having an appointment or any possible excuse that will get us off the phone. Yet when a child talks to us, we could listen for a long time because “they are just so cute!”
Another reason raffle tickets sales can increase is if the baskets or benefits that the people would be winning are more desirable. This is something that must vary depending on the organization, and its needs. More raffle tickets will be sold if the prize the people might win relates to them and their needs or wants. For my youth theatre program, our opportunity baskets were catered toward kids and families, because that is who filled most of our audiences. These baskets could be filled with anything from Barbie’s and nail polish to cooking utensils and cook books to Hot Wheels cars and Batman action figures. It is also important for the prizes of the raffles to vary each year to keep the interest of those who would be buying a ticket. The prizes should also be up to date with society and any current media that might make the prize more or less desirable. For instance, since the explosion of interest in the movie Frozen, it would make sense for organizations with children that are doing raffles should somehow involve Frozen to bring more attention from the kids.
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Contributed by Kari Burns