How to make a political fundraising event successful?

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Political houses and public figures raise funds for their campaigns by offering to sponsor to political fundraisers. So if you have made up your mind to support a particular candidate or a political group you can go ahead with your plans and organize a political fundraising event. Apart from gathering useful funds, this can also give you a chance to spread awareness about the party or candidate that you are offering support to.

Political fundraisers need to proceed in their endeavor of political fundraising carefully as this is a unique area and need a special type of approach.  Political fundraising is different from the other kinds of fundraising and you can follow this guide, if you want to emerge successful in your efforts.

Decide on the event

This is the Step 1 of your political fundraising endeavor and you must have a clear idea of what kind of event you are going to hold – how big or small you want it to be? How many invitees do you want? Do you want a guest speaker or not? Etc.

Contact the party office for support

Get in touch with the political party or candidate whom you wish to offer support to and give them/him an idea of your plan. In all likelihood, you are going to receive active help. You can get access to information material, support staff, list of political fundraisers, promotional items, hoardings and banners from the party office, to name  a few. Have a short discussion with them regarding the rules/regulations that they would like you to follow and how you can forward the proceeds to them.

Prepare a brief of topics that you want to talk about prior to the event

Every political fundraising event must have a brief lecture, addressing important topics about the party that it is hosting. Therefore, make sure that you make ready a thoughtful and informative awareness lecture to be delivered prior to the event. Focus on a single important topic or at the most two, but ensure that it is interesting to a majority of the guests.

Political fundraising ideas

Incorporate fun political fundraising ideas into the event like 80s Prom, Bingo evening, Wine tasting party etc. Semi-formal events work the best and have a record of being the most popular crowd pullers.

Make a guest list

With due regard to the interest of your acquaintances, friends and family, prepare a guest list comprising of people who can appreciate your political message.

Prepare invitations

Unlike other fundraising invitations which need not be exactly specific, political fundraisers must always ensure that the invitations sent out include all relevant information and details. Topics of discussion, fundraising events incorporated and the aim must be clearly mentioned. Highlight the fact that invitees are required to contribute money.

Winning political campaigns need both good propaganda and funds. A political fundraising event prepared and executed with time and patience by dedicated political fundraisers, can be the best endeavor to accomplish everything in one stroke.

How Non-Profit Fundraising Programs are Using the Power of Social Media: Online fundraising platforms key to non-profits’ success in 21st century

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n the past non-profits raised money through community fundraising, government grants and relied on volunteers to help support the causes they were most passionate about.  Yet to compete and succeed in our ever-evolving world of connectivity savvy non-profits are turning to social media to advance their causes.

 Over 600 million registered users on Facebook.  That’s almost twice the population of the United States.  The more people you are able to get your message to the greater the opportunity to convince them that supporting your cause is the right thing to do.  And social media platforms do not operate as a collection of disparate parts.  When you connect with one person you are really connecting with a community of people.

 Online fundraising platforms like Piryx have developed to take advantage of the social media movement.  A non-profit can create a campaign for free with a few clicks of the mouse and be up in running in a few minutes.  Free fundraising tools alert your friends to the great work you are doing and invite them to ‘join in the conversation’.

 When people join in the conversation they are announcing their support.  Once one person joins, friends follow.  A feeling of social well being develops because people love recognition of the good they are doing and that feeling drives people to celebrate their goodwill by:

 ·      Liking on Facebook

·      Posting on their walls

·      Tweeting

·      Creating links in LinkedIn

That community of goodwill spreads as more and more potential donors are informed of the cause. 

 Oftentimes social media platforms are linked to spread updates automatically so a single tweet can ring across a range of social media platforms.  This gives non-profits unprecedented access to potential donors.  As word spreads throughout the social net more and more people are inspired to participate.  Inspiration drives action and the more people that become inspired to act the more work you can do to effect positive change.

 Online fundraising platforms are free to setup and simple to use.  Non-profits do not have to rely on a team of people to carry out fundraising efforts.  Resources can be devoted to supporting the cause instead.

 Connecting with people on a more personal level inspires call to action.  With social media people can share their social good with friends and inspire those friends to advance the good.  For non-profits looking to help their causes in the 21st century recognizing the power of social media is tantamount to their continued success.

Moneybomb!How Much Money Can You Raise in One Day?

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In 2007 the term ‘Moneybomb’ was coined to describe a grassroots political fundraising campaign in support of Ron Paul’s candidacy for President.  The explosive nature of the term is meant to dramatize the mass marketing frenzy intended to generate as much media buzz and excitement as humanly possible.  Everything is meant to happen in one day with the intent of raising boatloads of cash.

 On the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party in 2007 a group staffed exclusively of volunteers participated in a Moneybomb, an effort that rose between $6-6.5 million in a twenty-four hour period.  That effort is still the biggest one-day political fundraising event ever. 

 A bake sale just doesn’t cut it when running for President.  Looking for new and innovative ways to reach more people in less time political fundraising campaigns began tapping into the potential of technology and the evolution of online communities.  Social media has become the ideal vehicle for informing your entire base – and connecting with new ones – of where and how to donate with a simple click of the mouse.

 Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn boast hundreds of millions of registered users and unlike traditional forms of political fundraising, including direct mail marketing campaigns and email campaigns, social media provides a platform for connecting with your communities immediately in a much more intimate way.   Friends can discuss and share ideas in real-time while accessing those discussions on a variety of devices: desktops, laptops, tablets and mobile devices.   As friends discuss passionate ideas they invite more friends and so on.  In no time groups of social networks are engaged and the possibility of discussions going viral is considerable.

 Facebook is predicated upon the idea that users are part of a community of 677 million Friends: more than twice the population of the United States.  Now online fundraising platforms are developing to meet the twenty-first century demands of a connected world by creating tools specific to political fundraising that integrate with Facebook and other social media spaces like LinkedIn and Twitter.  The possibilities are limitless when you have the potential to reach 677 million people.

 Online fundraising platforms give individuals and organizations the power to create fundraising campaigns with a simple sign up.  A hosted donations page is created immediately with the functionality to customize a single page or fully integrate into your existing website.  All for free.

 Scalability is a key feature when considering how to get the word out to your donor base.  Whether your goals are $500 for a tee ball team or $1 billion campaign for the White House, online fundraising platforms help causes raise money online fast and effectively.

 

Texting To Support the Cause: Texting Donations vs. the Benefits of Raising Money Online

Fundraising organizations have been turning to text messaging as a way to raise money.  A text messaging campaign raised over $30 million for the people of Haiti in the wake of the tragic earthquake that devastated the small island nation on January 12, 2010. 

The immediacy of text messaging and the convenience of typing in a short code on your mobile device, instead of a complete phone number, has been an effective way for charities to raise money.  It is estimated that 1 in 3 people in the United States alone will own a cell phone by 2012 and as the age of Internet children mature – children born after the advent of the Internet – text messaging and mobile devices will become as ubiquitous as televisions.

Convenience comes at a cost.  A fundraising organization accepts donations by partnering with an intermediary like mGive, a wireless application service provider.  mGive provides a software application that connects the fundraiser with major cell phone carriers.  The software creates a code, donors type in the code on a cell phone, wait for a response to confirm, ‘yes’ and the donation is made.  Each donation is billed to the donor’s monthly cell phone bill.

100% of the donation is passed to the fundraising effort.  But software licensing fees can cost the charity $400 to $1500 a month plus a small transaction fee for each donation.  These charges add up quickly.

Texting your donation is a quick and easy way to pledge your support for a needy cause.  But that’s where the quick and easy stops.  Donations can take 30-90 days to process.  In the wake of a disaster, like the earthquake in Haiti, the delay can cost lives because assistance is needed immediately.

Efficient and cost effective ways of supporting your favorite cause through fundraisers have been developing to capitalize on the growth of the Internet.  Online fundraising platforms, like Piryx have been created to provide charities with a way to raise money online fast and effectively.  A fundraiser can be created in just minutes by signing up for free.

Online fundraisers can be accessed by donors on a myriad of devices including laptops, mobile phones and tablets.  The donations are made immediately like a text donation by clicking a donate button on a webpage.

Unlike texting, online fundraising platforms are free to setup, free to manage and provide the charity with tools to collect donations in a variety of ways.  And the charity receives the donation within a maximum 10 days.

 Innovations in technology continue to provide community fundraising organizations with the power to reach their donors in newer and more efficient ways.  The most successful ones carry out due diligence to determine which are the most efficient and cost effective so they can concentrate on the most important part of their work: supporting the cause.

Traditional Non-Profit Fundraising Campaigns Lose Their Edge

Relationships Help Non-Profit Fundraisers Succeed Now and For Years to Come…

A classic, timely example of a non-profit fundraising campaign is the T.V. infomercial filmed in a poverty-stricken neighborhood, thousands of miles away from the intended audience.  Children mill around gazing from the camera to the dirt floor of their thatched huts.  Distended bellies cry out for food. 

 Anyone with a pulse is going to react to a scene like that.  That is the intention of the video – emotional response.  And they are driving is to get the potential donor on the phone and pledge a donation.

 T.V. infomercials have been effective campaigns for decades for non-profit fundraisers.  They employ a marketing technique known as direct-response marketing.  But, the realities the 21st century are changing the way successful non-profits do business.

 2008 brought a collapse of the world economy.  Because of the collapse many people who had donated in the past were simply unable to afford the discretionary spending required to support their favorite cause.  Non-profit fundraising efforts lost out big time.  Just like everyone else suffering through harsh economic times. 

 Non-profit fundraising infomercials continued pulling on the heartstrings of donors, but those donors were preoccupied with more pressing matters; feeding their own families.

 The success of non-profit fundraisers is not measured solely by the amount of money you raise.  Bringing people in to donate their time volunteering or connecting with people and building relationships to promote advocacy are great ways to advance your cause without convincing someone to open up their checkbook.

 When people donate their time in support non-profit fundraising efforts they are helping drive the cost of doing business down.  Volunteers can perform a myriad of tasks that might otherwise be staffed with paid employees. 

 The reality is unemployment rates are high and the economy is recovering at a snails pace.  For individuals who are unemployed – many highly skilled – volunteering keeps them active and participating in the world around them.  It is also a good chance to network. 

 In this ever-evolving ‘connected’ world decisions are driven more and more by who you know.   The more people you meet the greater the chance of meeting a decision maker and possibly landing a job.

 When donors become involved in supporting their favorite causes through volunteerism they participate in a much more intimate way than strictly donating.  This intimate involvement helps build trust, credibility and personal connection.  Now the experience is a two-way street.  Both parties benefit from the relationship.  Advocacy on behalf of your cause develops as a natural progression of these deepening relationships.

 The amount of money raised is not the sole metric when judging the effectiveness of a non-profit fundraiser.  Developing relationships with your donors beyond a simple money transaction builds trust, credibility and personal connection: fundamental elements that will serve your non-profit efforts for years to come.

Hold A Cancer Fundraising Event And Make A Difference To The World

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Cancer is such a deadly disease that it drains away health, wealth, energy, hopes and patience of a patient like none other. Cancer patients all over the world need the help of people like you who are ready to extend a friendly hand to fight off their ailment. Supporters and activists all across the country hold different kinds of cancer fundraising events and accumulate money for helping the cancer afflicted patients get treatment and also fortify research and investigation for the same.

Cancer fundraisers actively support this cause and take part in these events to accumulate significant money, every penny of which goes towards augmenting the fundraising organization’s capacity to grant the finest life-saving medical help and information about cancer at zero cost to the patients for 24 x 7 – anytime, anywhere. If you are waiting to get involved in this noble cause, you can join hands with like minded cancer fundraisers and get down to fundraising work immediately. Even a small step from you is going to make a huge difference to the world.

If you have planned to hold a cancer fundraising event for helping cancer patients, you need to gear up for it and prepare a plan, months ahead of it. Read the list below to get an idea of what to do and when to do it:

a)      Decide on the kind and type of event that you want to include in your fundraising agenda and select a date for it. Opting for quick cancer fundraising ideas is always good for fast money accumulation.

b)      Download the registration form of the cancer organization to which you want to proceeds to go, fill it up and submit it.

c)       Start researching for a probable venue for your cancer fundraising event and also keep an eye on the possible costs that can come up.

d)      Build a support group of friends and relatives who can volunteer to help as on that date.

e)      Set a budget and work within the budget.

f)       Visit companies and organizations for token items or samples that you can sell in your fundraising event.

g)      If you want media to cover the event, get in touch with them and inform them about it.

h)      Do not forget to keep invitation cards ready and send them out to invitees in time.

i)        Print some “thank-you” notes that you can send post event to participants, donors and buyers. It can be a thoughtful gesture on your part and will also make the attendees happy.

You can amend this cancer fundraising ideas wherever necessary to fit within your plan, but the bottom line must be to hold the event in an organized manner and collect as much donations as you can.

Cancer fundraisers, all over the world are working to their best capacities to help cancer patients and survivors get access to proper treatment and information. It is an ever expanding group and it is awaiting your participation too– so come on and show that you care! There are great cancer fundraising ideas available online that will help you on your way to a successful fundraising campaign!

Helpful Tips To Organize A Youth Fundraising Event

If you are getting involved in a youth fundraising group to support a noble cause, then congratulations! You are doing a great deed indeed. The country needs an enthusiastic batch of youth fundraisers like you who are ready to have fun and raise money for the deprived.

Whether you are a group of fresh youth fundraisers or an experienced one at that, the fundraising ideas listed here can probably be helpful to you. All fundraising events, regardless of type, support a good cause and therefore must have one mission in mind – to raise as much funds as possible. It’s the same for youth fundraising and to ensure the best of success for your endeavor you must set your goals clearly, fix schedules and keep a financial target ready. Listed below are some good youth fundraising ideas to keep in mind for your next event!

Setting a goal

As said earlier, all fundraising events must hit the same goal – maximum collection. That is why, set a financial goal which you think is realistic and then incorporate ideas accordingly. A lot of good and easy youth fundraising ideas are available online. Choose the ones which you and other youth fundraisers deem fit.

Be specific about the type of youth fundraising that you want to do

Youth fundraising can come in different packages and there are types to it, namely-

Direct petition fundraising – this is the most traditional type of fundraising idea and it can click for youth fundraisers only if there is access to members/supporters who can donate big amounts of money. Asking directly for cash from friends, family and relatives may not show good results always. That is why it is always better to make this a part of youth fundraising efforts and fill up the rest with other interesting fundraising events.

Event fundraising - Organizing an exciting social event like a spaghetti dinner or 80s prom or a block party and then selling tickets for it can be a great way to raise funds, have fun and  reach out to friends and family.

Product and item fundraising- this is the best youth fundraising idea, since this can accommodate a big group of youth fundraisers and involve them in the sale of items to supporters. A percentage of the sale amount is handed over to the group as funds raised by the company promoting the product. Candy bars, t-shirts, cookie dough and photos are some of the hottest selling products in this category.

Implement the right strategies of youth fundraising

Youth fundraising, or any other kind of fundraising, is likely to become successful only when you follow the right strategies. From the onset make sure that every participant in your group of youth fundraisers is clear about the goal; the event/campaign is customized as per youth group needs; and a healthy and fair competition is encouraged.

If you are organizing a fundraising initiative in your community, make sure that your events/services vary significantly from your competitors. If it is not unique and has a twin sister next door, it is less likely to succeed.

Keep it energetic

Last but not the least, if your youth fundraising event stretches for long hours, rotate the volunteers in groups to keep the energy levels high all the time and constantly attract new groups of potential donors.

There are great youth fundraising ideas available online that give you the necessary tools to get your fundraiser on its way to success!

Group Fundraising Events Can Be Fun

Fundraising events and that too for some good cause are always a welcome. However, organizing a group fundraising event is not at all an easy one. You should be able to organize and handle the event efficiently so that the event turns out to be a successful one.Group fundraising is one of the ways to successfully raise funds as you work in a team and opt for various creative, interesting and effective fundraising ideas. You can organize a group fundraising the church or in your college. In this way, you can do your part for the betterment of the society.

Group fundraising is an interesting activity when you know how to delegate work properly. After deciding the goal, you should be able to delegate work in the right way so that the work is finished on time. One of the most efficient ways of group fundraising is using Facebook or Twitter. You can get suggestions and creative inputs from people across the globe. Use the inputs that best fits your event. Social media plays an important part in bringing a difference in the lives of people. Therefore, use this medium as a tool in the group fundraising event of your college or church.

Group fundraisers can be successful only when it is handled by an efficient group leader. As a group leader, you should be able to handle your team successfully by dividing them into smaller groups, delegating the right kind of work to each one, knowing their skills and areas of interest, inspiring them and completing the task on time. Group fundraising activities are interesting only when you have an efficient leader who can manage all of the above tasks.

Most of the churches and religious organizations in the world opt for group fundraising activities as it helps them in pooling money for a noble cause. All those who are interested in philanthropic activities get a chance to do their part in bringing a difference in the society through these events. Therefore, whether you want to explore your leadership abilities, philanthropic ideas or believe in doing your best in bringing a difference in the society, group fundraising activities are the best option.

You can find many websites online that are based on group fundraising. These websites are created by some of the reputed brands or organization. You can also be a part of these events too by becoming a part of the team and helping them with the group fundraisers.  These websites have forums and communities that welcome all kinds of suggestions and ideas. You can drop in your ideas here and win some exciting and cool prizes!

There is no dearth of opportunities if you really have a philanthropic bent of mind or believe in doing something good for a social cause. Explore your ideas and creative skills in this way and bring a smile on those who are not privileged to enjoy the basic necessities of life. Even your small efforts can bring a huge difference in their life. Therefore, opt for some unique and interesting ways of fundraising so that you can gather more number of people.

One of the best times of the year for organizing these events is during Christmas, Thanksgiving or Halloween as people love to associate themselves with philanthropic events. You can easily pool up people during this time. If you are able to make use of this time effectively then you can gather a huge crowd. Depending on the cause of your fundraising, you have to choose an occasion. These are some of the effective ways of organizing group fundraising events.

There are some organizations that opt for online fundraising activities. These firms are quite popular because as a part of social marketing they opt for philanthropic ways. In this way, they successfully find a place not only in the minds but also in the hearts of people. Group fundraising activities can be an interesting way of making an impression on people. Customers would recall or associate your brand name with the social cause that the organization has conducted. Group fundraising activities make a huge impact, just choose the right cause and work on them!

Event Ideas for Non-Profit Fundraising

A non-profit organization is born with the intention of extending help to the needy without indulging in profitable activities. Non-profit fundraising is therefore extremely important for them since without funds they will be unable to serve the purpose they are dedicated to. Almost all good non-profit organizations have some source of donation and bequest to help them sustain and carry out their mission, but still an occasional non-profit fundraising endeavor can further fortify their funds and make them more equipped to help an increasing number of deprived people.

Non-profit fundraisers can think about a lot of innovative fundraising ideas to help support their non-profit fundraising effort. The sky is the limit when the imagination is let loose and the newer the idea, the more chances it has at being successful. In fact, the old ones have become so common that they never seem to offer the fun and excitement that is found in new and fresh ideas. Make your imagination your best friend when thinking about non-profit fundraising ideas and you are sure to come out with the best. This article lists a few new fundraising ideas that you can use:

Sports Events

Walks and marathons are quite common sports fundraising ideas. Get down to sports this time. Convince a sports company to sponsor your event and hold a sports tournament with an entry fee. You can include any sport that you like – ranging from football to badminton with exciting new prizes for winners.

Green Fundraising

This kind of fundraising is excellent for non-profit fundraising organizations. By recycling items like used printer cartridges, electronic trash or old mobile phones and selling them, environment friendly non-profit fundraisers can accumulate a good amount of funds. The plus point is that by doing this, you can also help cut down on landfills and save the environment as well.

Fashion Show

Get interested participants together and put up a fashion show. If you can rope in a budding designer or a local boutique to help you do this, then nothing like it! Sell tickets and gather good fundraising money from this hugely popular affair. People usually turn up in large groups with friends and families for events like this especially if it is tied in to a non-profit fundraiser.

Craft Fair

Organize a craft fair in a venue where handmade craft items are put up for sale. People with a creative bent of mind can help you out on this. Request for support from a local school and you can gain access to some brilliant craft creations, fresh and innovative ideas made by children. Selling them out at attractive prices can help you to gather good funds for your organization.

When hosting non-profit fundraising events, you need to think and act smart as an organizer. Choose the best among these non-profit fundraising ideas and make the most of them. One more thing – you are going to need a lot of volunteers to help make your event successful. Make use of local billboards to advertise on it or include in flyers inside fundraiser making it a successful event!

Football Fundraising Activities Were Never This Fun

Football is a fun game. However, even this game cannot be played without the required funds for the uniforms and other expenses. With many schools encouraging students to play this game, football fundraising activities are a common phenomenon. It is important to choose the fundraising idea which will best serve your purpose. Each team will have different requirements for funds and hence, before you start implementing an idea, you should have a clear estimate of how much money you want to generate and its feasibility.

Let us now look at a few football fundraising ideas to use for your fundraiser:

·         Candy and bake sale –Start with buying candy in bulk so that you get them at a cheaper price. This way you can sell smaller boxes of candy by increasing the price by $1 or more.When you tell people that you are selling candy to help support the local football team or for your school fundraiser many of them will gladly help you. The baked items can be sold in a stall at a pre-determined venue and could be held at your school, any store, etc. You would have to take permission from the owners of the venue to make sure that they aren’t inconvenienced by the bake sale.

·         Scratch cards – Contact a coupon booklet seller and buy a pack of coupons. These coupons have the cost printed on them but is hidden under black ink. You would have to scratch the ink off the coupon to reveal the cost so that the person who is donating knows the cost of the coupon. Once that person buys the coupon, he or she could win anything between 50 cents to $3. The coupons inside the booklet are usually worth $40. With this activity, there is a guaranteed return of 90%.

·         Pizza cards – You can get these pizza discount cards from popular outlets. These cards can be sold for a fixed price. The person who buys the pizza cards is entitled to several offers from the pizzeria like a free slice or a free pizza or free extra topping, etc. This fundraising idea can be very effective as there will be many restaurants/pizzerias that will be willing to offer such discounts with the aim of getting potential new customers to their restaurant.

·         Candles – There are many manufacturers who design different types of candles like scented, molded, etc. and these are a hit with many people. Candles can be ordered from companies by paying a small price and can be sold to people through door–to-door sales. It is important that you let them know that this is a football fundraising activity so that more number of people help you in the cause.

·         Movie tickets – Almost everybody loves watching a movie on a weekend. You can now sell them movie tickets at reduced prices by placing a bulk order for tickets from theaters at discounted prices. These can then be sold to team players friends and families as a fundraiser for your team.

·         Raise Money Online – If your football team or player needs to fundraise, than there is nothing more easier than fundraising online for your football fundraiser. With the evolution of the social web, you can now raise money via multiple football fundraising campaigns online through channels such as your website, blog, email, Facebook, Twitter, and more. Save time and score more touchdowns for your football fundraising campaign online today.

There are many football fundraising ideas available that can make your fundraiser fun and successful!