How To Raise More Money
by Judith Lindenberger

You’ve been asked to help raise money for your school, church, mosque or synagogue, favorite charity or cause. If you need help, read on.

1. Don’t do it all yourself. Form a committee of interested volunteers who represent the various segments of your organization. Decide on just one event. Choose a theme. Make it something people will enjoy coming to. Create a production schedule. Let committee members know from the beginning what deadlines you have in order to complete tasks. Build a realistic budget for your event.

2. Get as much free publicity as you can. Schedule interviews on local radio and TV in the months leading up to the event. Send press releases to local newspapers. If your organization has a web site, include information about the event and ways to make donations on the web site.

3. Solicit free services and products. Ask businesses to donate entertainment, helpers, invitations, paper products, food, etc. Thank them publicly for doing so at the event and in the event program.

4. Send out invitations four-six weeks prior to the event. Ask each guest to bring a friend who they believe could match their donation. If there is a personal connection between someone within your organization and a donor, have that person write a personal hand-written message (“Looking forward to seeing you.”) on the invitation to the donor.

5. Sell ads in the event program to local businesses and guests.

6. As guests arrive at the event, have volunteers greet them and thank them for coming. Have music playing in the background. Have a system (such as welcome tables with sign-up sheets) to capture each guest’s name, address, and phone number and e-mail address.

7. Exactly on time, have the leader welcome the guests, thank them for coming, and go over the agenda for the event. Have a keynote speaker deliver a brief presentation that includes the facts 101 about the need for the fundraising and an emotional hook.

8. Have a well-known community leader state that the event is being held to raise money and very simply and concisely share his or her passion for the cause. Have volunteers pass out pledge cards with several levels of suggested donations including one that reads, “Please call me. I need more information.” Have the community leader explain how to fill out the pledge cards and what each pledge will do, i.e., “With this pledge your money will do such and such over a period of so many years.” Thank guests for coming.

9. Follow-up. The next day have members of the event committee call each guest and thank him or her for coming. Ask guests “What did you think of the event?” “Is there any way you could see yourself being involved in this cause?” and “Is there anyone else you can think of who we can invite to an informational event?” Within three weeks, send individualized thank you notes to guests and to the people who donated services and products.

10. Invite the ten percent of the guests who are most passionate, but not necessarily who gave the most money, to be table captains at a follow-up breakfast event. Ask them to bring ten friends each. Continue the cycle.

Copyright © 2006 by The Lindenberger Group, LLC. All rights reserved. You may reproduce materials available at this site for your own personal use and for non-commercial distribution. All copies must include this copyright statement.

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