It’s
the season of big benefit dinners: dinner-and-auction dinners, gala dinners,
dinner-and-dance dinners - every week-end between now and January. While these
big benefits have their place (usually a swanky downtown hotel), sometimes I
wonder if it's time to expand the menu of fundraiser options. First, too many
big benefit events cause donors to fall victim to
chicken-on-rice-pilaf-and-auction fatigue, which reduces their tolerance for
dinner-and-auction affairs. Also, in this age of austerity, many would-be
donors just can’t afford fancy events: Who can afford downtown Seattle parking?
What’s
needed is more diversity vis-à-vis fundraising events. This would help nonprofits
with limited cash flow to avoid spending more money on events than the events
generate. Also, it would help them to attract support from would be donors who
can’t to buy tickets to a fancy gala. Here are a few examples:
Your
child’s tap dance troupe needs to raise money to travel across the country to
an upcoming national competition. What kind of event can you do that’s
different, inexpensive to produce, and unique? You could invite local
celebrities to participate in a “Dancing with the Stars”-type of competition, only
one that involves an activity that requires less physical preparation and
training. You could put on “Rappers for
Tappers,” a performance that would involve local rappers coaching and
performing with other local celebs. You could ask for an admission fee, or you
could ask guests to vote for their favorite performers by dropping money in
piggy banks corresponding to each team of rappers (who donate the money to your
troupe). Or both.
The
“If I Had a Dollar for Every Time …” Campaign: Pretend it’s election season.
You are on the board of directors of a statewide anti-poverty organization with
a large database of donors and other supporters. You and the other board
members decide to raise money via an online fundraising campaign. You ask your
supporters to fund your work by pledging $1 (or whatever) each time a local candidate
spouts the “If-You-Work-Hard-and-Play-By the-Rules-You-Can-Make-It-In-America!”
mantra.
Evil
Ex Raffle: One organization with which I worked held a fundraiser with a
Valentine’s Day theme – but for single people. This organization was putting on
the event with almost no money and only a few weeks’ lead time. They wanted to
hold a raffle during our event, but lacked the money and time to procure prizes;
so we decided to hold an Evil Ex Raffle. We asked guests to donate gifts - from
ex-partners - that we could use as raffle prizes. We collected a lot of prizes,
including pieces of art, jewelry, and hand-crafted furniture. Guests loved the raffle, which gave us a
great return on our investment.
Stay
tuned for more examples … and send me yours!
