Fundraising Tips
Congratulations! You have taken the first step and decided that you need to raise funds for a project. Enjoy this part…visualize the outcome whether it be new equipment for a hockey team, school travel or church renovations to name a few. Whatever it may be, give yourself a pat on the back because you are taking the initiative and making a difference! But now, you are probably asking yourself a ton of questions: What should we do? How will we raise the funds? Do we have enough help? Where do we even begin?
Planning a fundraiser can be a daunting task but here at Mom’s Pantry rest assured that we are with you every step of the way. We understand the challenges but also the opportunities and so we have set out below some tips that we have garnered over the years that will help you ensure your fundraiser is a mind boggling success…and easy to boot!
Tip #1: Set your fundraising goal
Ask yourself; how much money do we need to raise? When do we need to raise the money by?
Tip #2: Read through our Fundraising Information Package
This package has all the info and details you will need to make the whole process EASY. It takes all the guesswork out as it lays everything out step by step and highlights key points to ensure your fundraiser is a success i.e. how to sort forms, delivery timing, payment information and info on why it is important to fill out the fundraising detail form.
Tip #3: Gather your team. No need to go it alone!
Find those who can help you whether it is in distributing the forms, getting the word out to your group or helping hand out the boxes on delivery day. They always say, “The more the merrier!” and it helps to have a team of support.
Tip #4: Establish your key dates
Date to Distribute Mom’s Pantry Forms to group/Date to Collect Forms back from your group/Date to Return Order Forms to Mom’s Pantry/Date of Delivery
Tip #5: Kick Off Mom’s Fundraiser!
Do what you can to promote and publicize your fundraising campaign to your group and your community i.e. newsletters, bulletins etc.
Tip #6: Run fundraiser for approximately 2 to 3 weeks
In our experience and from feedback from our successful fundraising coordinators we suggest running the fundraiser for 2 to 3 weeks. One week is too short and anything over 3 weeks tends to be too long as people may forget and/or put it aside thinking they have lots of time. Other suggestions are to ensure it runs over at least one weekend and possibly a holiday, as that is when families tend to get together.
Tip #7: Ensure easy and successful delivery with these 3 tips:
i) Schedule delivery time (by Mom’s Pantry) for 1 to 2 hours before your set pick up time for sellers/customers i.e. Mom’s Pantry delivers at 1pm and you set pick up for 2pm or 3pm which allows time to ensure it is all organized and ready when people begin to arrive for pick up.
ii) Have your team/volunteers meet at the delivery spot at least 15 minutes prior to arrival of Mom’s Pantry Driver. Product comes pre-labeled and ready for easy sorting and distributing.
iii) Send out a Reminder of the Delivery Date to ALL SELLERS a couple days before delivery
IMPORTANT:
Make sure that your delivery date is CONFIRMED by Mom’s Pantry before sending out notice of date.
Tip #8: Celebrate your success and thank everyone
Don’t forget to pat yourself on the back for a job well done! Volunteers are what make things happen. Congratulations.
Tip #9: Plan and schedule your next fundraiser NOW
Many groups do two or more fundraisers a year with us! This means people can reorder product and don’t have to worry about running out of their favourites.