One of the first hurdles that any group faces is in choosing a fundraiser theme and determining the best fundraising company to contact. Often with parent groups or even with organizations and teams, trying to make these two decisions can be the most critical part of getting the fundraiser off the ground and off to a good start.
Getting Ideas
One of the big issues that plague many groups is the lack of new and fresh fundraiser ideas. There will always be those in the group that want to use the same fundraisers that have happened in the past that may have had good or even great results.
There will also be a group of people on the organizing committee that wants to try something new, trendy or different. This does have positive aspects as something new, and different creates a buzz and brings in new participates and generates community interest.
Ideally, to avoid bogging down on the theme and type of fundraiser, spend some time in tasking all committee members to bring in fundraiser ideas. Once you have the idea in place, it will then be easier to find a fundraiser company offering the products you want to offer.
Look for Support
There are only a few fundraising companies that will assist an organization with fundraiser ideas. These companies will have personalized consultants that will work with the organization to assist in the fundraiser and to provide ideas, checklists and organizational tips to streamline the process and avoid common mistakes.
Often the organizations, including schools, try to make fundraising too complicated. Simple and short are the keywords that should be considered with virtually all fundraising activities. With short duration and very simple fundraisers combined with easy to sell items, results are maximized while record keeping and data entry can be minimized.