What can you learn about fundraising in 2021 from Blackbaud’s Charitable Report?

Is your institution student-centric? Certainly, most of the institutions will respond with a firm affirmation. Students are the sole reason for the existence of educational institutions; how can they not be student-centric? However, when the same question is translated to the Alumni Relations plane, the answers are not as obvious as they may seem. The concept of alumni centricity might sound simple on the surface but a deep dive reveals that a majority of advancement professionals are not quite sure about the essence of it.

What is Alumni Centricity?

Alumni-Centricity is a discipline of advancing your institution by building relationships that are not solely based on alumni loyalty, but equally on value; keeping the needs and behavior of the alumni at the center of program design. It paves the way for lifelong relationships that are mutually rewarding and more fulfilling. Despite the benefits, most institutions are not able to incorporate it in their engagement strategies. A simple question can dig out the reason behind this.

Do institutions understand their alumni enough to focus on their needs?

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Why do you need to be alumni-centric?

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According to the 2020 VAESE Alumni Relations Benchmarking Study, 46% of alumni organizations have at least 10% of their alumni who have opted-out of contact with their alma mater.

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As advancement teams let revenue generation guide their decision-making, what often gets overlooked are alumni programs that matter to alumni and their changing needs. Alternatively, institutions simply continue to deliver programs they've always had, crushing all creativity, and steering farther away from catering to needs of their alumni as they approach crucial landmarks in their lives. All these factors result in a severe disconnect between alumni and their alma mater.

Institutes that have gauged this disconnect have started to transform their engagement strategy. They’ve seen barriers break by understanding their alumni better, and this understanding has helped them design useful programs. They have seen tangible results by surpassing engagement and revenue goals and collecting more alumni data.

If you are still on the fence about whether or not your institution has an alumni-centric approach, this simple exercise by Jay Dillon can help you figure it out.

The cost of not embracing Alumni Centricity

While we’ve understood the need for educational advancement to embrace alumni centricity, the next question that might pop in your head is, “We’ve always done things this way and we seem to be doing okay. Why change anything?”‍

According to the latest CASE Annual Giving Survey, for the first time in a decade, the total giving for the fiscal year 2020 dipped slightly from the previous year. And at this point, you might bring up Michael Bloomberg’s billion-dollar story, but tell me this - would Bloomberg have contributed if he had not felt a continuous sense of connection with his alma mater? The answer is a flat no. Every institution has its own Bloomberg, and not focusing on his/her needs is a lost opportunity as universities now compete for the attention and donations of their alumni. ‍

Additionally, many institutions still rely on gifts from 5-10% of their alumni, that account for about 90% of all the funds they raise. Amidst an economic crisis ensued from Covid-19, this over-reliance on a select group of donors has led to some institutions facing massive constraints and a few even shutting shop.‍

The disconnect between institution and alumni further leads to alumni estrangement. If you continue to focus on short-term fundraising rather than the needs of your alumni, your endless solicitation calls would sooner or later meet a dead end. Your alumni will see little to no value being delivered to them and eventually, would discontinue the relationship, starting with opting out of communication.

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This is the way: Alumni Centricity

It’s not too late for you to take the plunge and turn the tables: a win-win situation where you and your alumni both derive value from constant mutual efforts to serve each other’s needs. Aligning your engagement strategies to meet the needs of your alumni is the only way forward to build lifelong relationships while driving engagement, hitting revenue goals, and collecting more alumni data.

Want to know how institutions around you are embracing alumni centricity to drive alumni participation? Here are a few reads that I think you’ll enjoy:

1. Piedmont College launched a virtual giving campaign to support sheltered students and provide protective gear to frontline healthcare professionals on campus. Read the story.‍

2. Antioch College provided emotional support via a Virtual Dance Party to alumni amidst the pandemic. Read the story.

3. Misericordia University transitioned to a Virtual Homecoming celebration amidst the pandemic, keeping the health and safety of its community as the utmost priority. Read the story.

4. As the Class of 2020 missed their traditional commencement, William Peace University found a way to uplift their spirits by launching a series of virtual engagement opportunities to toast to the success of these grads. Read the story.‍

Online fundraising can be a deceptively tricky subject. While the term simply refers to the process of raising money online, making the most of this strategy requires a dynamic approach on the part of your school.‍

When it comes to engaging with alumni, in particular, it’s doubly important to have a robust online fundraising strategy in place.

‍For this reason, your team should take a look at how you fundraiser online right now and decide whether or not you’re getting all you can out of this strategy.In this article, we’ll help you begin this process by discussing:

1. How your alumni engagement strategy can benefit from online fundraising

2. Online fundraising trends you should be using

3. Ways to boost alumni giving through online fundraising

4. Fundraising software tools that can improve your alumni engagement.

Ready to master online fundraising and improve your alumni engagement tactics? Let’s dive in!

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Making the most of your online fundraising capabilities should be your first priority when perfecting how you engage with alumni!

As a school, your institution's fundraising needs and limitations likely look very different from other nonprofit organizations. For one thing, your core donor base (your alumni) are often spread far and wide across the country.

‍This means that to connect with alumni supporters, you’ll have to go the extra mile to meet them where they are.

‍The best way to do this? By fundraising online, your team can easily reach geographically-diverse alumni. This starts with accepting donations online, but also allows your school to regularly interact with your supporters via email, social media and more!

‍When your school makes the effort to interact with supporters online, you avoid the trap of remaining “out of sight and out of mind” to these individuals.

Through frequent online interaction, alumni are more likely to donate on a regular basis, as well as more likely to encourage their friends and family to give to your institution.

In addition to strengthening ties between your school and your alumni, online fundraising has several other key benefits:

‍1. Low overhead cost: After your initial investment in online fundraising software, online fundraising proves to more than make up for its upfront cost. Since everything is virtual, your team can allocate less personnel to manage your online fundraising efforts, as well as save money on physical marketing materials. ‍

2. Simple setup: Once you pick the right software, your team can easily set up your online fundraising tools with little stress. Many services offer consultation during the implementation process, or you might lean on your fundraising consultant during this time for their expertise.

3. Increased donor knowledge: Another reason why online fundraising tools are so effective is because they can provide unmatched insight into your supporters. With every interaction your school has with alumni online, you will collect important data that can inform your engagement tactics moving forward.

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‍The bottom line: By investing time and energy into perfecting your school’s online fundraising strategy, you’ll have an easier time reaching alumni donors while saving money and effort. Even better, when you do connect with these donors, your interactions will be more streamlined and more informative than traditional methods allow.

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With the right strategy, your school can benefit from powerful new trends in online fundraising that simply can’t be matched by traditional fundraising methods.

‍In this section, we’ll highlight tactics that make the most of online fundraising’s dynamic potential by going further than simply accepting donations.

‍First, we’ll go over social fundraising techniques like crowdfunding and peer-to-peer campaigns, and then we’ll show you how online fundraising can be paired with on-site events to help your school make the donation more accessible to your alumni supporters.

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Social fundraising

1. Crowdfunding. With the right crowdfunding software, your school can grow your donor base while raising money. Look for tools that allow you to easily brand donation pages, share campaigns across social media and email, and ones with team crowdfunding capabilities.

2. Peer-to-peer: Tapping into your alumni’s social network, donors can help your school reach more eyes online. By associating campaigns with your alumni fundraisers, potential supporters are more inclined to give since they’ll more closely associate your school with their friend, family member, or colleague.

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Fundraising events

1. Kiosks and card swipers: By investing in an on-site donation kiosk or card swiper, your team can accept donations from those who prefer to pay with a credit or debit card. Gifts are then transferred online to your bank account, so you never have to worry about depositing checks or keeping track of cash donations. You might use a kiosk or card swiper at events like walkathons, talent shows, charity auctions etc.

2. Live event streaming: Another dynamic way to raise money for your cause is to stream fundraising events online. Alumni who can’t make it will be able to participate in the festivities from their computer or mobile device, and because of your online donation tools, giving will be as easy as the click of a button.

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The bottom line: As part of your fundraising strategy, your school shouldn’t discount tactics that marry the best parts of in-person fundraising methods with the functionality and ease-of-use that online fundraising provides.

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Looking to optimize your online giving channels to boost alumni donations?

‍What’s so unique about online fundraising is that your team can truly customize the giving experience to make donation as seamless as possible for your alumni donors. ‍

Check out some of these online fundraising best practices to maximize your alumni’s donor potential:

1. Offer simple donation forms: You don’t want to lose out on potential alumni gifts because your online donation form was too lengthy, confusing, or required too much effort to complete. Be sure to make your online donation forms as streamlined as possible and don’t require givers to register for an account to make a donation.

2. Encourage recurring giving: The quickest way to make sure you’re able to get the most out of your fundraising efforts? Prompt alumni to opt-into recurring giving when they make a donation. Give them the freedom to set the gift amount and the donation schedule so that they’re able to tailor the process to their preferences.

3. Match alumni gifts: With the right software, your school can increase your fundraising potential by receiving matched gifts from alumni who work for corporations that have a matching gift program in place. One convenient way to do this is to direct alumni to a matching gift database tool on your school’s website or to implement an automated matching gift software to streamline the process for your school’s team.

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The bottom line: Offering online donation channels to your alumni donors will boost giving, but only if your school is able to make the most of these dynamic giving tools.

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One of the most important parts of perfecting your school’s online fundraising strategy is picking the right online fundraising software to help you get the job done.

‍With all the options out there, it can be tricky to know what software to invest in and what kind of functionality you’ll need to stay on top of your online fundraising game.

‍Luckily, we’ve compiled a list of all the tools you need to look out for when picking your software!

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Donation pages

Donation pages are the bread and butter of your online fundraising efforts. To make sure you reach the maximum number of alumni donors, your team should be sure to invest in online fundraising software that provides you with dynamic tools to customize your pages.

Invest in a software solution that allows you to:

1. Brand pages to your school with colors, logos, pictures, video, etc.

2. Integrate donation pages with social media to make them easily shareable

3. Customize donation pages with suggested giving amounts, recurring giving opt-ins, and more.

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Communications

Having a successful communications strategy in place is the first step to boosting your alumni fundraising online. If your team isn’t able to get the word out to your supporters, your online fundraising efforts will falter.

When choosing which online fundraising software to invest in, keep an eye out for a solution that enables :

1. Automated constituent email that can be customized to your different alumni donor segments

2. Engagement tracking and analytics to help you learn all you can about what strategies work for your supporters‍

3. Social share buttons that enable your donors to easily broadcast to their social networks once they give

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Mobile giving

The vast majority of your alumni use their mobile devices as their primary way to access the internet. Don’t miss out on all of these potential alumni donors!

As part of your online fundraising strategy, your school should be sure to have functional mobile giving tools in place. These can include:

1. Donation pages that are optimized for mobile devices

2. Embedded donation pages across your various social media platforms

3. Text giving tools that allow donors to give simply by sending you a customizable keyword.

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The bottom line: When choosing online fundraising software, your team should select a platform that offers dynamic tools to meet your alumni engagement needs at every level.

When it comes to alumni engagement, having a next-level online fundraising strategy in place is crucial With these tips in mind, there’s nothing stopping your school from making connections with alumni and raising more than ever before!

As part of the higher education sector, your university likely depends on social campaigns like peer-to-peer fundraising and crowdfunding to fund its projects and initiatives. ‍While these campaigns have the potential for a wide reach, they require effective promotion to maximize alumni support.

How can you retain alumni support long after they receive their diplomas? Let’s explore the top marketing practices your university should employ when planning your outreach strategy.

1. Actively promote matching gifts

Your alumni may be eager to support your university, but many are unaware of the opportunities available to help them maximize their contributions—namely, matching gifts.

Matching gifts are a type of corporate social responsibility initiative wherein businesses match donations made by their employees. Double the Donation defines corporate social responsibility as “a company’s efforts to improve society” in a multitude of ways, from directly donating to supporting employee giving. Matching gifts combine both of these efforts and represent a major revenue opportunity for universities.

Identify match-eligible alumni by looking into your existing donor base. Specifically, take a look at your alumni and major donors who represent your largest match opportunities. Then, secure matching gifts from alumni by promoting the opportunity to match-eligible individuals through:

• Educational resources for your donors
• A matching gift page on your website
• A matching gift database that conducts automatic email follow-ups to remind donors to submit matching gift requests

As you solicit matched gifts, maintain an open line of communication with major employers who offer matches. Periodically review their policies and ask them to notify you if any changes are made to their matching gift program. Both universities and donors should stay on top of employers’ match guidelines to avoid missing out on matching gift revenue.

2. Market on multiple communication channels

Communication is the foundation of a successful fundraising campaign. While some approaches are more effective than others, the best results come from incorporating multiple channels—especially for larger donor bases.

There are two types of marketing your university can leverage, and each type has a plethora of channels you can use to spread the word about your campaigns:

• Inbound marketing is a method of targeted advertising that involves attracting potential supporters based on their interests in your cause. Inbound marketing includes:
  • Search engine optimization (SEO): Revamp your website to rank more highly on search engine results pages for keywords related to your cause. Many institutions also collaborate with SEO experts like Tanot Solutions, to strengthen their backlink profile and improve domain authority through strategic link-building initiatives.
  • Blogs: Write educational blog content that attracts alumni to your website and inspires them to give.
  • Videos: Create compelling videos that showcase your university’s accomplishments and drive viewers to support your work. Schools can also create ai videos to turn alumni stories, campus updates, and fundraising messages into engaging content more quickly.
  • Podcasts: Invite faculty and industry experts to discuss relevant topics in a podcast to establish your institution as a thought leader.
  • Organic social media posts: Share original, unsponsored content on your social media channels to keep your school top of mind for alumni who follow you.
• Outbound marketing is a broader advertising strategy that focuses on reaching a wide audience through channels such as:
  • Pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns: Use search engine advertising, like Google Ads, to get your website in front of as many eyes as possible.
  • Direct mail campaigns: Send engaging flyers to a large mailing list to appeal to those who respond more positively to traditional direct mail.
  • TV commercials: Create a TV commercial promoting your university and directing viewers to your website. Incorporate QR codes to simplify access to your website without interrupting their watching.
  • Newspaper ads: Place an advertisement in your local newspaper to capture the attention of community members who may not otherwise hear from your school.
  • Social media ads: Boost your social media posts with paid advertisements so your content appears not just to your existing followers, but in the feed of any user who might engage with the post.

Remember, communication is a two-way street. You won’t just want to send messages to alumni, but to stay in touch with them over time. Ensure that alumni and any volunteer fundraisers feel free to voice their feedback or concerns.

3. Leverage nonprofit storytelling

Effective communication is about more than just an open line of communication—it’s about powerful storytelling, too. Stories encourage alumni to form stronger connections with your university’s mission, students, and impact.

As part of your marketing approach, implement the following storytelling strategies into your content:

• Use powerful imagery. Visual elements like photo galleries or clear infographics quickly capture your audience’s attention.
• Incorporate quotes and testimonials. Let your students and faculty do the talking by incorporating their direct quotes into your content. This will be especially effective for reaching alumni with personal connections to those individuals, such as the former student of a featured professor.
• State campaign goals. Explaining exactly what your university needs and how a donor’s contribution will be used draws a direct connection between the supporter and your work.

Storytelling and powerful imagery compel users to share content with their networks, so it’s crucial that you make your storytelling components shareable. For example, you might place a “Share” button next to the content on your alumni website that makes it easy for viewers to repost an article or video to their social media channels.

4. Link to your fundraising page

In all your digital marketing materials, make it easy for viewers to take action by directing them to your donation page. Make the most of clear calls to action, prominent buttons, and QR codes across all the channels you use. To ensure shareability, use an effective social campaigning platform and the right social media platforms.

Additionally, when alumni land on your fundraising page, they should be able to take action easily. Check to ensure your donation form can be quickly completed and doesn’t require any unnecessary steps. With a compelling marketing strategy and simple form, your university can seamlessly convert alumni into dedicated supporters.

Now that you know the best marketing practices, share this information with your fundraising team, and plan your best campaign yet! Then, as donations start to roll in, be sure to show your appreciation for donors’ support and continue to engage them by offering additional involvement opportunities. The more active your donors are in your university’s activities, the more likely they’ll be to continue their support.

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About the author

Adam Weinger is the President of Double the Donation, the leading provider of tools to nonprofits to help them raise more money from corporate matching gift and volunteer grant programs.

Double the Donation's robust solution, 360MatchPro, provides nonprofits with automated tools to identify match-eligible donors, drive matches to completion, and gain actionable insights. 360MatchPro integrates directly into donation forms, CRMs, social fundraising software, and other nonprofit technology solutions to capture employment information and follow up appropriately with donors about matching gifts.

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Fundraising is a necessity for any school to support its educational activities.

It seems you can never fundraise too much or accept too many donations, but you don’t want to bore your supporters with the same fundraisers year after year. Is your school tired of the same old fundraisers and looking for new ideas that are guaranteed to work?

Your search ends here! Follow these 7 proven fundraising ideas for schools to raise money for your students:

1. Walkathon

2. Partner with a local restaurant chain

3. Multicultural fair

4. Car wash

5. Coffee Drive

6. Trivia Night

7. Envelope Fundraiser

Want something focused specifically on fundraising for private schools? Look to DonorSearch’s 5 Steps to A+ Private & Independent School Fundraising.
Read on to boost your mentoring skills and learn about these school fundraising ideas!

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What it is

Typically annual, a walkathon event is a long-distance walk meant to fundraise for a cause.

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Why it works

Walkathons are usually encouraging and successful events because they support:

1. Health: All participants walk around your designated course, encouraging a healthy habit.

2. Community: Usually hosted on a public field or in a public park, walkathons are open to the public for the most exposure and therefore, evoke a sense of community and develop relationships as they bring people together.

3. Accessibility: Participants will be at different levels athletically, and that’s fine. Some will be participating to challenge themselves, and some will just be participating for fun. The more the merrier.

4. Affordability: Walkathons are fairly inexpensive fundraising events.

Pledges are placed on participants and how far they’re able to walk the day of the event. For example, if Sabrina pledges $5 for every mile Alex walks and Alex walks 7 miles, you’ve raised $35 for your school.

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How to start

There’s a list of things to do when organizing your walkathon event.

1. Determine a location. You’ll need to decide if you want a course that gets you from Point A to Point B or a circular course that starts and ends at Point A, a straight course or a circuit course, respectively.

2. Pick a date and rain date. Make sure you pick a date in a warmer season, but not a hot one. Try May instead of August. And select a rain date, just in case!

3. Recruit sponsors. Approach previous gala sponsors to see if they’d like to run tents or water stations.

4. Promote your event. You can look into merchandise providers to customize your own t-shirts and water bottles. Promote your event through flyers and word-of-mouth, as well.

For a more extensive description on organizing a walkathon, check out Booster’s walkathon guide.

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What it is

There are plenty of restaurants that partner with schools and educational clubs to help create awareness and raise money. These restaurants will have school fundraising nights, during which a portion of the sales from the night are donated to the school.

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Why it works

Everyone has to eat. The partnership between restaurants and your school converts a daily task into a charity event.

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How to start

All you have to do is:

1. Pick a participating restaurant. Many fast food places like Chick-fil-a or Moe’s Southwest Grill have fundraising programs. Just contact your local restaurant for more information. Be sure to check with your local small-business restaurants, too! Many of their owners’ kids have gone through your school system and will be open to help you fundraise.

2. Promote the night. Send out email blasts, create flyers, even make t-shirts, if you’d like. Your fundraiser’s success will depend on your dedication to promotion.

Turn your community’s next good meal into a successful fundraising idea by partnering with a restaurant!

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What it is

A multicultural fair allows students to showcase their heritage and learn about their peers’ heritage.

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Why it works

Students get a chance to perform cultural demonstrations and sell their culture’s products and food. On top of being a great fundraising opportunity and satisfying the mentor in you, it’s educational and a fun way to immerse the students in different cultures.

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How to start

There’s a bit of planning that goes into organizing this fair:

1. Pick a location. This fair will be easiest if you have an accessible field if weather permits. If it doesn’t, try a gymnasium.

2. Set a date. If it’s outside, choose a rain date, too.

3. Recruit students to participate. Start a discussion and sign-up sheet to see which students would like to hold a booth at the fair. Ask which foods they’ll be making and selling and which cultural performances they’d like to display.

4. Promote! Post flyers. You might try to schedule the fair during lunch periods to reach the most students and/or during the evening to reach parents, too.

No matter what, make sure your students will have fun during the event–they need to be excited enough to sell and excited enough to learn.

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What it is

Your school can put together a group of students to organize a car wash. Besides being a quick and simple fundraising idea, it gets your students outside (and away from tablets, phones, and the tv).

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Why it works

A car wash is an easy fundraiser to set up. Plus, everyone needs the pollen rinsed off their cars in the spring so who can pass up just $5 for a car wash?

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How to start

There are just a few basic planning steps before you hold your car wash:

1. Pick a location. The school’s parking lot is probably your safest bet, just make sure it’s close to a hose!

2. Gather the materials. You need minimal supplies for this event. Invest in some soap, sponges, towels for drying, buckets, and of course, make sure you have a hose!

3. Promote and Advertise. Charge $5 per car and spread the word. You can advertise the day off by having students holding signs at the closest busy road.

Now that you have everything to start, pick a sunny day and hold your fundraiser.

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What it is

With 83% of American adults drinking coffee, a coffee drive is bound to be a successful fundraiser. Partnering with a fair trade roaster can let you sell both packaged coffee beans and hot cups of joe.

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Why it works

Your students can sell beans to their peers, family, and others, while your school sells cups of coffee during lunch periods. Local coffee shops may partner with you and sell your school coffee at a discounted rate.

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How to start

You’ll need to find a wholesaler to work with. Do your research and decide which blends at what prices work for your school’s community. Once you’ve found a supplier, all that’s left to do is promote and sell!

Get the word out and recruit students to sell.

Depending on how you want to organize sales, you can have students directly sell the product or keep a sales and orders sheet, like how girl scouts sell cookies.

Be sure to plan out your fundraiser and promote your coffee drive!

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What it is

A trivia night will spark a friendly sense of competition among your students. You can have students register as teams or individuals.

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Why it works

Again, this fundraiser brings your students together to form a community. It works because who doesn’t love a little bit of rivalry and healthy competition?

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How to start

Pick a location to host your trivia night. Your school’s gymnasium is a great option, but you can always try to partner with a local restaurant for space.

Make sure you have a plan for advertising and promoting your event to draw a crowd! Charge a small admission fee to trivia teams who want to compete. Plan out how your trivia game will start and finish. You don’t want an unorganized game.

Your trivia night can easily be an exciting and successful fundraiser as long as you plan ahead and organize.

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What it is

An envelope fundraiser is a super inexpensive and simple way for your school to raise some extra dough. You’ll need 100 envelopes numbered 1 through 100, which you can easily find in your school’s office. Then, supporters who pass by the envelopes will choose one and donate that amount. For example, if Sally picks up envelope 13, she’ll give $13.

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Why it works

Easy, easy, easy. A fundraiser can’t get much more simple than this one. Plus, the envelope fundraiser doesn’t pressure supporters to give!

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How to start

Get a pack of 100 envelopes and number them. From there, you can pin them to a corkboard in your school’s lobby or front office so students, parents, and others will see it and can make their donations.

All you need is 100 envelopes and a place to hang them and with the generosity of your supporters, you can accept donations.

Just remember to spread the word about your envelope fundraiser so people know where and when they can give because you’re relying directly on individual supporters’ donations.

Throughout your fundraising event, whichever idea you decide to go with, you can build a relationship with your students, like a mentor should. Don’t put too much pressure on them to sell and raise money, but instead encourage them to have fun with the fundraiser.

Still, want more ideas? Check out this list of fundraising ideas for schools and education.

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‍Adam Weinger is the President of Double the Donation, the leading provider of tools to nonprofits to help them raise more money from corporate matching gift and volunteer grant programs. Connect with Adam via email or on LinkedIn.

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