105 Fundraising Ideas

Now that your letters have gone out, it may be time to get creative and have some FUN with your fundraising. Here are some great ways to bring in those those extra $ and achieve your GOALS.

“Easy way to raise $1,000”

This is my “Easy way to raise $1,000” approach. Ask 5-10 of your friends to help you out. What you do is get, say, 5 good friends together. Tell them you are committed to doing this full marathon. Tell them how hard you’ve been working. Tell them how important it is to you. Tell them that you can’t run / walk unless you’ve raised the fundraising minimum. Then, give each of them 10 pledge forms. Have them each commit to getting 10 $20 pledges = 200X5 people = 1000. Or, you can get 10 friends to get 10 $10 pledges. 10X$10 = $100. $100X10 people = $1,000.

105 Fundraising Ideas

1. Corporate Matching: make your company work for you. Ask them to match donations made by other employees.

2. Friend-Match: Ask your friend who is donating to look into their company’s matching gift program.

3. Corporate Sponsor: identify one, two, three or more corporate sponsors you can ask for a donation – see Corporate sponsorship proposal. Ask your friends for their recommendations.

4. Follow up on your letter: call or send a postcard to the people who haven’t donated yet. Or send a postcard to everyone who got the letter with a note on how your training is going and a reminder that it’s not too late to donate!

5. Garage Sale: one person’s trash is someone else’s treasure. Get all of your friends to donate items for a super sale and have people “buy” things with pledges. Advertise in a local newspaper and or on-line.

6. Super Box: ask all your friends and relatives to put extra change in it. By October 1^st, you’ll have lots of money. You can decorate it or cover it with inspirational quotes.

7. Car Wash: hold a car wash with either your neighborhood or at work. Ask some local business to donate items you’ll need for the car wash and get your friends involved. Place RFSB signs all over.

8. Fundraising in your office: You work places are great venues for Marathon fundraising. Hang a thermometer at your desk area or in a common area indicating your goals.

9. Fundraise in your office / sell miles: go to the marathon website and get a map of the route: blow it up and hang in a common area or in your desk area – sell each mile – put the name of the donor on a cut out of a running shoe. It’s a great conversation starter and people will want to be included and donate.

10. Sell miles: create each donor a ribbon with the printed number of the mile their donation represents and take them with you on the event. Give them the ribbon with a thank you note after the event.

11. Offer to make dinner, wash their car, mow lawn etc.. for anyone who donates over a certain amount – re: $200

12. Share the Marathon: tell you story. The more you talk about your upcoming adventure, the more people will share in the excitement and want to pledge to you.

13. Tribute Pledges: A pledge made in honor or in memory of someone.

14. Voice Mail: Change your voice mail and answering machine messages letting people know what you are doing – “I’m out on a training run….”

15. Web Site: create a website dedicated to your marathon progress and email everyone on your contact list and invite them to visit your website and put a link to your RFSB donation page or a link to download a pledge form with mailing instructions.

16. Waiters: Ask the waiter & waitresses in your favorite restaurant if they will donate one day’s tips. Or, if you work at a restaurant, ask your colleagues to donate a “Pledge Jar.”

17. Restaurant: Ask your favorite restaurant to donate a portion of a days profits to your fundraising.

18. Change jar at local restaurant: ask you favorite restaurant to put out a jar for donations of spare change.

19. Fundraising Dinner: Ask a local restaurant to host a Fundraising Dinner for you.

20. Fundraising Dinner: Ask a friend or family member to host a fundraising dinner for you.

21. Happy Hour: Wear a RFSB T-shirt to Happy Hour and ask people to sign your shirt for $10.00. Ask the DJ to announce that you are in the bar.

22. Happy Hour: Make a sign with the RFSB logo and display on table or bar with a jar for donations. People have received $5, $10 and $20 donations per bracelet.

23. Theme Dinner: Hold a theme dinner for 10 or more of your friends for a donation of $50 a head. Spend no more than $20 a head on the food (or get it donated) and will have no less than $300 in pledges.

24. Rock On! If you know musicians, ask them to perform a benefit concert. Tell people that their ticket is a check made out to ING Run For Something Better.

25. Movie Ticket donation: Ask a local theater to donate movie tickets, and then sell them for pledges.

26. Movie Party: Hold a movie party at your house/apartment. Every time the word run / walk is said in the movie, everyone has to donate $1 in a pledge bowl.

27. Play Tickets: Ask local playhouse to donate tickets and then auction them off.

28. Actors: Ask actor friends to improvise a play party.

29. Birthday: In lieu of a birthday gift, ask your friends and family to make a pledge for the marathon.

30. House Warming Party: In lieu of a house-warming gift, ask your family and friends to make a pledge for the marathon.

31. Delegates: Give 10 friends pledge forms and ask them to get pledges for you. Or, ask them to hold a fundraiser on your behalf.

32. Creative Friends: Find a local artist or ask a creative friend if they would donate a piece of art or some jewelry that you can raffle off.

33. Color Pledge Forms: Print your pledge forms on color paper so they will stand out from other mail.

34. Signing your correspondence: Get in the habit of signing your correspondence with your name and webpage address. You’ll be surprised how many people will ask you about it.

35. Business Cards: Make up business cards with marathon information and your webpage address printed. Hand them out to everyone you meet.

36. Ask you travel agency for a plane ticket to raffle off.

37. Ask you doctors and dentists for pledges.

38. Ask you Chiropractors and therapists for pledges.

39. Ask your Yoga instructor..

40. Ask you Lawyer, Insurance Agent,,,

41. Ask you Veterinarian…

42. Ask your Aerobics class.

43. It’s Summertime: A simple BBQ or potluck with raffle prizes or just a cover charge can make big bucks with little planning!

44. Can say BASEBALL: Buy a bunch of tickets at a group rate (get the cheap seats), get food donated. Host a tailgate party and charge people twice the ticket price. (It will still be a pretty good price and a great excuse to hang out with friends).

45. Call your local sports team and ask them to donate autographed items from their players. Sell the items on ebay.

46. Radio Station: Call your favorite radio station and ask them to make an announcement on the air and to interview you. People can donate to you through your personal webpage. We have RFSB PR information for you to give the radio station.

47. Gym: Ask your gym if you or they can teach an aerobics class benefiting you. I’ve done this one!

48. Hair Salon: Ask your hair salon if they would donate $2 or $3 of each hair cut to you over the course of a weekend.

49. National Holiday: Don’t forget about Memorial Day weekend, 4^th of July, Labor Day weekend and all those picnics. Bring your pledge forms and hit up everyone in attendance. Or, have a picnic / bqq fundraiser. Get items donated hold a raffle or charge an admission.

50. Make Christmas ornaments and sell them.

51. Decorate a Christmas Tree: Decorate a Christmas tree for a donation.

52. Mow-A-Thon: Hold a Mow-A-Thon. Get your kids involved and declare a weekend where you will mow your neighbor’s lawns for $50 or whatever amount you want to set.

53. My Neighbor: Write to all your neighbors in your area or in your apartment building or complex. Attach an update on your training and fundraising progress.

54. Free Rent: Get your apartment to donate one month’s free rent to sponsor you.

55. Tipping is good Kharma: Get businesses to put a “tip jar” at the register. Put a picture of yourself and a little story about why you are running / walking the marathon on the jar.

56. Errand boy / girl: Offer to be your friends and coworkers personal assistant for a day (few hours) in exchange for a $250 donation or whatever amount you set.

57. Talent: Utilize and sell any talent or skill you may have.

58. Make-up Artist: If you are a make-up artist, do $75 makeovers.

59. Photographers: Do portraits for pledges.

60. Garden Tour: Hold a garden tour at your home or a historical home or garden. Get it promoted in the local newspaper. Remember, the cost of the tour will be tax deductible. Your RFSB Campaign Manager can help you with the promotion.

61. Meet the press: Get an article in your company newsletter. Ask them to publish an article about you and why you are participating in which you request support.

62. Your Town Newspaper: Get an article in your hometown newspaper. Call your Campaign Manager for information.

63. Baby-sit.

64. Pet-sit.

65. House-sit

66. Water the Garden or any other chores you would normally do for free for your family, friends and neighbors and this time ask them for a donation – have a pledge form and self addressed stamped envelop to hand them.

67. Gala Night: Host an elegant or formal party.

68. Karaoke Nights: Collect a pledge for each song you sing.

69. Ask you talented fried to sing, play the piano, violin etc.. for a fundraising event.

70. Hold a Wine and Cheese Party: solicit donations from your local deli, liquor store or dessert shops. Charge at least $10 a head and then sell raffle tickets for the extra bottles of wine/cake/cheese log etc. Costco and Trader Joe’s are known to donate food.

71. Hold a Sweets Party – ice-cream Sunday making or pastries

72. Hold an International Food Tasting Party.

73. Hold a Bake Sale at work.

74. Casual Day: Ask your boss if you can host a casual or jeans day. Employees buy a button for $5.00 and get to wear jeans or dress casual on the assigned day.

75. In Memory of: If you are running or waling in memory of a loved one, include a picture of you and your loved one in your donation letter, on posters etc..

76. Bulletin Boards: post your donation letter with donation instructions on bulletin boards at work, church, temple, the gym, your apartment or condo complex etc..

77. Hold a raffle: even if you raffle off half the proceeds from the raffle.. people like cash and will most likely donate it back to you.

78. Hold a Pet Birthday Party.

79. Hold a Retirement Party.

80. Hold a New Job Celebration.

81. T.V. Show Party: Premier or Finale of your favorite show party.

82. Dance a-thon.

83. Host a Disco-night.

84. Host a Movie Theme Night.

85. Pop Corn Party: Show a new release video, and charge $10.00 at your home.

86. Hold a Monopoly or other game night party.

87. Hold a Yo-Yo, twister or other children’s game night party.

88. Hold Pizza Night: Ask your local pizza place to donate pizza and ask your friends for $10 at the door all you can eat.

89. Computer Graphics: If you are good with computers make nice cards and give them for pledges.

90. Hold a bowling night fundraiser – you pay a flat fee for the night, you provide lanes and snacks. Charge per person or team and get the round robin going. Gives prizes for the winner or worst player.

91. Have a used-book sale.

92. Have a Tupper Ware or Pampered Chef Party.

93. Work for a large company: Send around a big manila envelope with your letter taped to the one side and a donor form on the other. Send the envelope in a rotation and have people place checks right inside. Or, place a display in the lunch room with a sign and picture and a note about what your are doing) next to a donation bucket and a stack of donor forms.

94. Tread Mill Marathon: ask you local health club if you can set up a treadmill in the lobby. Grab a friend and take turns running for as long as you can with a bucket in the front for people to throw change and bills. And of course, have a stack of donor forms with you.

95. Student Council’s, Sororities and Fraternities and Key Clubs: Contact your local high school or college student council, key clubs, sororities and fraternities and ask if they would fundraise for you. (holding their own event to profit your cause)

96. Bingo nights: local bingo nights are required to giver some of their profits to charity. Make sure you help promote the night and you get the $.

97. Create incentives for your donors: Tell everyone that for every $50 they donate they get a chance to win something ( a gift certificate to a restaurant, a RFSB hat, your sweaty singlet after the race). Or, for donation amounts, you will put their name on your singlet, $250 for name on your arm, $1000 for name on your forehead. Or, they can put their own honorees name on you.

98. Include the fact that you are training for a marathon on your answering machine and cell phone voice mail.. Let people know if they are interested in donating, they should leave a message letting you know.

99. Include a link to your Personal Webpage at the bottom of every email you send out. Most email programs have a “signature” feature that will allow you to automatically include the link. Ask friends and family to do the same.

100. Start a monthly newsletter on your progress. Recognize your supporters in it and include a donor form. Ask your friends to pass it around.

101. Airline miles: Sell your airline miles on Craig’s list.

102. Make 10 copies of this list: Send the copies to friends and family and ask them to choose one thing on the list to help you.

· Restaurant programs: (we know Apple Bees, Islands, Coldstone Creamery and BJ's have programs too.. but they don't have it on their websites so give them a call for assistance) Restaurants give anywhere from 10 - 25% of the night’s profits if you help publicize the event night.

¨ Ruby's diner: www.rubysdiner.com/diners/fun_raiser.html

¨ Baja Fresh: www.bajafresh.com go to "friends of Baja" and click on "fundraising."

¨ Souplantation: http://www.souplantation.com/Community/

¨ Coldstone Creamery: http://www.coldstonecreamery.com

¨ Shakey’s Pizza: http://www.shakeys.com

¨ Island’s: http://www.islandsrestaurants.com/

¨ Applebee’s: http://www.applebees.com/

¨ Chipotle’s: http://www.chipotle.com/

¨ Popeye’s Chicken: http://www.popeyes.com/com_giving.asp

¨ Pizza Hut: http://www.pizzahut.com

· stuff to sell (best to do this as a group and split the funds raised:

¨ www.thepizzapail.com