Bea’s Top 5 Tips for Successful Fundraising

Hi! My name is Bea and I am an ex-Challenge Leader and a current Brand Ambassador for Endeavours Adventures. Today I will be handing over my gatekept fundraising secrets, and how I managed to run two large-scale fundraising events that made over £800 each. So, if you’re struggling to come up with creative new ways to get your community involved, or if you’re tired of putting your all into small events and not getting a big return, then keep reading!

First of all, it’s important to acknowledge that this advice has worked for me and my community, but may need to be tweaked to fit how you like to work and what your community like to be involved in. I hope that it sparks inspiration, and that you’ll be able to take away a newfound confidence when it comes to creating, hosting and running fundraising events.

That being said, it leads me greatly onto my first fundraising tip...

Tip #1 – Know your audience!

Arguably the most important, as without knowing what the people around you like, dislike and want, you will have a hard time capturing your audience. Try to do some market research through finding out about recent successful events in the area, what the average age group is, and if there is anything trending at the minute. Utilise your friends! It’s likely that what they like, many people will like, so captivate them and you’ve immediately got one audience, and probably an accidental wider audience too.

Tip #2 – Use social media to your advantage

Social media is one of the most powerful tools in this day and age. Not only can you reach a larger audience than flyering, but you can really ensure that your event will be popular and something that people are already interested in. Hopping on fun trends, such as run clubs or matcha pop-ups, are a great way to piggy-back off ready-made popular events. I’ll talk more about specific ideas in my next tip…

Tip #3 – Let the marketing market itself...

Guerilla marketing is when your marketing is unusual and takes a deviation from the norm. Standing out from the crowd by using unique marketing strategies for your event can help promote your event even further, as people are more likely to stop, read, and potentially share it out of sheer amusement/interest. For example, instead of creating a regular flyer advertising your event, make a flyer that is a funny shape, has an eyebrow-raising image or slightly controversial take on the front to lure people in. A bake sale that takes advantage of Walker’s ‘crisp in or crisp out’ would be utilizing tips #2 and #3, and a fun way to create salty/sweet bakes.

Tip #4 – Keep interest ticking over

It might be tempting to put off fundraising until the new year, or closer to the deadline, just like many of us do with our other deadlines. Yet if you get started early, you will get a feel for what works and what doesn’t, so you have more time to adjust your strategy and find successful endeavours. Little and often, such as bi-weekly bake sales or pub quizzes, help keep your audience interested and clued in on your cause/goal, which works to your advantage. Study shows that people need to see something 7 times (!) before the information sticks, so if you keep advertising new events every few weeks for the same cause, they will start to remember you and hopefully get involved.

Tip #5 – Don’t be scared of bigger events!

Whilst bake sales, pub quizzes and bucket collections help you jog along towards those fundraising targets, you shouldn’t be scared about hosting larger-scale events as they can help add a huge chunk of money to your target. During my time fundraising for my Machu Picchu trek, I hosted two large scale events that made over £800 each, one being a football tournament and the other a fireworks night. Don’t be scared to ask for help from friends and family when it comes to running these events, and make the most of free spaces around your city, i.e. university rooms/pitches, community centers etc. Many local businesses will be willing to aid you too, as it helps get their brand out there. A firework company donated my firework display, and a local Zumba teacher ran our football tournament warm up.

If I, a nervous girl who had never run a big fundraising event before, can do it, then I promise you can too! Put aside a set amount of time a week that you can dedicate to market research, mind-mapping ideas and contacting businesses, and these manageable chunks of time will turn into amazing fundraising opportunities. Good luck!