Important Fundraising Tips for Schools

Schools provide students the foundation of knowledge necessary in shaping their future. School operations are possible by charging students tuition fees. Unfortunately, despite collecting money from tuition fees, schools still operate on limited funds. Raising the cost of tuition fees is usually not an option. This is the basic reason why schools turn to several fundraising activities. Fundraisings help schools support their needs in upgrading their facilities. A fundraiser could be for an upgrade of computers, need for new books, a new classroom, supplies, maintenance, etc.

Fundraising for schools is a noble activity. Schools raise funds to directly benefit the students. Unfortunately, parents, especially those who have first-time students, often find fundraising for schools unnecessary. Some parents think that they are already paying enough tuition fees to the school. Schools can prevent such questioning from parents by following some important fundraising tips for schools.  To learn more about the best fundraising methods, you can check out Fundraising Zone.

Plan Your Fundraising Activities Early

Planning the school fundraising activities early will provide the school ample time to prepare. Moreover, presenting the planned fundraising activities to parents during enrolment will help in setting up their minds that fundraisers are included in the annual school activities. Lay down the list of fundraisers and give clear details on how they will be accomplished.

Provide Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), and Students Clear Goals of the Fundraiser

It is a good idea to present to the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), including the students, the reason behind any fundraising activities. Providing a clear picture of how the money will be used helps motivate everyone to extend support. It is also a good point to enlighten the PTA on how the fundraising activities will directly benefit the students.

Involve Everyone in Each Fundraising Activity

Involve everyone in the fundraising activities by making them direct participants to the campaigns. Event-a-thon fundraisers like walk-a-thon, marathon, and bike-a-thon are some campaigns worth considering. These fundraising activities provide not just excitement, but also promote values of sportsmanship, and create bonding among participants. Who would not want to support such a fundraiser?

Form a Reliable Team

Facilitating a fundraising activity can be a challenging task. Selecting the right people for the task is highly important. Find persons who are experts in dealing with people. They will deal with the promotion and encouragement of supporters. Look for people who are good with money matters. These people will keep track of how the funds are coming in. These people will also be responsible for giving out updates on how the money is keeping up with the target amount. Organized persons are also important to be part of the fundraising team as they will keep everyone updated on how the fundraiser is going. Such people will handle the task of keeping track of the timeline. A timeline helps keep everyone motivated and aware if they are still within the schedule.

Acknowledge Everyone After the Fundraising Campaign

It is but right and ethical to give acknowledgment and thank everyone who participated and supported every fundraising activity. This helps in showing the integrity of the school. There are many ways to give thanks – it could be sending a simple thank you note, a small token of appreciation or even community announcements of congratulating and thanking everyone who participated. Donors and supporters would likely extend their support again in your next fundraiser.

Explore the Power of Online Fundraising

Technology offers a modern approach to school fundraisers. Nowadays, many fundraising activities for schools are facilitated online. There are many advantages to running a fundraising campaign online. Online fundraising expands the reach of a school’s campaign. In the traditional way of school fundraisers, the campaign is mostly limited within the community. Online fundraising is different in such a way that the campaign has the potential of global reach.

The school has to find organizations that facilitate online fundraising campaigns. Most of these organizations provide complete support from setting up a campaign, providing promotional materials, facilitate the promotion itself, gathering donors, and issuance of a check for the money raised. This kind of campaign usually involves fewer people, less or even zero upfront cost, and a quick collection of funds. Some organizations even provide fundraising coaches for free.

Typically, online fundraisers make use of social media platforms and webpages for the campaign. E-mail marketing is also one strategy used by some online fundraising organizations. As mentioned earlier, almost everything is provided and worked out by the organization. The school can extend help by promoting campaigns via online sharing apps. It is all just a matter of making a good search and finding the right organization that will meet the school’s fundraising requirements.