Tips for organising a fantastic fundraising event
Plan in Advance
Think about what kind of event you want to organise. Be creative but keep it simple!
Think about how you’re going to do it. Create a list of everything that needs doing and by when. Make sure it’s not too big a job, often the simplest ideas are the best!
Who will be involved? Can you ask family and friends to help you organise it? Can you invite any local community groups to take part?
Think about why you are doing it; do you have a story to tell about the unit that you are fundraising for? What fundraising target do you want to reach?
Decide when is best to hold the event. Check your calendar for any clashes with other important dates and consider the great British weather!
Finally decide where you want to hold the event. Consider cost, availability, capacity and logistics such as catering, music and car parking when choosing a venue.
Spread the word
Get it in people’s diaries early, tell your friends, family and neighbours, what you are doing and why! But don’t stop there, use all routes to reach people – leaflets, posters, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, emails and anything else you can think of!
Set up your own personalised fundraising page using JustGiving – it’s easy and quick to do and makes collecting donations or sponsorship much easier.
Tell the local paper what you’re doing and try and get it on the radio too!
The fundraising team can also support with you with posts on our website and social media pages!
Create and keep a budget
Remember to keep thinking about costs. You don’t want all your hard work to pay for an expensive venue or too much food and not leave any money afterwards for the donation.
Create a budget that you can easily manage and keep on top of it. Costs soon add up if you don’t control your budget carefully. Make sure you keep a record of all income and expenditure as you go along.
Try asking for sponsorship and support from local businesses. They may not be able to give you money but they may be able to do something for free such as print posters or give a raffle prize.
Take advantage of every fundraising opportunity… raffles, auctions and selling refreshments are excellent ways of making additional income, especially if everything has been donated!