Easy and fundraising may seem like two words that don’t belong together, particularly if you have been through this before.  You’re probably thinking that fundraising is anything BUT easy!  That is absolutely true in many cases, especially with certain products that require so much detail and planning ahead of time.  When you are dealing with young children, things are often even more complicated than usual, because you want to keep things as simple as possible but don’t quite know how.  You will find some great easy fundraising ideas here, so that your next project is one that won’t leave you pulling your hair out.

When you try to determine which easy fundraising ideas are best for your group, keep in mind the age of those involved.  Are they very young children, teenagers or the entire adult class at church?  This makes a difference in which products you choose to sell, because older children and adults can handle more responsibility than young children.  With the youngsters, it’s often easier to sell products that they have on hand at the time of the sale, such as discount cards.  This prevents them from having to keep up with order forms, catalogs and money, which can be a bit too much for the younger ones.

Here are some easy fundraising ideas for small children:

Candy bars have been a popular choice of schools for years when it comes to fundraisers.  Since the candy bars are usually packaged in a single box and readily available upon payment, children don’t have the responsibility of keeping up with catalogs and order forms.

Discount cards are another great choice, and even more profitable than candy bars.  The children have the cards with them, and can provide the customer their purchase as soon as payment is made.  These cards offer excellent discounts and savings on a variety of products and services such as restaurants, auto maintenance, hair cuts and other services at local area merchants.

Teenagers and adults can usually handle catalog sales items, cookie dough and other products that are a little more involved.

Easy fundraising ideas for churches and youth groups can be any number of things.  Many youth groups offer car washes during warmer months, and usually set up in a parking lot of a restaurant or retailer in town where the traffic is heavy.

Bake sales, spaghetti suppers and raffles are other easy fundraising ideas often used by churches.  Women of the church bake cookies, pies, cakes and other goodies that may then be sold wherever they decide to set up.  Raffles are a good way to raise the needed money as well, as some of the older women of the church can piece together a beautiful hand-made quilt that may sell for a good chunk of money.  Teenagers and young adults can offer their services in the form of a ‘work day’, when they offer to landscape, mow, clear brush or do general housework for friends and family in the local community for a donation.

There are a few other easy fundraising ideas for schools that offer a unique twist to the ordinary and common ways of raising money.  A school dance to celebrate summer, Valentine’s Day or even a back to school dance to get everyone back in the groove can help you raise a substantial amount of money.  Organize a theme-based dance, decide where it will be held, the menu, etc., and charge for tickets!  Pre-teens and teenagers love music and dancing, so this is a great way to raise some of the funds you need for your cause.  Determine how much you will charge for tickets, snacks, beverages etc., and watch the kids have a great time.

For those of you who have been through this before and find fundraising to be a real chore, use your creativity and do something different!  There are literally hundreds of easy fundraising ideas that will be fun for all involved, including the one who gets stuck with the planning.

Mark South
Easy Fundraising Cards

Most schools, churches and other organizations search for easy fundraising ideas in order to raise the money they need as quickly and efficiently as possible. Truthfully, some products can be really hard to sell because of the complications involved such as choosing a product or having to wait for an order to come in. Most people want the item they paid for immediately, and would rather not have to wait. This article offers some easy fundraising tips so that your next effort will be a huge success!

Easy fundraising begins with a product that is easy to sell, and that a customer will actually use. For years, popular fundraising products have included chocolate candy bars, cookie dough, candles, popcorn, and catalog items to name a few. The problem with this is that a customer pays a hefty price for a candy bar, and it’s gone in 5 minutes. Customers like to feel that they are getting great value for their money, and easy fundraising is accomplished when you offer a product that provides real value for the cost.

Often times, raising money for your athletic group, church youth group or any organization entails a great deal of hard work – more than you thought it would when things were in the planning stage. Below are a few easy fundraising tips that will help make it all less stressful for you and those who participate.

* Is there a lack of help? If you are trying to organize everything yourself, no wonder you are stressed out. This is one of the most common reasons that raising funds for your cause becomes overwhelming. Don’t be afraid to recruit more help, and look for volunteers instead of going in circles trying to accomplish everything on your own.

* Share the work by delegating others to take care of specific tasks. This will help even out the work load, and help you relax so that you can actually enjoy what you are doing and concentrate on the reason you are doing it in the first place.

* Brainstorm! Nothing is more effective than gathering your group together and deciding how you can make your fundraiser run more smoothly. If you have a fundraiser annually, plan ahead so that next year things will be less stressful and complicated.

* Raising the funds for your group or non-profit organization should be fun; everyone should enjoy themselves and realize they are supporting their cause. If it seems that it just isn’t worth the effort and stress involved, discard your idea and look for other ways to make money that are simple and uncomplicated.

Every aspect of your efforts should be as simple as possible. With some products, there is tax to consider, shipping costs, estimated arrival time, etc. Every additional detail makes things more time consuming and confusing for you, the children or individuals selling the product, and the customer. Simplicity cannot be stressed enough when it comes to easy fundraising; a product that is available at the moment of purchase, that provides services the customer will use and includes no additional fees or transactions means easy profits.

For your next fundraiser, keep these things in mind. The less those selling the product have to keep track of, the better. The same goes for customers, who love supporting the community but want value for a good price. Discount fundraising cards offer discounts and specials on products and services people use every day of their lives, and are available as soon as they hand over their money. If you are searching for easy fundraising ideas, nothing is easier than this – or more profitable.

Mark South

Easy Fundraising Cards