Easy church fundraising sounds like an impossible feat, doesn’t it? Preparing for a fundraiser can be overwhelming to say the least, especially if you are the one left with the responsibility of organizing it all. If you are looking for easy church fundraising ideas, there are many things you can do to make it all run a little more efficiently. You want a great item that is easy to sell, affordable for most peoples budgets and offers a great value for their money.
In order to make things easy, church fundraising items should probably be limited to products that do not require shipping and other extra costs. The less steps involved, the easier things will be for everyone who participates in the fundraiser, from organization down to the ones who are actually doing the selling. All too often, raising money for a new church van, a basketball goal or trip for the youth group can become complicated and overwhelming, so keep things simple!
Here are a few easy church fundraising ideas:
1. Have a bake sale on the parking lot of a local grocery store or restaurant. Most church memberships include lots of women (and many men) who are great at making cookies, brownies, pies and cakes. The ingredients cost very little for most of these items, and you can make some extra cash for your cause.
2. Host a fundraising benefit at your church and serve spaghetti, hamburgers, hot dogs and all the extras. The ingredients are affordable, the recipes are easy to make, and you can put a little more away for the cause.
3. Offer services! If you have a number of teens or young adults involved in the fundraiser, have them offer to mow yards, trim hedges, clear away brush or anything else other members of the church need done for a donation.
4. Sell products that you can offer to your customers on the spot, products that are really useful. For truly easy church fundraising, nothing beats discount cards loaded with offers from local and national merchants that the customer already uses! Consumers love getting the item they paid for instantly, especially something that allows them to save more than they originally spent over the course of a year.
The economy is not in the best shape recently, and everyone loves to save money; perceived value is also essential if you want your fundraiser to be successful. Most neighbors and other citizens in your local community are glad to support the church, but no one wants to spend more than they feel is within their budget. Offering discount cards is a no brainer for easy church fundraising – the value is exceptional, the product is affordable, and local merchants are supported in the efforts as well.
Easy church fundraising starts with efficient planning. You need to determine how many in your group will be selling, how much money you need, and which products or services will allow you to collect the funds you need quickly, with little fuss or confusion. Also, consider product costs and how much you will make. For example, if you need to raise $1,000, what sounds easiest – selling 200 discount cards or approximately 650 candy bars at $1.50 each?
Keep these things in mind the next time you need to raise money for your church or youth group; try to keep things simple and streamlined. With proper planning, easy church fundraising really is just that – easy! When you see just how simple it can be to raise money quickly, you will find that you don’t dread the next fundraiser nearly as much.
Mark South
Easy Fundraising Cards