Tips For a Successful Fundraiser


Get Organized

The success of a great fundraiser depends on how organized you and your group are in the beginning.

Set Realistic Goals

You are better off hitting a realistic goal than missing an unrealistic goal. Set a specific deadline and plan a thank you party. Determine how much your group would like to raise and talk to your fundraising representative at Falter Fund Raising for advice on which fundraisers would be most appropriate.

Set up Team Leaders

Ask the most responsible individuals within your group to oversee the sales of a group of workers and report back to the fundraising chairperson with updates. If you are a school, homeroom teachers are ideal for this position. This shares the group's goal with more members and provides a line of communication for reordering of items.

Pass out Promotional Materials

Pass these out to all your team leaders and sellers! The best fundraisers are the ones that are best promoted. Hang a poster in a prominent location showing your goal and where you stand at any given point during the fundraiser. Promote the fundraiser through newsletters, flyers, bulletins, and announcements.

Set up Specific Sales Locations

Call your local supermarket, Wal-Mart, Target, and library and ask if you can have a couple of days (preferably on Saturday) to sell your items.  Ask sellers to contact their churches to see if they can sell OUTSIDE after Sunday Masses and services. Sell to friends and families, and never let children sell alone door to door.  This works best with non-catalog fund raisers.

Collecting the Money and Unsold Product

The money from direct sales and catalog sales needs to be collected and recorded on a per-seller basis so the number of items sold and dollars in hand match. Ask your Falter Fund Raising representative for envelopes and tally sheets. Unsold product should be given to another top seller to move quickly. You may want to offer an incentive to them to sell it quickly.

Final Wrap Up

After the product is sold and money collected, reconcile all records. Make sure number of items sold matches the dollar amount on hand. If you have been matching each seller this should be an easy task.

Return of Unsold Cases

Ask about Falter Fund Raising's 30 day return policy.

Pay All Bills

You should pay all expenses before spending any of the money collected. After all bills are paid, the amount remaining is your net profit.