Having a well-done program for your team, organization, non-profit, school, or group is a great way to create a meaningful keepsake for members and friends to look back on over the years. A program can also provide important information for a season or year that members, friends, family, and fans can use as they cheer on the athletes, participants, or members of the organization.
But a program can also fulfill a significant role within the group itself: as a fundraiser. Let’s take a look at program fundraising ideas to help you make the most out of your program fundraiser.
Program Fundraising Ideas: Sponsorships
Sponsorships are important program fundraising ideas, because they can be very helpful for groups that utilize programs for fundraising. The potential profit is only limited by how many sponsorships they are able to secure.
Setting up Program Sponsorships
Creating a program sponsorship involves deciding a few key elements for an organization or group.
1 Program sponsorships can be defined by the level or amount of the donation to the group.
- If multiple levels of sponsorship are available, then typically the highest amounts equate to the largest or most prominent advertisement of the donating business.
- Some groups seek out sponsors for different portions of the program that come with different price thresholds, like a Roster Sponsor, a Team Photo Sponsor, or a Senior Page Sponsor.
- Other groups may structure sponsorship values based on giving the highest level of donors (“Platinum” or “Gold”) specific perks like being mentioned on multiple pages while lower levels of donations are simply thanked on a sponsorship page.
2 Sponsorships can be all one dollar amount or of any dollar amount.
- Flat donation sponsorships can also be offered so that all partnering businesses give the same dollar amount and receive the same amount of name advertisement in the program.
- Some teams, groups, non-profit organizations, or schools may have an open donation sponsorship policy. The printed program will thank all donors in the same way regardless of the dollar amount of the sponsorship.
3 Groups should decide how to approach businesses that may be potential sponsors. A uniform policy should be in place that provides all sponsorship expectations in print for businesses to consider.
Program Fundraising Ideas with Sponsorships
Funds from program sponsorship can really add up for groups that seek out multiple sponsor donations. Once the program printing costs are recouped, the rest of the sponsorship donation becomes funds for the group or organization, making it one of the best program fundraising ideas to utilize.
Sponsorship Categories
Deciding what businesses to target for sponsorships is key to making this one of the most effective program fundraising ideas a group or organization can use. Since program fundraising ideas that use sponsorships can be highly beneficial for groups, you don’t want to overlook any type of business that may want to become a sponsor for your organization, non-profit, team, or school.
Some of the types of businesses and individuals to reach out to to make this a profitable program fundraising ideas are:
- Auto shops/dealerships – Does your organization’s mission involve transportation? Reaching out to the manager of a local auto business with the potential influence that their business’s sponsorship could have on members can be effective.
- Coffee shops – Local coffee houses that are frequented by your group members may want to return the favor with a sponsorship opportunity.
- Convenience stores – Is there a local spot many members of your organization regularly patronize? Be sure to discuss that when you talk to the manager about sponsorship.
- Credit unions/banks – Gather an account of how many members of your group use this business’s services or how much business your non-profit organization does with them to bring with you to use as an opener to discuss sponsorships.
- Grocery stores – Do you buy your soccer, basketball, baseball, or football team snacks here? Reach out to the manager to let them know how much your members spend at their spot while discussing sponsorships.
- Realtors – A local real estate professional may be connected to your organization, school, or team and might jump at the chance to get their name out in front of potential clients through advertising given to sponsors in the program.
- Medical professionals – ls there a common doctor, dentist, or other medical office frequented by multiple members of your group? Reaching out to them specifically because of the relationship provides a great starting point for the sponsorship.
- Fitness centers – Athletically-minded groups should not overlook the tie-in to a sponsorship with a fitness center or other health-related business.
- Insurance offices/service providers – Individually owned businesses like insurance companies may not only provide services for some of your members already but they may also benefit from the advertising that comes with sponsorship.
- National chain retailers – Try to match up your group’s focus or activity with a business’s purpose to increase the odds of gaining them as a sponsor. Pool supply businesses are great for swim teams, non-profits that regularly provide supplies like clothing or food in their service may talk to big box store management, and schools that rely on buying books for their students might talk with management at a book retailer.
- Pet supply stores – Look for a pet store or vet that is frequented by your group’s members as a potential sponsor.
- Photographers/studios – Using one professional photographer for the program is a good way to create a connection for future program sponsorships. Some may even trade some photography services, like a sports team or non-profit volunteer group photo, for sponsorship purposes.
- Restaurants – Popular local hangouts, spots where members or their family members work or restaurants that have a past connection to a team or sport are good sponsor opportunities. If your volleyball team regularly hosts team dinners at a restaurant, consider reaching out to them for sponsorship potential.
- Sporting goods stores – Local chains and national stores are a prime opportunity for sponsorships with sports teams as well as local schools who also may use supplies purchased here as may many of their students and their families.
Don’t forget to reach out to the families or groups within your organization, school, team, or group. Many times, members or their families have a small business or a connection to a company that would love to help out with a program sponsorship.
Program Fundraising Ideas: Selling Ad Space
One of the easiest program fundraising ideas is to simply sell advertisements within your program to help raise money for your group. Advertisements can be either interspersed through the program or be contained in one section of the program dedicated to supporters of the program.
Who Does the Selling?
Any member of an organization, team, or school can be tasked with finding potential advertisers or sponsorships. A group’s leadership team will need to provide a fairly simple sign-up form and information page for members to use when soliciting advertising or sponsorships, to make this an effective program fundraising ideas.
Money collection for ads and sponsorships should have a clearly defined method of collection for members and a streamlined process for making sure that all potential advertisers or sponsors are accounted for before the program is printed.
Program Fundraising Ideas: Tips to Increase Revenue with Advertising
1 Show potential advertisers how a partnership with your program/event will benefit their business. Bring statistics of how many programs will be distributed and how many fans will potentially be viewing their business’s name and information.
2 Prepare members to discuss how community exposure at your event will benefit their business.
3 Talk with potential advertisers about the longevity of the program being created and how a keepsake that will be treasured for years will mean long-term advertising for their business.
4 Contact new businesses or companies in nearby areas to explain how partnering with your program through advertising gives them an opportunity to reach a new market, to make this one of your program fundraising ideas.
5 Find out how much an advertisement in a local paper or online publication costs and then use that to determine your program advertising costs and show businesses how they will be getting more value for their money with your program advertisement.
6 A group with a graphics-savvy group member could be asked to donate their skills to assist businesses with their ad design and mock-ups for a small fee, potentially increasing the profit of the advertising sales.
Program Fundraising Ideas: Create a Program for Your Organization
If your group is considering creating a program as one of your program fundraising ideas, it’s easy to create the program you envision with Dazzle Printing. Determine if advertising, sponsorship or both are best for your group’s needs and create the documents for members to use to reach out to businesses and individuals who might be interested.
Decide on the layout of your program and create a fun, personalized cover for your program with a professional if needed. Choose the best binding for your program to show off your group as well as your advertisers and sponsors so that fans can keep the program as a keepsake. Then send off your program to be printed using your advertising and/or sponsorship funding and get ready to sell them to increase the revenue for your group.
When you follow these program fundraising ideas, we’re sure it will benefit your organization.
