Learn more about ways to get the most of out a product fundraiser

The Top 5 Reasons to Leverage a Product Fundraiser

The considerations that must take place when starting a fundraiser can be overwhelming, but the first step is always determining what type of fundraiser you want to run. There are thousands of choices with pros and cons to each, but product fundraisers can be particularly successful in raising money for your cause. We’ll look at five benefits to running a product fundraiser.

1. Easy to organize

In contrast to fundraising events, which usually require months of planning and extra expenses like venue or catering costs, starting a product fundraiser is simple. To get started, you’ll just need to follow these steps:

  • Establish your goal and deadline
  • Choose a product fundraising partner
  • Choose a product to sell
  • Set up your physical or digital order form

Not only is the set-up easy, but selling is simple, too. No volunteer training or workshop is needed to teach someone how to sell. This is helpful for a fundraiser with a strict timeline since it requires very little planning and can be started or stopped at any time.

Running a fundraiser where your volunteers already know their roles is helpful, but they might not be needed at all in a product fundraiser. Depending on your organization, there are plenty of alternatives when it comes to selling your product. For example, you can leave a stack of order forms on the receptionist’s desk or accept orders completely online. If you’re selling products to fundraise for a school, you can give the product to the students and have them sell it.

2. Easy to market

Marketing is important for all aspects of a nonprofit, but product fundraisers are particularly easy to promote. Since they’re a tangible fundraiser, products make for great photo opportunities. Taking pictures of the items you’re selling can make nice social media posts promoting your products and fundraising goals.

Visuals are particularly influential when it comes to getting people interested in your cause. Feathr advises using compelling images to capture people’s attention as they’re scrolling through their social media feed. For example, if you’re selling food, detailed pictures of tasty snacks you’re selling can be really enticing.

Your product could also represent your organization in some way. Sell merchandise with your organization’s logo on it and supporters might be inclined to buy because they’d like to publicly show their support for your nonprofit. As an added bonus, selling something that displays your logo will make your supporters brand ambassadors. By wearing your logo, they’ll provide greater visibility for your brand.

3. Donors get something in return

Product fundraisers make it easier to raise money because people who wouldn’t normally donate to your cause might be interested in buying a product. These buyers might be incentivized by the fact that they could get something in return for giving, seeing your fundraiser as a purchase rather than a donation..

On the flip side, if your buyers are supporters of your organization, they might feel more connected to your nonprofit when they get something in return for donating. They’ll also be encouraged to give knowing that the money from their purchase is funding a good cause. No matter who the buyer is, this is an effective way to raise money because they’ll get a high return on their investment.

4. Reach a wider audience

Product fundraisers also make it easy to reach more of your supporters and wider community by selling both in person and online. Here are some ways you can advertise your nonprofit and its fundraiser outside of your organization’s immediate community of supporters:

  • Social media
  • Your website
  • Word-of-mouth
  • Flyers
  • Partnering with local businesses

There are opportunities for sales in more places than you can imagine. For example, if students are selling cookie dough to raise money for their school, they might take order forms to a parent’s office after school. Their parent’s coworkers might be interested in buying cookie dough and placing an order to support your school.

5. Flexibility in product choice

The best part about product fundraisers is that they’re fully customizable! There’s a wide variety of things you can sell and the sales timeline is completely up to you. If you have a target audience in mind as you’re organizing the fundraiser, choose a product you know they’d like.

Also, consider when you’ll be running the fundraiser. Products can be seasonal, and this can work to your advantage.

For example, ABC Fundraising suggests selling Christmas ornaments as a fundraiser for a church during the Christmas season. Members of the congregation will be interested in buying ornaments regardless of your fundraiser, but will be especially motivated by their affinity for their church. You could even get the children in the church to make ornaments as a fun Sunday morning craft and sell those ornaments for the fundraiser.

The sky’s the limit when it comes to ideas for effective product fundraisers. Choose an idea that appeals to your audience the most and customize your fundraiser to work well for your organization. No matter what idea you choose, the benefits of product fundraisers can make a huge impact on your nonprofit.