Founder of The Uncultured Project with an impoverished Bangladeshi widow and her two children. Above photo and feature photo by Shawn.
For a novice fundraiser, even a raising 500 dollars can seem overwhelming. With the right mindset however, fundraising can be both easy and fun!
With volunteer tours growing in number, more and more tour operators are including fundraising minimums either within tour fees or as an additional requirement for tour participants. Learn the basics of how to raise funds for your cause, organization, or favorite volunteer program.
1. Start close to home.
The people who will inevitably be the most invested in your cause are those that know you and can see your passion.
Start with friends, family, and acquaintances. Speak to everyone you know about the cause and be specific about your needs. Don’t be afraid to ask for dollar amounts from those around you!
The best requests highlight your personal involvement and ask for specific amounts of money for specific goods. Write to your address book and don’t forget to include friends who have long since been out of touch. What better way to spread the word while getting in touch with old friends?
2. Utilize local and small businesses.
Often small businesses are happy to provide goods in exchange for getting the word out about their services. Try asking small restaurants to provide free or discounted food for a dinner and charge a small entrance fee.
Or throw a dinner party at your home and ask friends to donate potluck dishes. Getting publicity in local newspapers, company newsletters, on radio stations, etc., will introduce you to a wealth of possibilities for gaining both corporate and individual sponsorship.
Photo by Maryann
3. Find a common interest.
Though your cause might be across the ocean from your home, there are always local networks that share similar goals and are great avenues to access funding.
Is your cause education related? Tap into local high schools or universities. Is it sports related? See if teams in your area would be willing to provide sponsorship or in-kind donations. Raising money for a particular country or group? See if there are locals from that country who can mobilize their networks. Check online groups, such as MeetUp.com to find people who are passionate about the same cause.
4. Be a social butterfly.
Organize a karaoke night, pub quiz, or concert with local musicians willing to share their talent. Better yet, do a clothing or book auction with your friends. Everyone brings a few items and you can buy items back for a set donation. You refresh your wardrobe/bookshelf and recycling is good for the earth!
Make sure that any event has minimal costs to you and as many costs as possible are donated in-kind.
5. Share your talents.
What is your skill? Yoga, surfing, karate, tennis, cooking lessons? Raise money by offering to share your talent with others!
Additional Tips
Know your cause.
The easiest way to put off potential donors is to not have answers to basic questions:
Any responsible voluntourism operator or NGO should be able to answer these questions. If you aren’t sure yet where the money will go, try to be as specific as possible with friends, family, and potential donors about how you will make decisions about putting the money to work.
Find a responsible charity/NGO.
As a fundraiser it is your responsibility to make sure your donors are putting their money into a sustainable and responsible project. Consider:
Match.
Be sure to also ask donors to check with their employers. Their donations might be easily doubled with company matching plans!
Say thank you.
Be sure to acknowledge donations and follow up after your trip or once the funds are spent.
Community Connection
For an extensive list of great orgs to support or research, please reference the Organizations Page at Matador.
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13 Comments... join the discussion!
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6. Get a job?
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6. Get a job?
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Maryann, great article, excellent advice! Having seen how you and the team at PEPY have used these techniques to great (http://www.pepyride.org)success, we know you speak from experience. Thanks for the article.
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1. If you play an instrument (or if you know people who do), organize a charity concert at a local bar. The bar will be happy because you will get people there, and your friends will gladly pay a $10 – $15 cover for an excuse to get together. My friends and I did that in Osaka, Japan, and raised $1,000 for PEPY in one night. We had 4 bands, and tons of people showed up. We also did something similar in a more rural setting in Japan, including taiko groups, and raised about $2,000 there. 2. Print t-shirts and sell them for ten or fifteen dollars. Everyone loves a t-shirt! 3. Ask for any birthday or holiday gifts to be shifted towards your fundraising goal.
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Very interesting
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Really great article Maryann, and amazing work you are doing in Cambodia. With the examples you gave, I feel like you were at the fundraiser I organized to help support my volunteer work abroad. People do really want to help other in their community, you just can't be afraid to ask – that was the hardest thing for me to overcome at first. All I can do is emphasize your points: know what your cause very well, and reach out to everyone you know (especially with with a individualized touch, like a personal note in their invite to your fundraiser). Again, great post and keep on volunteering!
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I was involved with a UN agency for Refugees project where we had to come up with a fundraising idea.. I came up with wii tennis! You can read about how to throw a wii tennis party here: http://virtualtennis.wordpress.com/ for UNHCR or your own cause.
We are throwing a bigger event for the public in May which is made me a bit nervous – explaining the plight of refugees to shop keepers to get prizes etc… so we made a short video which shows us playing the game, as well as the conditions of the refugees. Maybe that would work for your project? Videos can be so easily made these days thanks to flip and imovie.
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Hi
this is sabreena from Bangladesh,in south asia ,,i have gone through all ur articles and found them interesting ,specially the ways to raise fund for doifferent causes,but i want to know is there any ways that a family can get fund for their only daughter need to have cancer treatment in India within a short span of time and thay will provide all the necessary supporting documents to prove their urgency and need .It is very emergengy to take her to India for treatment and doctors in Bangladesh declares that they cannot operate (she needs a major operation in her uterus) her in here and the post operative fascilities she requires after the operation is not possible in here.So any one reading my article can contact me if possible and can help her getting better to stay with her parents.
sabreena↵ -
Hello Sir/Madam,
How are you ,myself PAWAN SHEHRAWAT citizen of INDIA ,graduate from Rajasthan University ,2nd year student in masters degree in human rights from Indian Institute of Human Rights , 1st year student of M.S.W. [Master in social working ] from IGNOU University , Founder and National Youth President of National Human Rights Awareness Organization [ H.R.A.O. ] in INDIA .
We are working in the direction of Human Rights, Values and Development. The VISION of our organization Is – JIYO AUR JINA SIKHAO [Live and teach how to Live]. We are organizing each and every human being with positive thinking, attitude and cause on the stage of HUMANITY. We are very much inspired by U.N.O. Vision and mission. We think everyone should contribute in the direction of humanity. We have recently started a new wing –CREATIVE EYE, will deal in carrier Consultancy and tours and travels. We will train people while touring. We will contribute in building safe, aware, strong, healthy and positive society. We will not only conduct all type of adventure and educational activities but also offer Youth Exchange Programme with each state of INDIA and with friendly foreign countries. With the tremendous reach in the rural and remote areas of the country. We will plan to train them in disaster management .We will add carrier counseling classes, self consciousness, personality development, social welfare etc. We will also work with specialized agencies of the United Nations Organization. This mould young men and women into responsible citizens and provide a spring board to shape their future career. However, since large infrastructure and training requirements and funds are needed for this to be successful.
INDIA is one of the few countries in the world, today, in which the social and the religious structures, which define the nation’s identity, are intact for over 4000 years. We have just enough religions to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another. We must know and follow the religion of HUMANITY. Religion is to do right, it is to love, it is to serve, it is to think, and it is to be humble. We can live without religion and meditation, but cannot survive without human affection. That’s why we are working for Human Rights, Values and Development. So that we can learn the art of living and will help everyone to live. Our vision itself says – JIYO AUR JINA SIKHAO [Live and teach how to Live]. We are 985 youths registered in H.R.A.O. with the common cause. We will be waiting for your expert advice and directions.
Yours Truly,
PAWAN SHEHRAWAT
H.R.A.O. Team
E-mail:-hra.org@gmail.com31, PLA Complex,
Near Town Park, Hissar,
Haryana -125001
INDIA
Contact no:-+91-9215740003↵ -
Hi Pawan,
I am from Bhopal,Madhya Pradesh.
I am very impressed by the way you are working for this.Pls inform if you conduct Youth Exchange Programme in Bhopal,MP.I also want to join this programme.↵ -
hi sir i am a twenty three yearold Ghanaian who have passion to start an NGO please guide me.
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Hi friends
I am the founder member of the WORLD TROOP FOR ANIMAL(WTA).WTA work for wild life conservation in india.
My aim is to stablish WTA as a universal organisation who protect wildlife .
It required huge amount of mony . But from you I want valuable suggesion about who can give me fund for protection
of animals .
That is our aim and demand of future .
so join hand with me.with best regard .
SARTAJ ANJUM↵
