Online Fundraisers | Answers to Common Questions

Answers to the most common online store questions.

You're missing out on additional income potential if online fundraisers aren't crucial to your brochure sales strategy. As more people continue to adapt to the ever-improving technology, online selling is now considered by many to be an essential component of school fundraising. Successful groups can get more students to sell from their brochures and online. They emphasize showing the brochure to their local friends and family and then contacting others online.

As more schools embrace online selling, we inevitably end up getting questions. Here are answers to common online store fundraiser questions.

Is There a Simple Way to Make Online Fundraisers Work?

Family members used to have to make a phone call and direct people to the online store to purchase on the student's behalf. While this is still a viable method, there are more straightforward methods.

Most school fundraising companies offering an online store option invite parents to register on the website. Each school has its access code. Once registered, parents can click a button and send personalized emails to friends and family directly. This is a much faster and easier way to reach more people.

Can Brochure Items be Purchased Online?

This is probably the most common question that we get. Many people think the same items in their brochure can also be purchased online. Or, people mistakenly assume that online store items can be ordered through the brochure order form.

The best way to address this is to inform people that the items in the brochure versus what's found online are entirely independent. Therefore brochure orders cannot be made online and vice versa. Therefore they need to be handled separately.

With that said, we know of one exception to this. When doing a Charleston Wrap fundraiser, the customer has an additional option with certain items in their brochure. They can order these items through the brochure or go online, customize them, and then place the order. Even this way, online ordering is still completely separate from the brochure order form.

Do Online Sales Count towards Prizes?

The short answer is yes. However, to receive prize credit, most companies require that the following things are in place first:

1. The student must be registered.
2. The buyer must assign credit to the student.

Some company stores allow buyers to select a 'support the school' option instead.

What About the Online Shipping Cost?

Like most other online sales transactions, the buyer pays for the shipping at checkout. However, many companies offer free shipping if customers order over a certain dollar amount.

Some companies now offer a 'ship to school' option for online ordering. Instead of shipping to their home or business, customers can avoid the shipping cost altogether by having their items delivered to the school along with the rest of the fundraising merchandise. People who choose this method should receive a delivery notice.

How Do We Promote Our Online Store?

There are many ways that you can promote your online store. Here are just a few ideas:

1. Leverage social media by providing a link to your online store on your social media pages.
2. Remember that your online store and school code information are in your parent's letter.
3. Place posters in high-traffic areas, like the front office, cafeteria, and gym.
4. Announce the store at your next open house or parent night meeting.

See our brochure fundraisers.

Author Bio

Clay Boggess has been designing fundraising programs for schools and various nonprofit organizations throughout the US since 1999. He’s helped administrators, teachers, and outside support entities such as PTAs and PTOs raise millions of dollars. Clay is an owner and partner at Big Fundraising Ideas.