How Current Results Help Future Fundraisers

Learn what sales information you need to start tracking.

Taking the time to analyze your results is crucial because it can help improve future fundraisers. You know how much money you raised, but do you understand why you achieved that number? Which items sold better? How many students reached their fundraising goal? What were the age groups of your better-performing sellers? Did some grade levels sell more than others?

Being able to answer some of these questions can help you better prepare for your next fundraiser. For example, if you know which items sold well, you may want to offer a brochure that offers more of those types of items next time. You may want to revise your prize program if several students fail to reach their sales goal.

How can you get your older students to sell more? Perhaps you may want to think of some ways to motivate them better. Making minor improvements can significantly impact your sales results; therefore, understanding how you achieved your results can help you in the future. So take the time to review your sales reports.

We either email our schools their sales report electronically once their order forms have been processed, or they receive a physical copy with their delivery. Reports usually include the following information that can be useful:

How did individual sellers perform?

• Total items sold by each seller
• Average retail/seller
• Average items sold/seller
• Total number of sellers

Which grade levels sold the most?

• Sales are broken down by teacher and grade level
• Total money brought in by class

Which brochure items sold the best?

• How much of each item was sold
• Total profit made off of each item type

This information can also be helpful for practical reasons because:

• You will be able to refer to it if a seller or parent of a seller has a question about their order
• You can use it to present special awards or prizes to top-performing students
• Having a record of your sales is essential for documentation purposes if you are ever audited

It has been said that history has a habit of repeating itself unless something is done to alter its course. So, take the time to review your results and be prepared to make the necessary changes to make your next sale even better.

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.