Why Successful Fundraisers Need Good Sponsors

Why your group's success is directly dependent on the sponsor.

What's more important, the sales brochure or the sponsor? Some may even say that the prize program determines successful fundraisers.

Many things contribute to a successful sale. However, one thing that is often overlooked is the sponsor's impact. Good sponsors not only take charge and provide strong leadership; they understand the value of utilizing sales tools to help them manage their campaigns. The ability to effectively lead their organization to strive towards its goal is paramount.

Most organizations fall short because sponsors don't utilize the resources that are available to them. You can have the best brochure and prize program in the world, but if you don't carry out your plan, you won't succeed.

Successful Sponsor Requirements

When working with a sponsor, we attempt to stress the following:

• Establish a goal and purpose.
• Plan for an organized fundraiser kickoff.
• Keep students focused on the goal.

Preparing for a Successful Fundraiser

The first thing that we ask sponsors to complete is our presale information form. The form's primary purpose is to get the sponsor to understand how much each student needs to sell to reach their goal. For students to succeed, they need to know what's expected of them. This information must be communicated at the kickoff meeting and broken down into smaller periodic goals. We provide a tracking tool to help smaller group sponsors monitor this.

The Importance of the Fundraising Kickoff

Probably the most essential thing sponsors can do is plan an organized and inspirational kickoff meeting. This is foundational and allows sponsors to make their case to their students. Don't expect your students to go out and sell. It doesn't matter how motivated you think they are. You'll have to work to convince them, just like they'll need to put effort into selling.

However, the kickoff is only the beginning. What sponsors do from when the sale starts to the end can make a big difference. We also recommend adding extra incentives to inspire students to maximize their selling efforts. Some ideas include:

• Prize Drawing Incentive Game
• Grand Prize Drawing
• Money Incentive Game

How are you going to prepare to help your students succeed?

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.