Fundraising ideas

Instead of birthday gifts, ask friends and family to make a donation to your nonprofit cause!

Givebutter’s fundraising pages make it easy to share your story, upload photos and videos, and let supporters leave comments as they give.

Reach out to local businesses and ask them to donate a small number of products that you can bundle together and offer donors online. 

To attract more partnerships from businesses, create a sponsorship proposal that emphasizes the benefits for them, like free publicity and marketing opportunities.  

Offer supporters the chance to name a bench, tree, sculpture, or pathway in recognition of their gift.

Create custom labels on your donation form for different naming tiers (e.g., $100 = named brick in a sidewalk).

Build relationships with local businesses and major donors that can offer matching donations to feature during your next campaign.

Matching gifts create an enormous incentive for supporters who understand that they can automatically double (or even triple or quadruple!) their impact for your cause.

Create a spooky experience and raise funds by encouraging brave participants to enter—if they dare. Accept payments on the spot with scan-to-donate, Venmo, and more convenient options. 

Throw a big annual holiday party to finish the year in style. Make this a VIP event and raise funds through ticket sales or partner up with sponsors to help offset costs and reach more supporters.

With Givebutter you can create unlimited custom event ticket types—allowing you to create fun VIP packages to offer to your partygoers.

Auction off student art projects online, in person, or both! Add photos and descriptions of each masterpiece using auction software for easy bidding and sharing.

Reach out to local chefs to volunteer to host a class or series for cooking easy weeknight dinners. To make this event virtual, livestream the class(es) so that donors can watch and cook along from home!

Host a coffee morning and invite your community members to join you for tea or coffee, cake, and a warm conversation. Ask a local coffee shop to sponsor the event or donate a percentage of the morning’s profits to your cause. 

Rally supporters for your cause with a “strike out” event. Choose baseball, softball, or bowling, then add a fundraising page, sell tickets, and include a themed auction to boost donations.

Give the traditional silent auction a dance-themed twist by selling off items, vouchers, and experiences that your dancer community would love. Make this part of a gala event and sell tickets to enter for even more fundraising opportunities.

Channel your negative feelings about cancer into positive impact with a major fundraiser for your nonprofit. Whether you host a live event or launch a year-long campaign, this bold approach is a powerful way to rally support for your cause.

Design and sell pride-themed merchandise such as t-shirts, buttons, stickers, and flags. To drum up excitement, create a custom donation form, event, or fundraising page that includes images of the available items.

If you know your stuff, set up a golf advice clinic where new and would-be golfers can come along and ask questions. Host this at your club, or invite an expert or celebrity to come in for the day. 

Charge a registration fee for a series of educational workshops or panel discussions on topics such as gender identity, allyship, and queer history.

Spread the word and follow up with attendees using free email marketing software.

Throw a themed costume party to match the season or holiday and award prizes for the best costumes! Sell tickets to your fundraising event online and partner with local sponsors to offset costs and spread the word.

Gather everyone around the practice green and sell tickets for golfers to putt the ball as far as they can. The winner is the participant that gets their ball closest to the hole.

Host a creative candle building workshop for your team and their family. You’ll raise money, and your guests get to take home their very own candle! 

Introduce the wider community to your club or group by hosting a themed culture day. Offer workshops, food, and activities in exchange for small donations using easy fundraising event tools like ticketing and mobile payment options.  

Turn kids’ finger paintings and drawings into custom calendars—or transform them into keepsakes like photo books, mugs, or t-shirts. Sell the merch using a fun, eye-catching auction or fundraising page.

Challenge your congregation to reach your fundraising goal by pledging that your pastor or ministry leader will sleep on the roof if you hit it—or until you do!

Embed a donation form on your website with a live goal bar, so your community members can see just how close you are to hitting that target.

Celebrate Pi Day on March 14th by inviting your community to contribute to your cause. Set the suggested donation amount at $3.14, $31.40, or $314.00, but let supporters know that any amount adds up to something great.

Ask supporters to wear their silliest or spookiest Halloween costumes during this fun run. Use team or peer-to-peer fundraising to help participants set a donation goal and spread the word. At the end, award special prizes to the race winners, the teams or individuals who raised the most, and the best costumes!