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All fundraising ideas
Creative fundraising ideas
While bake sales and car washes are tried-and-true strategies for raising funds, it’s good to mix things up and keep your supporters on their toes with innovative fundraising ideas, too. To get inspired, check out these unique fundraiser ideas that offer a twist on traditional events and challenges—either by flipping them entirely on their head or introducing new and exciting themes.
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Battle of the food trucks
Host a showdown between some of your favorite food trucks. Ask each truck to donate a percentage of sales towards your good cause, and award a fun prize to the truck that makes the most sales that day.
Partnering with food trucks is a great way to reach your fundraising target. Discover how to secure corporate sponsorships.
Partnering with food trucks is a great way to reach your fundraising target. Discover how to secure corporate sponsorships.
Cost:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Events
Adopt-a-room
Encourage donors to sponsor specific furniture peices and appliances so they can see how their contributions directly support families in need. The easiest way to do this is to set up custom labels for different donation amounts on your donation form that correspond with the items you need. For example, “$25 provides a toaster,” “$50 provides a dinnerware set,” and so on.
Cost:
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Impact:
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Donation forms
Fundraising page
Yard raking
Set up a yard raking service in exchange for donations toward your good cause.
Follow best practices for volunteer recruitment to build a loyal community of supporters ready to pitch in for yardwork and more.
Follow best practices for volunteer recruitment to build a loyal community of supporters ready to pitch in for yardwork and more.
Cost:
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2
Impact:
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Inspiration
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Donation forms
Auctions
Pool party
Charge an entry fee for access to a fun day in the sun—think pool floats, squirt guns, and water balloons!
To make this fundraising event even more of a hit, sell summery snacks and drinks, too. Don’t forget the sunscreen!
To make this fundraising event even more of a hit, sell summery snacks and drinks, too. Don’t forget the sunscreen!
Cost:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Donation forms
Pool volleyball tournament
Turn your community pool into a sports arena with a pool volleyball tournament. To make this a high-value event, charge teams an entry fee and encourage them to raise sponsorship through their team fundraising pages.
Cost:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Peer-to-peer
Teacher spelling bee
Put your teachers and school admins in the spelling spotlight. Ask for an entry fee and charge contestants for “help” if their skills are rusty (like buying an “ask-the-audience” pass!).
To make this event virtual or hybrid, livestream it from your event page for attendees to watch from home.
To make this event virtual or hybrid, livestream it from your event page for attendees to watch from home.
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
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Inspiration
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Events
Staff vs. students
Organize an afternoon of relay races, obstacle courses, and brain teasers at your school and challenge teachers to partake. Be sure to create a fun and engaging event page where attendees can easily purchase tickets!
Cost:
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Effort:
3
Impact:
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Inspiration
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Multicultural fair
Showcase dishes and traditions from around the globe and celebrate the diversity of your community with a multicultural fair fundraiser. Sell tickets and set up food, drinks, and gift booths for attendees to enjoy.
Cost:
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3
Impact:
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Inspiration
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Hot chocolate stall
Set up a hot chocolate or coffee stand and sell hot drinks to warm up your community! Have coffee, hot chocolate, tea, and plenty of syrups and toppings that they can add for an extra fee. Don’t forget marshmallows!
Make it easy for supporters to pay for their drinks as you make them with scan-to-donate, Venmo, and other seamless payment options.
Make it easy for supporters to pay for their drinks as you make them with scan-to-donate, Venmo, and other seamless payment options.
Cost:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Open mic night
Invite community members to perform music, poetry, or comedy for a good cause. Ask audience members to make a small donation and offer snacks to raise more funds using easy in-person mobile payments like Tap to Pay and scan-to-donate.
Cost:
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Culture day
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.
Cost:
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Donation forms
Drag bingo
Sell bingo cards for a night of drag entertainment and competition! Winners receive donated prizes. To raise even more at this memorable fundraising event, offer drink specials and sell eye-catching merch.
Cost:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Pet therapy
Invite local animal shelters to bring adoptable dogs and cats to campus during midterms or finals to reduce student stress and raise money for a good cause.
Charge an entry fee and sell inexpensive extras like dog and cat treats. Be sure to offer multiple ways to purchase treats in-person like scan-to-donate and Venmo!
Charge an entry fee and sell inexpensive extras like dog and cat treats. Be sure to offer multiple ways to purchase treats in-person like scan-to-donate and Venmo!
Cost:
1
Effort:
2
Impact:
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Inspiration
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Donation matching
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.
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.
Cost:
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Inspiration
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Fundraising page
International Women's Day fundraiser
Highlight the power, strength, and talent of women in your community today and throughout history with a special fundraising event.
Whether it’s in-person, virtual, or hybrid, raise more and stress less with easy online registration, mobile app check-ins, and live display
Whether it’s in-person, virtual, or hybrid, raise more and stress less with easy online registration, mobile app check-ins, and live display
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Auctions
Donation forms
Events
Fundraising page
Peer-to-peer
Ski-a-thon
Swap a traditional walk-a-thon for a wintry ski-a-thon. Invite supporters to raise funds from friends and family members leading up to the big day through peer-to-peer fundraising, and watch your leaderboard update in real time to reflect who’s raised the most!
Cost:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Peer-to-peer
Pride flag decoration party
Charge attendees a small fee to attend this crafty gathering and then sell or auction off your creations at an upcoming event.
Make the silent auction process as smooth as possible with mobile bidding tools that enable supporters to participate right from their phones.
Make the silent auction process as smooth as possible with mobile bidding tools that enable supporters to participate right from their phones.
Cost:
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2
Impact:
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Inspiration
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Auctions
Donation forms
Maze for a cause
If you don’t have corn maze capabilities, find a large outdoor space where you can build a maze from hay bales!
Charge an entrance fee to walk the maze, and make transactions easy with scan-to-donate and Tap to Pay options.
Charge an entrance fee to walk the maze, and make transactions easy with scan-to-donate and Tap to Pay options.
Cost:
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Effort:
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Impact:
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Inspiration
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Events
Donation forms
Sponge toss
For this fundraising event, charge a small fee per soggy sponge and let students throw them at each other outside during a pep rally or other event. For easy participation, offer scan-to-donate and accept multiple payment methods like Apple Pay, Venmo, and more.
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Sledding course
Embrace the winter wonderland and assemble your very own sledding course for all to enjoy. Encourage participants to bring their own sleds and consider contributing to your cause in exchange for a thrilling ride. Simplify donations with scan-to-donate and raise additional funds by selling cozy delights like hot chocolate or soup.
Cost:
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Inspiration
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Donation forms
Spring cleaning
Rally volunteers together for a spring cleaning of your community space or a street in your neighborhood. Reach out to local businesses to sponsor the event and offer supplies. Then, invite donations from your local community with scan-to-donate signage as you work!
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Fundraising page
The guessing game
At your next event, fill a jar with candy and, for a small fee, invite people to guess how many pieces are in the jar. The closest guess wins all the candy!
Use scan-to-donate to send guessers directly to your donation page for easy on-the-spot giving. Print the QR code onto a poster, or display it on a tablet or screen on your stand.
Use scan-to-donate to send guessers directly to your donation page for easy on-the-spot giving. Print the QR code onto a poster, or display it on a tablet or screen on your stand.
Cost:
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Inspiration
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Donation forms
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Frequently asked questions
How can I be creative in fundraising?
Creativity in fundraising means thinking outside the box and finding unique ways to entice donors. Try hosting themed events, leveraging social media challenges, or tapping into the specific interests of your local community or audience. If you offer a spin on some classic, easy fundraising ideas, your supporters will surely love it, and you’ll be closer to your fundraising goal.
Why are unusual fundraising ideas important?
Alternative fundraising ideas keep donors engaged and active. They generate excitement around your cause with existing supporters and can even bring in new ones—especially with peer-to-peer fundraising!
How do I get supporters excited about a different fundraising idea?
If your supporters are used to the same predictable ways of raising money for your cause, new, creative ideas for fundraising might be an adjustment. To help get your audience on board, partner with local businesses that can boost your fundraising efforts, help spread the word, and even offer fun prizes for winners.
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