Share this
Mister Wong
Digg
Del.icio.us
Reddit
StumbleUpon
Slashdot
Furl
Yahoo
Technorati
Googlize this
Blinklist
Facebook
Wikio
Export PDF
Print
E-mail
A few years ago, when a part of a basketball booster club at a high school in Texas, we ran across this in a big way. It seems that when we went out into the community to raise funds for our team, most of the dollars had been committed earlier to the football booster club. It was frustrating dealing with this. While we understood, we still had a job to do. We had to think of creative ways to raise funds to keep our program going and to help supplement the basketball budget. The kids were depending on us! Fortunately, we were able to find creative ways to get the job done, but initially, it wasn't easy.
Perhaps you are a part of a booster club and you are faced with a similar dilemma. Don't fret, there are dollars out there but you are going to have to work extremely hard to get them. In our experiences, we found that a few things were helpful when dealing with potential donors:
- Tug on their heart strings. Yep, it's shameless, but I found myself playing the guilt card and pointing out the inequities in the process. "The football team has an easy job raising money. They start earlier, and they have a larger fan base. But by you not donating to the basketball boosters club, you are sending a message to the parents that your business doesn't think the basketball players are as important as the football players." Sometime this would work. Shameless, yes, but worth a try.
- Offer something new and unique. For us, we had t-shirts screened with a design that one of the students in the high shcool came up with. In fact, we made it a contest, and presented the winner with a $100.00 gift certificate. The design appealed to the students so when the shirts went on sale, they went fast.
- Offer concessions at all games. It amazes me how much money is lost by not offering concessions. Concessions don't have to be fancy. Typically, games kick off during the week at around 6:30. Most parents that come to the games come directly from work and have not had the time to pick up something to eat. Sam's and Costco sells chips, drinks, popcorn, candy, and the like in bulk, that can be easily marked up. When you are hungry, the smell of popcorn will have you searching it out. So, don't forget the concessions.
- Offer spirit items for sell at the game. Pom Poms, noisemakers, and others will sell at games. Make sure that before the season starts, you have them printed up. Often, you can find a sponsor, like a realtor, insurance agent, or car dealership that will gladly sponsor the imprinted product for you.
These are just a few ideas that you can use to infuse your club with cash when the times get lean. Want other ideas, well, give our friends at In-Vision Marketing a call, at 1-888-717-3277. They can help you with all of your fundraising needs. You can also visit them on the web at www.in-visionmarketing.com. Good luck!
