Determine your starting point and end goals, then build around them. For instance, if you’re resource-constrained, work on ideas that require less effort. Or, if you’ve got time but a limited budget, fundraising ideas with low up-front costs are a good place to start. If community engagement and growing your supporter base are bigger priorities over near-term fundraising, focus on bringing people together for something that’s fun and can include friends.

Consider the people you are targeting and ask yourself what events or activities might appeal to them. For example, an activity-based fundraiser like a hike-a-thon might attract younger generations. Be sure to ask for input from your team, including volunteers—you might be surprised by the creative suggestions that come up when you get everyone involved.

Our marketing director, Ron, likes to think of the brainstorming process as a matrix: [fundraising event type] × [theme]. Imagine you want to use knitting as the theme. Then, think of the different types of fundraising events you might create. Perhaps you could organise a peer-to-peer knit-a-thon, an auction of handmade knitted items, a sale of knitted products and knitting supplies (you could partner up with a local yarn producer!), or raffle off a knitting-themed basket that includes a knitting class and supplies. Of course, not everything you come up with will be a good idea, but Ron’s approach is a helpful way to approach the process.

Try out different types of fundraising events to see which ones generate the most interest and support. Success can often be found in mixing and matching fundraising campaign types in unconventional ways (such as combining a knit-a-thon with an auction, as in our ideas below).

Based on the results, choose the ideas that show the most promise. Remember that a good idea may not be 100% there yet, so be sure to look for nuggets of insight within not-so-successful events to better understand what aspects did and didn’t work.

Another way to expand on a nearly-there fundraising strategy is to carry out some informal market research. Reach out to a handful of your supporters and ask why they did or did not take part. If they did participate, ask what they liked; if they didn’t, ask how you could improve. Then, incorporate those findings into your next fundraiser.

The thing to hold on to is that your cause is a good one and your organisation is making a meaningful impact. People have responded before, and they will again. So, as Dory from Pixar’s Finding Nemo urged herself and others, just keep swimming!

Younger generations continue to embrace all things handmade. Participants can raise funds based on the number of hours (or minutes) they create. You can then offer up the handmade items in an auction benefitting your cause! This fundraiser combines two powerful campaign types that have historically had success with all age groups. The fact that it’s also a peer-to-peer fundraiser gives it the potential to extend your organisation’s reach.

While this idea doesn’t seem so outside the box, it was for one of our customers! They had hosted an annual golf tournament benefitting their cause for years. While it was successful, they spent a lot of time dealing with caterers, the venue, and organising all the elements. Additionally, they felt the tournament was so specific that it limited awareness-building and made it harder to attract new supporters and potential donors. By speaking with other charities and reviewing past successes, they determined that a hybrid raffle (combining online and in-person elements) was the way to go. They went big with their prize (a brand-new pick-up truck!) and are already well on their way to matching the funds raised by their golf event.