Out-of-the-Box Fundraising: 5 Creative Ideas That Work

In the nonprofit space, there are so many tried and true fundraising ideas. From walkathons to auctions to galas, charitable organizations of all types find success with these methods year after year.

However, sometimes you need to switch up your fundraising strategy to reinvigorate your donors and make the process fresh and exciting for your team. In this guide, we’ll introduce you to five creative fundraising ideas that are sure to engage your community.

1. Discount Card Fundraiser

A discount card fundraiser involves assembling and selling physical cards that offer your supporters discounts to local businesses. Typically, these cards feature 15-20 local merchants and sell for $10-$20.

As ABC Fundraising’s discount card fundraiser guide explains, these fundraisers are “excellent ways for merchants, restaurants, and stores in your community to support your group and in turn for the community members to support those businesses that support you.” A unique spin on a proceeds night or coupon book fundraiser, discount card fundraisers are a win-win-win situation for local businesses, your supporters, and your organization.

To maximize the success of your discount card fundraiser, personalize the discounts you offer based on the interests of your supporter base. Consider surveying them to see which businesses they would like to unlock discounts to. Then, you can work with a discount card fundraising provider to create the cards and start selling them to your community members.

2. DIY Fundraising Kits

Let your supporters take the lead by offering DIY fundraising kits. Have your volunteers assemble the kits with materials and instructions that allow your community members to host their own fundraising events or activities on behalf of your organization.

Potential fundraising kit ideas include:

• Bake sale. Give your supporters everything they need to run a successful bake sale, including recipes, baking supplies, signs, and of course, cookie dough.

• Crafting. Let your community members show their creative sides with DIY fundraising kits for hosting jewelry-making, painting, or knitting events.

• Fitness challenge. Empower your supporters to host their own fitness challenges or events, such as a step challenge, yoga class, or 5K. You may include hosting instructions, promotional materials, and branded merchandise for participants.

• Cooking class. Transform your community members into chefs by creating kits filled with ingredients, recipes, and cooking utensils for a virtual or in-person cooking class.
• Gardening. Your supporters with a green thumb will be thrilled to host a plant sale or gardening event. Supply them with seeds, soil, flower bulbs, pots, and gardening tools.

To source these items for your kits, try to work with local businesses or current donors who are willing to contribute in-kind donations. For instance, a local bakery may contribute baking supplies for a bake sale kit whereas a donor who owns a yoga studio may provide certificates that grant your supporters access to their space to host a class.

3. Escape Room Fundraiser

Partner with a local escape room venue to offer a thrilling fundraising event for your community. Work with the venue to establish a percentage of proceeds that will go to your organization from the event’s ticket sales. Then, your supporters can enjoy working together to exit the escape room and support your cause at the same time.

To promote the fundraiser and engage younger supporters, tease the event on social media. You may ask the venue for photos or footage of the escape rooms to give your supporters a sneak peek of what they can expect. That way, you can entice your community members to sign up and promote the charitable work of the escape room venue, allowing for a mutually beneficial partnership with the business.

4. Themed Auction

While auctions fall under the category of traditional (and successful!) fundraising events, you can make yours stand out by adding a theme that relates to your organization. For inspiration, check out these potential themes your nonprofit can use:

• Art. Museums and cultural organizations may opt for an art-themed auction in which they sell artwork donated by local artists and supporters.

• Animals. Animal shelters and conservation organizations can host an animal-themed auction to engage families and promote their causes. Auction items may include a basket of pet supplies, tickets to the local zoo, and animal print clothing items.

• Taste of your city. To keep the focus on their home cities, organizations that support local communities or infrastructure may host an auction that features gift cards, recipe books, and cooking supplies from local chefs and restaurants. For example, if your organization is based in Seattle, you can call the event “Taste of Seattle” and put the spotlight on Seattle’s food scene.
• Family fun. Children’s organizations can host family fun-themed auctions with items like amusement park tickets, movie passes, and vacation bundles.

Streamline your themed auction with a dedicated software solution. The right auction software can help you keep track of your item inventory, enable mobile bidding, sell tickets, manage volunteers, and communicate with attendees.

5. Letter Writing Campaign

Ask supporters to write letters to their friends and family members requesting donations on behalf of your organization. A letter writing campaign gets your community involved in the fundraising process and leads to more personalized appeals.

To ensure your supporters create well-rounded letters, Double the Donation’s fundraising letters guide recommends following these steps:

1. Use the recipient’s preferred name. Since your supporters personally know the recipients of their fundraising letters, it should be easy for them to address them by name.
2. Incorporate storytelling. Have your supporters add a personal story that explains why they support your nonprofit. For instance, one of your avid volunteers may describe their first time working one-on-one with your beneficiaries and how that experience shaped their worldview.
3. Add compelling visuals. Include your logo to build brand awareness, and incorporate any photos of your supporters in action, whether it’s a shot of them at your latest fundraising event or a picture of them in front of your headquarters.
4. Emphasize impact. Remind your supporters to be specific about the impact different-sized donations will have on your nonprofit. You may provide examples of typical dollar amounts and their associated effects that your supporters can add to their letters. For instance, a $100 donation may allow your animal shelter to restock its pet food supply for the week.
5. Include a call to action. Your supporters should end their letters with an encouraging call to action that asks recipients to donate. Have them include a link to your donation page, or for physical letters, a QR code that directs recipients to your website.

A letter writing campaign is a great way to leverage existing connections your supporters have to build relationships with potential donors more quickly.

Think outside the box for your next fundraising campaign by incorporating one or more of these ideas into your strategy. Remember to survey your supporters afterward to get their feedback and potentially source even more unique fundraising ideas.