JUNE 5, 2011 EASY FUNDRAISING IDEAS THAT WORK! WHAT S INSIDE: 20 fundraising ideas to help your company raise funds 10 fundraising ideas to help each individual raise funds Corporate Challenge presented by: Official Sponsors:
EASY FUNDRAISING IDEAS THAT WORK! Get your whole company involved to support the team members who are riding the Corporate Challenge and have FUN! 20 FUNDRAISING IDEAS TO HELP YOUR COMPANY RAISE FUNDS 1. Corporate Matching Let your company double or triple your impact! Ask your employer to match the funds you raise. Corporate matching is already set up in many corporations; just ask your Human Resources department for more information. 2. Voicemail Message Change your answering machine greeting and let everyone know you are riding on June 5, 2011 in support of the Heart & Stroke Foundation. Let them know you need their support in your fundraising efforts! 3. Departmental Challenge Have a friendly competition by challenging your colleagues in another department, floor or location to raise the most money OR/ funds. Winner gets bragging rights! Post the results on your companies intranet site or company newsletter! 4. Raffles at Your Office Win a free vacation day CEO or executive doing the winner s job for an hour CEO reserve parking spot for the week (The CEO or an exec would have to give his or her spot up) Win lunch with a Sr. Executive 5. Buy a Draw Ticket Hold a draw at your office, with one entry for each donation you receive. The winner receives a ½ off work. 6. Change your email Signature Using our NEW e-mail Badge Tell everyone you e-mail that you re riding this year by creating an e-mail signature badge for your work and personal e-mail to promote the event and ask for support. Provides direct link to your personal donation page Dynamically displays a progress thermometer, goal amount and achievement Here are a few examples to get you started: Please help me eliminate Heart Disease and Stroke by following the link (insert web link) and sponsoring me for the Heart&Stroke Ride for Heart on June 5, 2011. Your donations can help thousands of Canadians affected by heart disease and stroke. Support me as I ride in the Heart&Stroke Ride for Heart on June 5, 2011. (insert web link) Every 7 seconds, someone dies of heart disease & stroke. Please support me in my fundraising efforts as I ride in the Heart&Stroke Ride for Heart on June 5, 2011. Follow this link to donate (insert link).
7. WII Fit Game Day Why not host a get active game day at your office. Have everyone pay a fee to play and compete in a round robin tournament to see who is the fittest based on the WII fit program. The winner takes home a prize and some great bragging rights! Guitar hero is a popular one too! 8. Fundraise Using Facebook Extend your fundraising efforts to your network of friends on Facebook by downloading our boundless Fundraising TM for Facebook application. Make a difference and socialize all at the same time. Download today. Post a status update that includes your Ride for Heart web link and ask your friends to donate If you have teammates on facebook, post comments that help create some healthy competition Tell a story Why are you participating? Tell your friends why this is important to you and why you need their support Tell them how Make sure you include a brief explanation of how and where they can donate to you Promote Don t just use your status, message everyone you know and post on their walls Add the Ride for Heart facebook badge onto your webpage. You can do this by going to the rideforheart.ca or you can contact us for more information 9. Departmental Cake Auction Have each department provide a heart or cycling themed cake and have them display it in the morning of the auction. Auction it off in the afternoon to those departments who have pooled their money together to bid. They get to have their cake and eat it too!! Promote the auction by sending emails in the morning with pictures of the cakes and suggestive bids to create dessert heaven frenzy! 10. Jeans Day Send out a company wide e-mail offering jeans every Friday for a month for $20.00 or unlimited jeans for the month for $40.00. If you do this already for another charity, consider designating one of the days to the Heart and Stroke Foundation. 11. On-Line Challenges Team members can challenge their colleagues to pledge donations towards (climbing stairs of building, wearing red for a week, dress up in costume, serving coffee and donuts at your colleague s desk, eating something gross) etc Pie in the Face Choose 3 willing executives in the company and have all of your employee s purchase votes on-line for who they want chosen for the pie in the face. The executive with the most votes wins or you can do the same challenge with different executives willing to shave head or moustache, die hair or sport a Mohawk. 12. 50/50 Raffles Organize a 50/50 draw in your office, one of the simplest ways to fundraise! Sell each ticket for a set price, where the prize will be valued at half the amount collected from the sales. To create more buzz, an individual may purchase more than one ticket, in order to have higher chances of winning the prize! Announce the winner through e-mail or a company intranet site.
13. On-Line Silent Auction Do you know anyone that would be willing to donate items or services to raise funds for the Ride for Heart? (Tickets to sporting games, theatre tickets, concerts, premium parking spots for a month, lunch or coffee with a Sr. Executive, cottage for the weekend). Once you ve gathered your sale items it s simple. Send out an exciting email highlighting the Heart and Stroke Foundation s cause to all staff in your organization and watch the offers come in. Be sure to set strict cut off times for your auction and thank everyone for their bids. 14. Canvassing Using Our Red Hearts We will supply you with hearts to canvass donations for the Ride. Ask people in your office for a donation and write their name on the heart to post in a visible area of your office. I PUT MY HEART INTO IT FOR 15. Announce a Crazy Challenge to Your Donors Set a high fundraising goal for yourself or your team and announce your dare on your webpage to be completed once you hit your goal. i.e. dress in costume on event day, ride a decorated bicycle, etc. 16. Red Candy Grams Offer managers in the office to buy candy grams for their employees as a thank you for their hard work. Candy grams are then delivered to the employee s desk by the organizer. Proceeds from this fundraiser will go towards the teams fundraising efforts. Note: Candy to be purchased by office manager. 17. Sell Something Internally Pitch a company in your building or one you have a connection with to supply some food or drink at a discount that you can sell to your colleagues. Go through each department with a cart selling (Booster juice, Starbucks, Tim Horton s, Pizza, etc.). Perhaps you can run a bake sale? 18. Heart Healthy Pot-luck Lunch Having a heart healthy pot-luck at your workplace is a great way to gather your colleagues for a great lunch and learn about heart health. Find a few colleagues, who have a flair for cooking, decide on heart healthy recipes, set the date, invite your coworkers and you re almost done. The Heart and Stoke Foundation can provide you with health information materials for your lunch. 19. Garage Sale of Previously Loved Items This event is easy to organize, requires minimal planning and is open to everyone in the workplace. During the lunch hour or after/before work set up tables with donated books, sporting equipment, DVD s, compact discs, purses, etc. All proceeds go towards supporting the team participating in The Ride for Heart. 20. Office Jeopardy Get your senior team to be the contestants. All other staff members can submit questions related to your business e.g. Top Sales person of the year? First quarter earnings? How many years has X worked for the company? Etc Host the game in your main office lobby or lunch room and invite all staff to attend. Senior team members have to pay $5 for each question they cannot answer or answer incorrectly. Also charge staff a fee to attend ( also get to wear jeans) and maybe the company can match to total amount raised. This is fun!!
10 FUNDRAISING IDEAS TO HELP EACH INDIVIDUAL RAISE FUNDS 1. AIM HIGH! Think about who you could ask for a large donation, and ask them first. You ll be surprised at their willingness to help, and it will help raise the bar for others to follow. 2. Corporate Matching Ask your employer if they are willing to match your fundraising dollars. Many companies already have this type of program in place and all you have to do is ask! 3. Send an e-mail It s easy and effective. Complete your registration then invite everyone you know to donate to you online. The letter is done for you; just customize and insert the e-mail addresses. 4. Reach Out to Your Suppliers Send out a personal note or letter to all the suppliers and external contacts you work with asking them for their support. 5. Personal Story Tell your personal story of how you or your loved ones have been affected by heart disease and stroke. Personalize your Ride webpage and donation letter with this story. 6. Contact List Make a list of all the people you know and ask, ask and ask again for their support. 7. Ride for Heart Bracelet Wear your red Ride for Heart bracelet to show your participation in the Ride for Heart 2011. This is a great way to spark conversation and to promote the fact that you are in need of their support. 8. Fundraising Goal Set a fundraising goal. Note: use your thermometer on your webpage to track your progress towards this goal. 9. Incentive Gifts Pledge your Heart & Stroke incentive gifts back to your highest donors. 10. Awareness Wristbands to Sell Sell to friends, family and co-workers in support of your fundraising efforts. Wear one yourself as a great conversation starter about your participation or to recruit more members to your team.