Spring Fundraising Idea: Set Up a “Mother’s and Father’s Day” Raffle

Spring is in full swing, and with it, a peak time for fundraising events like annual galas, golf tournaments and live auctions. Have you brainstormed ways to keep your events new and exciting?

It’s tempting to think “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Fact is, fresh ideas are the antidote to donor fatigue, no matter how successful your events have been in the past. Bringing something new to the table can supercharge attendance and revenue for almost all nonprofits.

Here’s an idea to get donors buzzing about your annual spring fundraiser: hold a Mother’s Day and Father’s Day “Winner’s Choice” Raffle!

Read on for a quick overview of how a raffle can raise tens of thousands of dollars for your cause, plus see the best raffle prizes that honor the upcoming holidays and take just minutes to reserve.

What is a “Winner’s Choice” Raffle?

What could make winning an incredible vacation in a raffle even better? The ability to choose where you go and what you do!

In a “Winner’s Choice” raffle, the organizing committee reserves a set of Experiences from the Winspire catalog. Then, the winner chooses their favorite trip from those options, and you purchase the trip. We take over from there, handling the rest of the booking and redemption process to fulfill their priceless Experience.

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Why run a raffle?

Here’s just a few reasons you might consider holding a raffle this spring:

• Raise a lot of money. One of our nonprofit clients recently used no-risk Experiences to raise an incredible $92,000 in one “Super Raffle”! They sold over 1,800 tickets at $50 each, then drew 2 happy winners. The Grand Prize winner chose the 9-night Australia & New Zealand Exploration, while another donor won the 7-night Fairmonts in Vancouver & Victoria, netting over $78,000!
• Encourage attendance for your annual charity golf tournament, walk-a-thon or auction. The best time to draw a winner is alongside another event, so use raffles as an extra boost of momentum and interest.
• Give every supporter the chance to give. No matter what type of fundraising event you have or when and where it’s held, selling raffle tickets allows your event to reach a much wider audience. And with the right mix of trips, there’s sure to be ones that spark your entire audience’s imagination.

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• Tap into peer-to-peer fundraising. Amazing raffle items sell themselves—after all, who doesn’t love a vacation?—so supporters will feel comfortable spreading the word and selling tickets to friends, family and social networks.
• Keep events fresh. Break the confines of bake sales, car washes and gift wrap sales.

Best of all, the entire catalog of Winspire trips is risk free, meaning your organization doesn’t purchase anything until the winner is declared.

How do I run a raffle?

Running a raffle with Winspire Experiences is easy to set up, requires little to no upfront cost and can raise tens of thousands of dollars for your cause!

First, select winner’s choice raffle items from the Winspire catalog that will entice a wide variety of donors. It’s entirely up to you how many and what type of prizes you’ll offer, but we’ve found that diverse, “once in a lifetime” trips are especially effective for ticket sales!

Next, set your fundraising goal, which will help you establish a ticket price and figure out how many tickets you need to sell. For example, if you want to net $12,000 profit off a $3,000 package, you can raise $15,000 by selling 150 tickets for $100 each.

Finally, reserve your Experiences. This takes less than 5 minutes and can be covered in a single meeting. A Winspire Fundraising Specialist will walk you through the entire process of selecting, reserving and redeeming your prizes. You can also seek local businesses or individuals to help underwrite some or all of the cost of your trip.

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What are some good raffle prizes for Mother’s / Father’s Day?

One fun take on the traditional raffle is dedicating the prizes to appreciating parents on their special days. These incredible prizes are sure to cater to moms and dads everywhere.

Raffle Prize Idea for Mother’s Day: It’s All About Her

Mother’s Day is fast approaching (Sunday, May 8, 2016) so now is the perfect time to reserve items that capture the attention of kids and parents alike. Show Mom how much you love and appreciate her with an Experience that pampers and delights.

Think Mom would enjoy bringing a girlfriend on any of these spa, shopping and wine trips?

If so, include these in your raffle and check out our full list of Shopping and Fashion and Spa and Relaxation packages.

Raffle Prize Idea for Father’s Day: An Unforgettable Adventure

Data suggests consumers spent about 50 percent more on Mother’s Day last year compared to Father’s Day! This year, make Dad feel extra special (Sunday, June 19) with the trip of a lifetime. Give him and a pal the gift of adventure and excitement with “bucket list” Experiences like sports championships, racing, fishing and golf.

Check out the full collection of Sports Experiences and Adventure Experiences here.

Now that you’ve reserved your Mother’s Day and Father’s Day trips, all that’s left is promoting the raffle items via flyers, webpage and email campaigns. Fortunately, Winspire makes promotion a snap, too.

You can maximize tickets sales and get donors buzzing by downloading the Winspire Raffle Guide. This comprehensive fundraising raffle kit includes easy instructions on how to run a raffle from start to finish. The kit also contains professionally designed Word templates for raffle tickets and flyers, plus promotional emails compatible with email service providers ConstantContact and MailChimp.

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