“Mom? Dad? I’ve got to do this fundraiser for my baseball team.” This might be one of your least favorite sentences in the world. Here you are, glad to be home from work, and your wonderful child has given you some more work to do in the subtle form of a fundraiser. If you and your child are lucky, the program decided to go with Flex Fundraising, which makes fundraising easier than before. If you’re unlucky and you’re stuck selling those chocolate bars for $5 a piece… we pray for you and your family. Maybe you can call up the program and see if they can switch to Flex Fundraising. Either way, the tips below will help you out.
Be Encouraging
We’re sure you know this, but kids feed off the emotion, language, and attitude of their parents. If you have a bad attitude about the whole thing, your kids are going to as well. It’s not fair that, yes, YOU and I have to be the adults in our kids’ lives, but that’s just how the show goes, I suppose. The best thing you can do that will make life easier for the whole gang involved in little Jack’s fundraiser is keeping a good attitude about it. It’ll make it go by quicker by you being more successful, and it can be fun if you allow it to be!
Use your own network
There ain’t nothing wrong with getting your friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers involved in your kid’s fundraiser. It’s somewhat of an unwritten rule in being friends with someone that, at some point, either party might ask for some charity. It’s uncomfortable to ask friends for help, especially regarding things involving cash, but I bet most of your pals would be happy to throw a couple bucks your way for the fundraiser. They will probably ask you to contribute to their kid’s fundraiser next soccer season. It’s the circle of life, essentially.
Set them up with rewards
You know what makes work fun? Being rewarded along the way. Your child might already be a little nervous about the whole thing, so giving them breaks from their hard work will help keep their spirits high. You can make them one of their favorite meals after an hour of work, or play one of their favorite games with them–anything that can help them feel positive about the experience will be incredible for them in the long run.
Help them to work smarter
The days of going door to door or standing outside of Smith’s or Kroger’s is long gone. We live in a modern age, and that age means smartphones and sharing. One of the best things you can do for your kid is to help them share their fundraiser online. Do they have an Instagram following? Put that bad boy to use by sharing the fundraiser there. Using your networks, going online and engaging with people directly will help your child learn some essential life skills. Win-win.
Appeal to the audience
You know how that one commercial made you laugh super hard or that one sad video about the puppies made you feel some emotions you haven’t felt in years? That’s because the video was able to tailor their message to YOU personally. You and your kid can do this in the fundraiser at all. Know your audience and who would be likely to donate their time and/or money to your kid’s program. Doing a tiny but of thinking and research can save you hours of work!
