Author: Austin Tarvin

Are you currently stuck doing a fundraiser? I don’t think there’s anyone in this world who likes to fundraise. The beginning idea of it is fun (pun intended)–you have big hopes and dreams of all the cash you’ll be bringing in for your group. Then a couple days roll by, you find yourself NOT bringing in as much as you thought, and suddenly you find your enthusiasm quickly getting killed by the doors slammed in your face.

Trust me, we’ve all been there. 

There are tools out there that will alleviate your fundraising pains this year. Thanks to improvements and technologies and some innovative ideas, fundraising is getting easier than ever and bringing in more cash than ever. 

Below are your top 5 tips on improving your fundraising game!

• Check out Flex Fundraising for your fundraising needs

The best way you can solve all of your fundraising problems is to simply switch to a company that knows fundraising better than anyone else! Flex Fundraising is the new and innovative service that makes fundraising easier than ever. You’ll earn more, keep more, and do less than you ever have. 

I would highly suggest this option if you’re sick of getting little return for all the work you and your teammates are putting in. Flex gives you the flexibility to sell whatever you want and not be limited to what you can and can’t take. Cash donations? Perfect. Swag? Got it. A thousand homemade chocolate chip cookies that you want donors to enjoy? For sure.

Plus, they’ve figured out how to get you your biggest return without needing to leave the house or stand awkwardly in front of a grocery store peddling those awful chocolate bars for $5 each. 

Partnering with Flex Fundraising is free, simple, and will get you the most money you’ve yet to raise. Plus, it’ll make following the next four steps much easier. 

• Make a SMART goal and stick with it  

You know SMART goals, right? Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and with a time frame. Setting a goal like this will give you a clear vision of what you want to do. Create a goal as a unit that will encourage teammates to work hard but not feel like the task is too daunting to realistically reach. 

The nice thing about fundraising is that the massive number you’ll set as your overall goal can easily be broken down to give everyone a realistic amount of money to raise. Each teammate can have a small goal to raise a couple hundred dollars, which will naturally contribute to the whole.

Check out Forbes’ article on why athletes that succeed are those who use SMART goals. 

• Ditch the door to door method–use that smart phone

Door to door may be the oldest technique when it comes to raising money. Not many people want to be disturbed in their own home from some kid going door to door asking if they want to buy a $20 coupon book. It takes a ton of time, it’s hard to track where everyone in your team has been, and it has the worst ROI. 

Instead, use that smart phone of yours and send out some texts about the fundraiser. Texting or emailing allows people the flexibility to donate or not without the added stress that comes from donations. I believe that people are more understanding this way as it feels less invasive. Teammates can text their friends, coworkers, neighbors, share on facebook pages, etc. 

• Have a cash option 

Do you remember the last time you gave that kid at your door $20 for that coupon book? You may think that they received most if not all of your generous donation, but in reality, only $10 made it back to the school. Plus, that coupon book is now a chore to the donor, and they feel like they have to use it to get their money’s worth. It’s a whole thing. 

Having an option to simply donate cash is a great way to allow people to contribute totally to the school, which might be the only thing they want. 

This adds some greater flexibility as well, allowing donors to name the price they want to donate. Some may reach well above what you would ask for in a set amount, which is a win for everybody! 

• Have a reward during and after the fundraiser 

No matter what age group you’re working with, it’s always a good idea to have incentives and rewards during the journey. This will help with burnout and keep people from forgetting about the fundraiser altogether! 

When I was a kid doing a fundraiser, we were told that if we raised a certain amount of money over the weekend, we wouldn’t have to do conditioning for a couple days. That was incredible motivation to a bunch of kids who don’t want to do sprints after practice. We hit our goal with no problem. 

Incentives can be wide ranging. You can skip out on conditioning, have people enter for a raffle, let your teammates throw a pie in your face, etc. Little rewards go a long way and keep people interested in the fundraiser. 

Use these tips to get the most out of your future fundraisers, and be sure to use Flex Fundraising for your fundraising needs! 

A high school football coach has dozens of things to worry about throughout the year. Before the Friday night lights illuminate up the brilliant stadiums filled with thousands of excited fans, the school and its coaches need to put in a great amount of work to make those games happen. 

 

Along with getting a group of teenagers ready for the big game, the head coach needs to get the players in weight training and conditioning, along with watching film on their future opponents, coming up with unique strategies on how to counter their opponent’s strengths and attack their weaknesses. Head coaches need to strategize, plan, hire, and train, all while excelling in their own careers. 

 

It’s incredible that anything gets done with this sort of schedule, and even more incredible that Perry Football was able to increase their fundraising profits by 40% this year by switching to the up-and-coming Flex Fundraising fundraising platform. 

 

The last thing a head coach wants to worry about is fundraising for their team. The idea of coordinating a fundraiser for his fellow coaches and players to participate in is one more thing at the bottom of the “To-Do” list and ends up being a hassle to execute. 

 

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when people think about fundraising? Selling chocolates in front of grocery stores, selling coupon books door to door–things no student athlete wants to spend their precious weekends participating in. 

 

Flex Fundraising was created based on these issues, and with its new and innovative system of fundraising, receiving donations has never been easier and more exciting. 

 

Located in the heart of Gilbert, Arizona is Perry High School. Head coach Preseton Jones leads a successful football program, bringing the team to the state championship in 2017 and 2018. His overall record is 90-57, an incredible feat in the competitive environment of Arizona high school football. 

 

Coach Jones made the decision to go with Flex Fundraising for his fundraising needs in the 2021 season. Managing a fundraiser can normally be exhausting with little return for the amount of time spent. Neither coaches nor student athletes get excited to go door to door, selling coupon books that are naturally a tough sell. Instead of going through the usual motions of fundraising, coach Jones found a new platform to alleviate his fundraising pains. 

 

Jones said in an interview that he usually uses “… multiple fundraising platforms,” to generate the amount of money to put towards necessities for the football team. His decision to go with Flex Fundraising saved him from managing multiple parties of fundraisers, which brought him time and money. Making the choice to go with one fundraising platform can be an intimidating one, especially with a company that is relatively new to the fundraising world. However, when the company is started by athletes that have been through the rigorous process of typical fundraising, it makes sure to solve all the problems they once had to go through. 

 

Flex Fundraising uses an online platform to make fundraising easier and more exciting for everyone involved–including those being asked to donate. Part of the beauty of their platform is making the fundraising efforts engaging for every player and coach. By giving each player their own page on the Flex Fundraising website, Jones found that everyone was more eager to help raise money for their team than ever before. 

 

“It was exciting and easy to track,” Jones said. He mentioned that goals and incentives were hittable and fun. Each player can decide how much they want to try and raise, and the website shows a bar with how well they’re doing. Each player averaged over $500 in donations. 

 

Why are players hitting higher numbers than ever before? The secret to Flex Fundraising’s recipe is to allow donors to have options. Most fundraisers limit the choices to cash donations, buying coupon books or mediocre sweets, and so on. Flex Fundraising gives each team the flexibility to have as many or little options for donating as they want. Jones was able to sell slick apparel and discount cards while accepting cash donations and corporate sponsorships. People could also choose to donate their money to game day banners, which adds an awesome element to every Friday night. 

 

These options take the initial pressure off from donors. Donors can feel pressured or forced into buying something they may not want. Pressuring a donor to buy something can make it a tougher sell for that donor in the following years when they’re likely asked again for donations. Options allow them to decide how much to donate and what they would like in return, simply making the process easier and more rewarding for everyone.  

 

Along with the simple process of donating came another great feature from Flex–giving the student athletes a chance to share their pages on social media. It’s no secret that social media plays a large role in nearly everything we do. High school sports use social media to provide updates, highlights, create excitement for their sport and promote the team. Flex’s system makes it easy for student athletes to share their own pages on social media, email, texting, and so on. Instead of traveling door to door, they can create and share an engaging profile, which exercises their design and marketing skills along the way. All of this results in a higher return while spending less time on fundraising. It’s the epitome of working smarter, not harder. 

 

It’s simple features like this that allow student athletes to use the tools they feel comfortable in: design, social media, online marketing. The coaches can track team and individual progress. This tool allows for interesting goals and incentives they can use to add some extra motivation over the weekend. Some coaches have given their student athletes one of these  weekend challenges: the goal is to raise $X amount by a certain date. If they hit that goal, they don’t have to condition for a week. Such goals help team building and make fundraising something to look forward to. 

 

How successful was Perry High School with Flex Fundraising? For their 2021 season, Perry High School raised over $98,000, increasing their donation total by 40% compared to their last season of fundraising. Coach Jones describes working with Flex Fundraising as effortless, easing the pains that have normally troubled them every year. 

 

Coach Jones, after 15 amazing years with Perry Football, has announced his retirement. It is certain that Perry High School will continue in two traditions: having a winning football program and using Flex Fundraising to raise more, keep more, and do less.