Putting the FUN back into fundraising!

At Charity Challenge we know that fundraising can often feel like an uphill struggle, so relax and rest those weary brains, we’ve done some of the hard work for you. We asked our previous Charity Challengers to give us their tried and tested methods, helping you put the fun back into your fundraising.

The Fit Fundraiser…. dropping pounds whilst you make them

This is a brilliant way to kill two birds with one stone, whilst training might not be your idea of fun, you might as well take some of the pain away by using it to raise some cash. Below are some of our favourites that are guaranteed to bring pounds in whilst you drop them on your waist!

Sponsored bike rides, runs and walks are an easy and effective way to get your friends together and earn some cash whilst getting fit at the same time, often your local fitness club or gym will be happy to help publicise an event and may even help you recruit. If you don’t want to run your own, why not sign up to an existing charity event, many challengers have taken part in 3k’s, 5k’s, 10k’s, half marathons and even marathons to get the funds together.

If this all still sounds a bit too much like hard work, we’ve put some of the slightly less taxing, sport related ideas below:

Get a hole-(and hopefully all your fundraising) in-one and organise a golf day, cricket tournament, football match, netball tournament or even a badminton competition! All of these have proved to be really popular and don’t require too much cost to set up. Zumbathons, Yogathons, Ice Hockey, Dodgeball and Boxing Matches have also helped many of our challengers to hit above and beyond their targets.

Fat Fundraiser… dosh for nosh

If all that exercise has made you hungry, then why not rely on your friends’ love of food to bring in some dosh. There are many ways to feed people and make them part with money, from the classic coffee morning to the growing in popularity curry night, here are some ideas that will have you filling your mouths and the charity’s pockets…

Cake sales– an oldie but a goodie! After the popularity of the Great British Bake Off, fancy cakes have never been so chic! Get your bake ON and get selling! At work, at school, at fetes, there are few (good) people in this world that will turn down cake. Especially good cause cake, because that’s the best kind.

Tea Party- It’s cold, we’re British and we ruddy love tea. Why not set up your own little afternoon tea party, get everyone round and flog some of your (good cause) cakes!

Chocoholics Parties – a great idea with Christmas coming up, why not get even more festive and have some other Christmassy goods on offer, mince pies, Christmas cakes, yule log, Christmas puddings – if you can decorate and wrap them, you can double them up and sell them as presents – even better!

Hog Roasts and BBQ’s – okay so it might be the wrong time of year for the latter but most people love meat and if you can strike up a deal with a local butcher/ pop down Lidl you can easily make good money off a BBQ – great if you can’t really cook! If you can set one up at a local fete or Christmas market even better!

Come dine with me – Get a few of your friends involved and host your very own Come Dine With Me style event… all of you can chip in and the prize money can go to your charity or the winner (hopefully you!)

Pop- up Restaurant – this is my personal favourite and a fantastic way to make a lot of money all in one go – at your restaurant you can create your own menu – maybe even making the theme related to where you’re going… You can also host other events around this such as raffles, prizes, auctions etc.

Britain’s Got Talent…

One of the easiest ways to get fundraising is to do something you enjoy and are good at, from making birthday and Christmas cards to knitting and face painting, it seems that Charity Challengers are a talented bunch with many of you making all your dosh from your talents alone. Many challengers have sold woodwork, plants, jewellery and handicrafts, offered hairdressing or massages, gardening or handiwork, run cooking classes to get donations. Whatever your talents, this is a fantastic way to make the challenge and fundraising personal to you, whilst earning lots of money all at the same time!

Any excuse for an Event…

There is nothing more personal (or fun) than organizing an event – from the classic Charity Concert or Ball to slightly more out there Karaoke nights, there are lots of great ways you can bring in all of your fundraising with one spectacular event. If you have useful friends, now is a good time to get them on board…

The best of the best include: Masquerade Balls, Fashion Shows, Dances, Ladies Nights, Pampering Evenings, Discos of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s variety, Barn Dances, Christmas Balls, Pottery Evenings, Murder Mystery Parties, Race Nights. In our experience everyone loves a theme, if you can bring this back to your challenge then even better! Our participants have held Cuban Nights and even Nepalese Nights, the possibilities really are only limited by your imagination.

Get tipsy…

Whilst we don’t encourage getting your friends twizzled, it is a well-known fact that people are a tad more generous after a few. Sponsored pub crawls, pub golf and quiz nights are popular events that can often bring in a lot of cash, particularly if you can get the landlord on your side. For the slightly more sophisticated, why not throw a cheese and wine evening or wine tasting? It is also the season to be jolly so it would be a shame not to…

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure…

So unleash your inner Del boy and get on Ebay, or down your local car boot sale! Getting rid of stuff you no longer need is not only therapeutic but an easy way to round up some cash. If you’ve got some really good stuff why not organise an auction?

The Classics… because if it isn’t broke…

Some of the more tried and tested fundraisers really are the best, from dress down days at work to dog walking, lawn mowing to car washes, here are some of the more classic sponsorship generators:

Bag Packing – Great this time of year as Christmas is approaching and many supermarkets and shops will let you bag pack or present wrap for a good cause.

Bucket Collection – Make sure you get permission first – but if you can create a mini campaign even better – people are far more generous than you think!

Bingo, Raffles, Tombola’s and more, these classics are incredibly easy to set up and often you can source the prizes from businesses or even friends, or create something special like a Christmas Hamper. Hold as part of other events to ensure maximum participation.

Round up your hairy friends! Hair removal has always been a favourite when it comes to fundraising, whether you’re shaving your head or waxing all men within a 10 mile radius, this one is guaranteed to round up a few laughs and a few quid.

*TOP TIPs* from Bindi – the fundraising dog

(she has raised hundreds of £’s for charity)

Most charities will have lots and lots of helpful hints and ideas on their website – so make sure you check out your charities personal page for inspiration and ideas. Often they will have fantastic promotional materials from t-shirts, sashes, banners, posters and tickets that can be customized for your event, merchandise that can be used as prizes, and information that can be used to promote your cause. These are not only great for promotion but they give your event extra credibility and support through the charities logo. Remember, they want you to hit your target as much as you want to and will always be happy to help with ideas!

If you’re still completely stuck, dressing up and looking as silly as possible are sure fire ways to get some attention and more importantly, MORE CASH!!!!

So Charity Challenger’s, hopefully this has given you a few ideas to get fundraising, if you have any ideas or pictures from your fundraising events we would love to hear/ see them! For online fundraising tips, best practice and event planning and organisation please look out for our upcoming fundraising blogs!