Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Fundraising Tips

letsgetfundraising.co.uk
Fundraising

While searching for unique social activities for a club of which I am a member, I ran across many fundraising ideas.  Some of these seemed worthwhile either for social activities and/or fundraising.  You may judge and contribute your own activites and fundraisers.



Examples from the  message board site below. Also search for fundraising online.

"Quiz nights, 'themed' suppers (curry nights, St. Patrick's, Harvest supper, etc.,), treasure hunt, Bonfire night party, talks on local interest, choir and poetry recitals, monthly cooked breakfast, sponsored ramble.

Tutored wine tasting, casino night, cookery demo, BBQ, barn dance, fashion show, talent competition, walk, street party, beer festival, treasure hunt, local food fair."

http://boards.fool.co.uk/good-ideas-for-club-or-church-social-activities-11605076.aspx?sort=whole

Ret. 11-14-12

galleryhip.com

What Event Fundraisers Can Learn 

from Lady Gaga

      



on 08-17-2011 11:58 AM, EDT - last edited on 08-18-2011 12:41 PM, EDT


















by Jono Smith, Event 360

The most successful marketer in the world doesn't work for Apple, Starbucks, or charity: water.  She works for herself (and her fans).  Love her or hate her, it's Lady Gaga.  With nearly 11 million Twitter followers, 38 million Facebook fans, over 1 billion YouTube views, and a net worth of $110 million, Lady Gaga understands marketing.

“Gaga and her team are some of the best marketers around; they understand the importance of integrating social with traditional media, engaging audiences in real-time, and most of all, telling a story that is relatable and worth spreading,” said Alexa Scordato, a Gaga fan, digital strategist and community manager for MAT@USC.

Lady Gaga has soared to success because she understands the same four things that are required of successful event fundraising programs: developing and implementing an effective ask, generating sufficient attendance, creating an impactful experience, and providing robust support.

The four components of successful event fundraising:

1. Developing and implementing an effective ask: Any effective fundraising program starts and ends with presenting others with an opportunity to help and asking for their support. Event fundraising is no different. And yet, creating an effective request is the most neglected part of most event fundraising programs.

TIP: Develop a case-based income model and ask that supports your organization’s development efforts and growth strategy, and use it to create donations.

2. Generating sufficient attendance: One of the main reasons events don't generate sufficient attendance is because the target is too broad.  The narrower your target market segment, the more likely it is that you will be able to generate sufficient attendance. For example, an event targeted at Moms is an event without a real target, while one targeted at Mothers (ages 35-54) of children (ages 3-12) is much better because the participants will automatically have something to talk about—their many shared experiences. Moms participating in those conversations will get a much better sense of how the event appeals to their values through that targeting and can then offer up referrals and donors from within their personal networks who also have impact with those issues directly.

TIP: Define your target market, then develop a plan to attract and retain participants in that target.
 
3. Creating an impactful experience: Falling short on delivering your event participants a great experience is a wasted opportunity to earn a raving fan. You have a captive audience. Dazzle them and they will become an important resource in your recruitment and fundraising arsenal. Disappoint them and you’ll be forced to try even harder next year.

TIP: Design and implement an event experience suited to your organization mission, fundraising case, audience, and budget.
 
4. Providing robust support: From great customer service during registration, to safety on event day, to having an effective event website, an impactful experience alone is not enough.

TIP: Invest in the infrastructure to ensure a safe, efficient, and error-free program. The most successful events provide robust support and incredible customer service to create an extremely loyal participants base.

(Thanks to Jono and the team for allowing us to share this great article with you- Check out the Event 360 blog for more great posts!)
http://www.thenetworkforgood.org/t5/Successful-Fundraising-Events/What-Event-Fundraisers-Can-Learn-from-Lady-Gaga/td-p/4495

Ret. 4-16-15

Monday, November 12, 2012

PR & Mentor Recruiting


Sunday's Claremore paper 11-11-12
WANTED: MENTORS
Source: claremoreprogress.com

Men. Women. Police Officers. Firefighters. Business Professionals. Retirees. RSU students. Young Adults. 
Volunteers for Youth

We always have to marvel at and congratulate Melynda Stone on her creativity and perseverance!  Thanks for sharing another wonderful way of keeping the mission in front of the public.  Below is a photo of mentee Dalton and mentor Larry "Ace" Parker, taken as they participated in the mentor/mentee panel at the Oklahoma Foundation of Excellence's Fall Forum, October 23, 2012, in Norman.  Dalton and Larry are mentioned in the article below.

November 11, 2012

WANTED: MENTORS

PAL Program kicks off recruitment campaign

Rebecca HattawayStaff Reporter

CLAREMORE — 

Men. Women. Police Officers. Firefighters. Business Professionals. Retirees. RSU students. Young Adults.

Volunteers for Youth’s PAL Program wants YOU.

They have launched a new poster campaign recruiting people from all walks of life to become mentors.

The school-based program matches mentors with students in Rogers County schools. They meet for an hour each week during the school year.

They also offer e-PAL in which mentors and mentees communicate by email one a week and meet face-to-face once a month.

“We have a wide range of kids selected for our program,” said Volunteers for Youth Executive Director Melynda Stone. “Basically, we recognize them as kids who really just need one more caring adult in their lives.”

One special group the PAL Program is focusing on recruiting is Veterans.

Veteran Larry “Ace” Parker has mentored several students over many years at Sequoyah.

Mentee Dalton was matched with Parker as a second grader. He is now a junior in high school.. They are featured on one of the posters.

“Larry has just been an inspiring mentor,” Stone said. “Veterans are one of our targets for mentors because they have servants’ hearts anyway. They can be very influential on a young person.”

Stone solicited Northeast Technology Center’s EAST (Environmental and Spatial Technology) program to help with the recruitment project.

Students Tyler Mooney and Brad Combs have worked with Stone to brainstorm groups to target, design the posters and develop the marketing campaign.

They even carried a banner in the Veterans Parade on Friday.

The 11x17 framed posters will be on display throughout the community beginning this week.

“All the posters have the same look and feel, but they each target a different audience,” Stone said. “Hopefully, people will walk into a bank one day and see a poster, and then see another at Chili’s the next day. They will be all over to keep the need in front of people.”

The posters will have pull off cards with the phone number and web site for more information.

The campaign will culminate in January which is National Mentoring Month.

The PAL Program will host a recognition event for mentors featuring special speaker, Cindi Hemm, a retired principal at Tulsa Public Schools.

“She authored the book Miracle on Southwest Boulevard which credits mentoring as one of the major things that turned her school around,” Stone said. “We hope we will have a bunch of new volunteers by then.”

For more information about the PAL Program, call (918) 343-2530 by www.volunteersforyouth.com.

Volunteers for Youth is a Rogers County United Way agency.

http://claremoreprogress.com/local/x880894053/WANTED-MENTORS


Friday, November 9, 2012

Leflore County Mentoring


Volunteers make a difference


Poteau Firefighter Jeff Gibson showing the fire truck to his mentee Gage Martin.

Great Futures     
              
By DAVID DEATON


The Boys and Girls Club of LeFlore County (BGCLC) not only offers a safe place for kids to be after-school we also offer a program that benefit children and adults. Our YES Mentoring program “Youth Experiencing Success” offers a great opportunity for caring adults to develop nurturing and supportive relationships with the youth.

“Mentoring is a two-way relationship,” said Jeff Gibson, a mentor at the Poteau location. “I learn a lot from my mentee and he learns from me.”

Gibson, a member of the Poteau Fire Department, shared the aspects of serving the fire department by allowing his mentee to see and learn about the fire truck and how it operates. Who knows, his mentee may discover a career he never dreamed about before.
Jane Naylor, a mentor at the Heavener site, teaching her mentee, Marisol Martinez how to knit.

Another Poteau mentor, Karli Beger, plays board games with her mentee. While some mentors teach knitting, quilting, scrapbooking and beading others offer skills at basketball or other athletic activities. Some of the youth just want someone to talk to and listen to what they have to say, building a friendship.

Some need help in making decisions about what career they want to choose, or help with their homework. The young artist may need you to encourage them to draw. The learning opportunities for both the mentee and the mentor are endless.

Oklahoma State Representative James Lockhart is serving as a mentor in our Heavener location. Representative Lockhart states, “I would like to take this opportunity to ask you to consider becoming a mentor. I know how hectic life can be and it may seem as if you do not have the time, but I ask you to stop and think about someone that made a difference in your life when you were a child, didn’t they make time for you? Oftentimes we underestimate the positive impact that a few moments make in a child’s life. I try to spend one hour a week mentoring with a child because I believe the good that men do lives on long after they are gone.”

Mentors should view a mentoring relationship as both an opportunity to teach and an opportunity to learn. A mentor can gain satisfaction by sharing knowledge, expertise, and positive influences, while a mentee can have their self-esteem boosted and share their thoughts and goals.

The mentoring needs of at-risk youth are growing, at the same time there is a shortage of mentors to serve our youth. It seems that most people lead such busy lifestyles that they find it difficult to set aside time for mentoring. BGCLC’s goal is to help build the self- esteem and confidence of all the children and youth in Leflore County. Our children are worth investing our time in. You could be the one who helps a child graduate versus being a high school dropout, a future leader in the business world versus a government assistant recipient. We challenge you to be the difference for a child by investing just 30 minutes a week to offer the support and encouragement they need to reach their full potential in life.

The YES Mentoring program is currently being offered at the Poteau and Heavener after school locations from 3:30 to 5 p.m. and serves fourth through eighth grade students. For more information about the YES Mentoring Program contact the office at (918) 647-7136.

http://leflorecountyjournal.com/2012/02/volunteers-make-a-difference/

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Fundraising - 38 Successes

Updated 4-16-15


Here are some of the Kiwanis Clubs' fundraising ideas.



                                                                                                     
 












































Net Gains. (2012, October/November). 
Retrieved from http://kiwanis.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vkiw12/i5/p48    

Ret. 11-1-12   Updated 4-16-15