STEPS TO SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISING

 You have made the wise decision to use Betsy Ann Chocolates for your fundraising program.  What should you do next?

      STEP 1.                         

DETERMINE HOW MANY SALESPEOPLE WILL PARTICIPATE & NUMBER OF SALES BROCHURES

·      Try to think of creative ways to get people interested in participating

·      The more salespeople you have selling, the more you will sell

·      Fundraisers with specific goals are always more successful

·      If you have a specific amount to be raised, divide this amount by the number of salespeople, and tell them how much each must sell to reach the goal

STEP 2.                         

KICK OFF OF YOUR FUNDRAISER

·      This is when you will pass out the brochures to all of the salespeople and announce all important information and dates

·      Plan your kick off well, this is very important for successful fundraising

·      Take into account holidays and potential conflicts with other activities

·      If appropriate, hold a meeting with all salespeople to explain step by step what you expect them to do

·      This is a great time to ‘charge up’ the team by introducing a prize program and getting people excited about the challenge

·      If you have specific sales goals, now is the time to announce them

STEP 3.                         

SELLING PERIOD IS THE TWO WEEKS AFTER KICK OFF AND BEFORE ORDER TURN IN DAY

·        This is a most critical period for your fundraiser that will mark the difference between success and failure

·     The better the preparation has been done up until now the better will be the chances of a successful campaign

                                         i.      If up to now you are highly organized, created motivation, communicated goals, and “supercharged” your salespeople, you are on you way to a great fundraiser

                                        ii.      Do not stop now because there is still more that must be done to ensure success

·      Successful fundraisers have this in common, a method to continually or at least periodically, remind salespeople of their task

                                         i.     One of the very best ways is to verbally remind them, i.e., having someone like a teacher, who sees them regularly who will:

o      Remind them daily there is now one less day to go

o      Asks how many have reached their goals by now

o      Lend some help and encouragement to those who need it

o       Create colorful posters and banners

a.    To remind and encourage people to reach for their goals

b.    As a reminder of when orders must be turned in

c.    To obtain a group spirit for the project have salespeople create the posters and banners

                                         ii.     Send out periodic notices to all salespeople

o      Decide in advance the best times to send reminder notices

o      Notices can be printed in advance and passed out on days appointed

o      Notices should motivate sellers by reminding them of the goals & prizes

o      Notices should remind them of turn in deadlines

                                         iii.     Phone call or email campaigns

o      Similar to printed notices only they are done on the phone or via emails

o      This can also be done in conjunction with printed reminders, but save these until the final push

·     Get the word out

                                           i.   Create a marketing campaign for your fundraiser

                                          ii.   Tell everyone you can in as many place as possible that you are having a fundraiser and would like their support

                                         iii.   Word of mouth is one of the strongest ways to communicate but not the only way

                                         iv.   Create signs and posters, send out letters and emails, post it on web sites, include it in newsletters, list it on bulletin boards, have it announced at events, ask local businesses to help in various ways

·     Some people are concerned they are hassling people by doing these things

                                           i.   These things must be done tactfully with regards for the circumstances at hand

                                          ii.   These are common practice for successful fundraising campaigns

                                         iii.   In fact, organizations that do not do any of these things almost always have less successful campaigns

·      The key to success with any of these ideas is to plan well in advance how you will structure your fundraising campaign

                                           i.   Do not try to do more than practical or possible

                                          ii.   On the other hand, do not expect tremendous success if you send out brochures and wait

STEP 4.                         

ORDER TURN IN DAY

·      We strongly recommended a two week selling campaign, no more

·      At the end of this period collect all orders

·      Make sure all salespeople know when and where to turn in orders

·      Do not allow for extra selling time for those who do not have orders ready, simply tell them to get you their orders as soon as they possibly can

·      There will be a week between order turn in and the date master sheets are submitted

                                          i.   This gives the leeway needed to catch up with late orders

STEP 5.                         

DELIVERY OF MASTER SHEETS TO BETSY ANN

·      Make a copy of each master sheet for your records (This is optional, not required)

·      Tally all orders and write totals on one master sheet, then make a copy to turn in with the rest of the master sheets (This is optional, not required)

·      Try to collect all orders prior to turning them in to Betsy Ann

·      If you receive some orders later than this date, get them to us as soon as you can and we will do our best to process them accordingly

·      Create a new tally sheet for additional orders, and forward a copy with the orders

                                           i.  Clearly mark the latest tally sheet with the new date and a new revision number, so as not get the new one mixed up with the old

STEP 6.

      DELIVERY OF ORDERS TO YOUR ORGANIZATION

                ·      Get prepared for this day by notifying everyone in advance of the date

            ·      Have designated space large enough cleared and ready to accept orders

            ·      Our delivery driver will stack them in an orderly fashion how you desire

            ·      Arrange for enough help to assist in the distribution of orders

            ·      If you have not paid for your order before now, make sure to have a cashier’s check ready in the proper amount

                        i.   Decide in advance how you will handle orders that are not picked up on the day appointed for getting orders