Fundraising Through Creative Ideas

Schools, charity organizations and other not-for-profit institutions looking to raise funds should accent the fun in their creative fundraising ideas. People today will spend their money to have more fun and creative fundraising ideas that focus on fun things to do, fun experiences and fun products are likely to raise more money or even exceed fundraising goals.

Nostalgia is fun, so host a fundraising Carnival complete with rides, games of chance and skill and plenty of old-fashioned carnival foods like candied apples, caramel corn, funnel cake and cotton candy. There are special event companies that can pull the whole event together for your organization or do a bit of research on your own to find carnival vendors to help you create a money-making event.

Host a celebrity auction. Invite local VIPs in your area to donate items as well as experiences and have people bid online or live at a fundraising cocktail party. Offer bidders the chance to pilot a plane, be mayor of the city for a day, take a tour of the local firehouse, or be chauffeured to and from school or work in a limousine. The possibilities here are endless.

Host a Murder Mystery Party at a local restaurant, an event at which guests enjoy wine and dinner while a theatrical troupe mingles throughout the attendees until one of the "guests" is "murdered". Offer a prize such as a vintage bottle of wine or a restaurant gift certificate to the guest who is the first to solve the mystery.

Throw a Christmas in July event and hire a local ice vendor to create snowfall on a hilly field and sell tickets for sledding and toboggan rides. Or sponsor an "American Idol" style competition in which contributors pay for a chance to perform before a panel of local VIP judges.