Florida FBLA Fundraising Toolkit

FUNDRAISING FOR CHAPTER

SUCCESS

FLORIDA FBLA FUNDRAISING TIPS OFFICIAL TOOLKIT

INTRODUCTION

WELCOME TO YOUR FUNDRAISING TOOLKIT Welcome to your Florida FBLA Fundraising Toolkit! This is an all-inclusive guide on how your chapter can fundraise and ensure they get the most funds with all members participating. Keep reading to discover these tips and tricks and apply them to your chapter!

We include the basics on why fundraisers are important and how you can best utilize these funds in your chapters. Through this toolkit, you will also learn the major types of fundraisers and how to overcome the common challenges you may face when planning them. Your chapter will be able to host more successful fundraisers than before!

Our team also delves into how you can use social media to your advantage in this new digital world and spread the word about your fundraiser. You will garner more attention and bring more of your community to support your fundraiser.

By following the tips in this toolkit, you will be able to better support your chapter as they are able to go to more conferences and networking events than ever before! We hope this helps you out, and happy fundraising!

Sincerely, Anika Prasad, State Parliamentarian flfblaparl@gmail.com

Gabe Smith, Region I Vice-President

flfblavp1@gmail.com

Nikhil Kumar, Region II Vice-President flfblavp2@gmail.com

Sophia King, Region III Vice-President flfblavp3@gmail.com

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TABLE OF CONTENTS HOW YOUR CHAPTER CAN START FUNDRAISING Introduction Table of Contents Why Fundraisers are Important Common Challenges Types of Fundraising Traditional Online Sponsorships and Grants Marketing Ways to Spread Information Organizing and Planning Steps for a Strong Fundraiser Engaging Stakeholders

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GENERAL OVERVIEW WHY FUNDRAISERS ARE IMPORTANT By: Nikhil Kumar, flfblavp2@gmail.com

How Fundraisers Help Your Chapter Fundraising is a fundamental aspect of running any successful FBLA chapter.

Regardless of if you are an officer/adviser of a new chapter or veteran chapter, fundraising is a critical activity that every successful chapter will partake in at some point during the year. Fundraising is what allows you to provide your chapter members with a well rounded FBLA experience. Many FBLA events particularly the state and national leadership conferences are very costly and is one of the primary obstacles inhibiting the growth and startup of new chapters, as well as the maintenance of active chapters. These conferences are such an integral part of the FBLA experience, and the last thing you want for your chapter is for members to be restricted from achieving success in FBLA simply due to financial constraints. Fundraising helps cover the cost of state and national dues, conference registrations, and if done properly can allow some leeway in providing certain students “free registrations” based on their performance in their competitive events.

Yet, the significance of fundraising extends beyond just raising money for conferences. Chapter unity is built through taking on obstacles and goals through joint collaboration on initiatives and bonds formed during chapter events.

Fundraising is a path that kills two birds with one stone. Not only does it provide useful funds for your chapter’s needs but it also provides opportunities for officer team development and bonding. Additionally, many chapters will utilize capital raised from successful fundraising campaigns to fund events such as banquets, award ceremonies, etc. As you can probably tell, fundraising is the backbone of any successful chapter and if done properly has the potential to make or break your chapter’s chances of success.

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COMMON CHALLENGES SOME ISSUES YOUR CHAPTER MAY FACE By: Nikhil Kumar, flfblavp2@gmail.com

Common Issues and How You Can Overcome Them Lack of Coordination Many chapters especially newly formed ones, are commonly faced with the challenge of coordinating/planning a successful fundraising initiative. The key to running a successful fundraiser lies in forming direct and active lines of communication amongst leaders and volunteers. The best way to mitigate the impact of this risk is to schedule regular check ins with officer team members and volunteers, and to encourage a culture of initiative amongst officers.

No Tangible Vision While some chapters may have better communication, sometimes the planning aspect is what causes the fundraiser to be unsuccessful. No matter how dedicated and efficient the fundraiser is, if there is no vision of what you want/expect the fundraiser to accomplish then there is no method of measuring success and no opportunity to gain feedback from your experience to improve fundraising efforts in the future. Thus, it is important for the chapter’s treasurer, adviser, and any other responsible officers to jointly decide on the monetary goals, cultural goals, and measured milestones before starting the endeavor itself.

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COMMON CHALLENGES SOME ISSUES YOUR CHAPTER MAY FACE By: Nikhil Kumar, flfblavp2@gmail.com

Common Issues and How You Can Overcome Them Lack of Marketing Prowess If you have a successful fundraising plan, manpower, and resources, then the only thing holding back your maximum fundraising potential is marketing. By utilizing various methods of marketing such as social media sites like instagram, tiktok, etc. you will be able to relate and reach more students and people willing to donate to your fundraiser. Additionally, it is a great idea to design and print flyers, advertise on your school’s news network (or create your own!), and get prominent figures in your community to endorse your fundraising campaign. Using any of these methods or any combination thereof will ensure that your fundraiser has reached as many eyes and ears possible.

Administrative Hurdles Administrative hurdles can be a major setback to fundraisers. The last thing you want to happen is for your chapter to start a fundraising effort including marketing and buying necessary resources, only to realize that you are unable to due to unforseen restrictions (ex. Auditorium is booked out for your desired event time, food and drinks cannot be sold in certain areas, etc.) These are pesky but relatively low difficulty problems you can face. The best way to overcome administrative hurdles is to be very specific about what resources, timeline, and people will need to be involved in your fundraiser in order for it to be successful. Then you can start creating a list of correspondence aka people you need to reach out to, and then start initiating contact as soon as possible in order to account for any delay in communication!

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TYPES OF FUNDRAISING DIFFERENT WAYS YOU CAN FUNDRAISE By: Anika Prasad, flfblaparl@gmail.com

Common Methods of Fundraising Traditional Fundraising During traditional fundraising, chapters will buy items in bulk and resell them at higher prices. Some ideas for this are to buy candy or other food items, and have members sell them at school. The member that sells the highest amount of food/candy could win an incentive - a free District Leadership Conference, or registration paid for another conference.

Officers could also plan a social event for members, like a bowling day, and organize the entire event, selling tickets to members at a higher price. This would be great as the chapter’s members can network as well as fundraise!

It would also boost the school’s name in the community if the event was opened to the public. Restaurant Spirit Nights are really great for improving the chapter’s name in the community as well. To organize a spirit night, officers would contact companies in advance regarding partnering with them. If a restaurant agreed, students or other community members could order food from them and a percent of profits would go to the chapter.

This involves many entities in the community and is a very simple way to fundraise. Along the same lines, students could host bake sales, organize candy sales, plan car washes, host benefit galas, sell t-shirts, plan restaurant spirit nights, hold talent shows, and more.

Online Fundraising In the new age of digital connectivity, online fundraising has become an amazing platform for chapters, reshaping how they fundraise and gain support from their community. Online fundraising is particularly convenient, allowing every step from planning to donating to occur from the comfort of one’s home. (continued to next page)

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TYPES OF FUNDRAISING DIFFERENT WAYS YOU CAN FUNDRAISE By: Anika Prasad, flfblaparl@gmail.com

Common Methods of Fundraising Online Fundraising (continued) If an officer team is unable to meet up in person, an online fundraiser can easily be planned during a zoom call or other virtual meeting. When information is conveyed to members, they can easily sign up and begin, without having to deal with the hassle of paperwork. Additionally, anyone that they know can assist with donations - restrictions due to location are now gone. This opens up a whole new world of possibilities as companies, friends, and family from all over the globe can help out. Thus, recognition of the chapters will also boost. Some examples of online fundraisers chapters can try are SnapRaise and GoFundMe (which are crowdfunding apps), digital catalog sales, and auctions!

Sponsorships and Grants Sponsorships and grants are ways not only to fundraise but also to spread the word about your chapter’s name! Officer teams can make a masterlist containing names of all local companies/organizations. Then, they should divide the companies amongst officers and have each officer responsible for contacting certain companies. It is also important to ask if members have any connections to companies that likely would donate - a great way for members to get involved. This would be especially helpful in larger chapters, but even if you have a smaller chapter, it never hurts to ask!

Compared to the other two fundraising ideas already discussed, this may seem like much more time and effort, however, if a company does end up agreeing, it will typically be a much larger donation and amount of money that your chapter will obtain. Even if you aren’t able to get funds, you will still be able to help FBLA and its mission reach more in your community.

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MARKETING TIPS

HOW YOU CAN SHARE INFORMATION By: Gabe Smith, flfblavp1@gmail.com

How to Spread the Word Marketing is the process of identifying customers and promoting and selling products and services to them through different techniques and channels.

It involves researching consumer behavior, market trends, and competitor analysis to develop effective strategies.

Ways to Market your Fundraiser Good marketing campaigns go through several cycles, incorporating television and newspaper advertising, digital marketing, social media and public relations. Personalization has become a marketing hallmark, with brands striving to send tailored messages to people at specific stages in their purchasing journey. Branding is an important component of marketing as it creates a unique mark for a product or service in the minds of a customer, helping them identify and make a buying decision. They are primarily looking at content marketing such as blogs, videos and audio podcasts to improve their brand recognition and be seen as a leader in their field. Another is influencer marketing, which uses the outsize reach and credibility of certain social media influencers to recommend products and services to each of their thousands or tens of thousands of followers.

Email marketing, then, is a cheap way for businesses to send personalized offers, updates and newsletters directly to the inbox of subscribers.

Tactics for marketing must adapt to changes in consumer demand and products, while being responsive and flexible to survive in competitive markets. After all, marketing needs to result in sales, consumer loyalty as returning customers, and build long-term relationships with consumers – which plays a crucial and significant role in the business operation, increasing sales and company growth.

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PLANNING FUNDRAISERS HOW TO ORGANIZE A FUNDRAISER By: Sophia King, flfblavp3@gmail.com

Steps to Plan and Organize a Fundraiser Successful fundraisers are well planned and executed. In order to achieve this, there are some crucial steps to keep in mind: Set clear and realistic goals Define specific monetary goals that are attainable and align with your chapter’s needs Create a timeline Develop a detailed schedule that outlines tasks, deadlines, and milestones from start to finish.

Remember to consider seasonal or event-based opportunities for fundraising activities.

Establish a plan of action Identify fundraising strategies and tactics that best suit your goals and member abilities.

Allocate responsibilities among officers to ensure that each task is accounted for and completed efficiently.

Use your officer team to your advantage Leverage the strengths and expertise of each officer for planning, promotion, execution, and follow-up.

Regularly communicate and coordinate efforts among officers for a cohesive approach Maintain strong PR Utilize various channels (social media, newsletters, local media) to effectively communicate your cause and progress.

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PLANNING FUNDRAISERS HOW TO MAINTAIN A FUNDRAISER By: Sophia King, flfblavp3@gmail.com

How to Keep Stakeholders Engaged Engaging stakeholders is good for securing long-term financial success!

Some ways to do this are: Following up with past supporters Express gratitude and update previous donors on the impact of their contributions. This fosters a sense of connection and encourages continued support. Remember that if they supported you in the past, they are very likely to support you again in the future.

Involving parents and others in the fundraising process If you school allows it, collaborate with booster clubs to organize and support fundraising efforts Showing up at community events Actively participate in local events to increase visibility and build relationships within the community.

Through all of these tips, you will be able to ensure long-term financial success of your chapters and help you chapter successfully plan fundraisers!

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