Fundraising: Putting Your Hobbies to Good Use
Crowdfunding Advisors, FundRazr Team
Sometimes an organization needs to get creative with its fundraising efforts if it wants to reach its goals. Fundraising has been a challenge for organizations over the last few years, but there have been positive changes as well. Causera reports that total charitable giving from donors has not rebounded from the recession; however, online donations increased by 10.9 percent in 2012. This change has occurred because of changes in fundraising. Oftentimes, the best fundraising ideas come from putting your hobbies to work. Here are a few creative ways to do just that:
Inked for a Cause
A thoroughly modern form of fundraising comes in the form of sponsored tattoo events. Tattoos are no longer a fringe passion—a 2014 Fox News poll found that 20 percent of voters have at least one tattoo, up from 13 percent in 2007. By connecting with several tattoo artists, your non-profit can offer discounted tattoos for a cause.
Although many tattoo shops are more akin to upscale salons, they still battle against negative public perceptions. For this reason, many are more than happy to participate in charity events. Make contact with a respectable tattoo artist, and work out the details such as how much money from each tattoo will go toward your cause. Begin advertising the event at least a month ahead of time, and if you can, contact local athletes and musicians to see if they’d be willing to make an appearance at your fundraiser. You’d be surprised at how many are willing to get inked for a cause.
Game On
If you have gaming enthusiasts in your ranks, holding a charity game-a-thon is a surprisingly effective way to raise money. For example, Operation Sharecraft, a social experiment within the gaming community, raised $1 Million for Save the Children to help thousands of starving children in East Africa receive food. The best method to run this kind of fundraiser is to get players to seek sponsors who will donate $1 for every hour they play with a cap of $24. If you can set up streaming gameplay footage through a service like Twitch, all the better—people love to watch gamers reach their endurance limit.
Motor Exhibition
If classic automobiles are your hobby, a public exhibit of rare, beautiful or popular cars can draw an enormous crowd. You can charge admission to visitors who want to see the dozen or so cars on display for the weekend. Local classic car enthusiasts can allow visitors to take pictures sitting in their vehicles for a small fee to increase the funds. Classic car events can draw local celebrities, especially if they themselves are car hobbyists. Also, consider reaching out to racing professionals, musicians and local athletes to see if they would be willing to make an appearance and sign autographs.
When you combine people’s hobbies and their favourite causes, you can make an unconventional fundraiser a success. So, get started, get creative and get fundraising.