“Healing through Sports Foundation (HTSF) is a non-profit, public-benefit organization having the purpose of funding cancer research, patient services, and education programs focusing on prevention. By communicating the benefits of regular participation in physical activity and sporting events, we believe we can make a difference.”

~ James Johnson, HTSF

This July the Healing through Sports Foundation held its 9^th Annual Summer Swing Charity Event at the Tijeras Creek Golf Club in Rancho Santa Margarita, CA. The event featured rounds of golf, a charity raffle, silent auction, cocktails, and a dinner buffet. Attendees could participate in a number of ways, from sending in a donation of a certain amount, buying raffle tickets, attending one or all of the events, to becoming one of the event sponsors.

The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society was chosen as the charity benefactor. The mission of LLS is to “cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.” The goal of the Summer Swing Charity Event was to raise at least $15,000 for the cause of curing blood cancers.

Along with the golf tournament, the charity fundraising event featured a Helicopter Ball Drop Raffle. In this type of raffle, numbered tickets are sold to participants. Then numbered golf balls are dropped from a helicopter above a specific spot on the golf course. The winner is determined by how close to the target, usually a tee or hole, the numbered golf ball lands. Proceeds from the raffle go to the designated charity.

For this event, the organizers chose the Golf Tournament Raffle Ticket. The ticket features a bright blue sky, a well tended green and a golf ball waiting on a tee to be put into play.  The ticket has room for information about the event and the raffle. An individually numbered, detachable stub allows organizers to keep track of tickets and prizes.

I asked James how the TicketPrinting.com raffle ticket benefited his particular event. He said, “It clearly communicated what our event was and what we were offering. Also, the quality of the product was outstanding!”

To sell event tickets, James and his team relied on several proven methods: “email, online, and in person.”  Reaching out through an email list or listserve to individuals who have had contact with the organization can be very rewarding when it is time to sell tickets. It also pays to maintain an up-to-date online source to disseminate information about the event and sell tickets. Whether an event organizer chooses to maintain a website dedicated to the event or a Facebook Event page, information should be relevant and drive attendees to the event. Leveraging personal contacts can also be very important when planning a similar event. The power of word of mouth sales cannot be underestimated.

What advice did James have for other event organizers? “Have plan and stick to it. A clear roadmap is the key to any successful event.” Real planning and dedication make big events like this possible and successful.

Event of the Week: In the Swing is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

Holidays provide the perfect occasion to host events. They give you a reason to gather folks together to celebrate. With a central theme to plan around, it's easy to come up with event ideas. Not only do holiday events and fundraisers help bring members of your organization together, they give individuals reason to pause and remember, get down and just have fun, or feel charitable and open their pockets. There are plenty to celebrate, so you'll never run out of reasons to host an event.

Deck the Halls!

Planning a promotional strategy for a holiday event can be a fun occasion for your entire organization. Your group has a chance to be creative and choose collateral that really fits the occasion. For big holidays like Christmas, Hanukah, Thanksgiving and Easter, you can print event tickets with the iconic images of the season. Deck your posters with boughs of holly, your flyers with dancing dreidels, your invitations with turkeys and maple leaves and your event tickets with bunnies and springtime blossoms.  Just choosing and printing event tickets is enough to get your group in a festive mood and let that spirit of the holiday carry through to the whole event.

Smaller holidays like New Year's, Halloween and the Fourth of July are excellent days to hold big events, as well. They are fun and festive and party throwers and goers alike are in the mood to have a great time. For these kinds of celebrations you can print event tickets that are designed to up the celebratory mood of your guests and let them remember the occasion for years to come.

Seize the Day!

Sometimes you plan events to celebrate a certain holiday, and sometimes holidays give you a reason to celebrate. When you want to organize an event or fundraiser, seize the opportunity to plan it around a special day. There are many smaller holidays all year round. Choose one and go with it! Consider Cinco De Mayo, Super Bowl Sunday, Earth Day and St. Patrick's Day. All provide great themes to plan a party around. You can choose matching designs when you print event tickets and promotional materials  for your event, and at the same time you can raise awareness about your organization.

Days to Remember

Of course, some holidays provide us all with reasons to reflect. You may gather your community together  on Memorial Day or Pearl Harbor Day to pay homage to fallen soldiers. Or, you might host an event on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to remember and discuss diversity. When printing event tickets for these occasions, you may choose a design with a more somber or understated theme.

Planning the Right Promotion

One great thing about planning holiday themed events is that they already have a built in theme. You don't have to go too far to find ideas. You can plan your event promotion and manage your event ticket printing online. It's easy to customize your materials using an event ticket template. Simply choose the design, fill in your details and print your event tickets. You'll be on your way to the perfect promotion and the perfect holiday event.

Reasons to Celebrate is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

Even huge events focusing on large issue such as hunger relief or cancer research can benefit from an active grassroots movement to aid a larger, national cause. It’s time to gather your local grassroots community! If you are starting such a community from scratch, call a town meeting that will give you an opportunity to gauge the importance of your movement within your community, as well as find volunteers who can help you get the ball rolling.

*  You Got Your Goodwill Army, So Now What? Now that you have the support and muscle of people in your community, your grassroots effort may begin. With these people, begin to plan and create a fundraiser. Let them tell you what the community wants. Sell tickets to the event to raise money. Sell raffle tickets to generate even more money for your cause.

*  Get Local Exposure: Utilize local media such as newspapers and radio stations to raise awareness of your cause and your event. Be sure to tell people in the community how they can attain a ticket to your fundraising event. Take notes to ensure that you say all that needs to be said via the media to get the word out about your cause and your fundraiser. Use statistics, even local statistics if you can get them, to further the cause. For example, if you are raising awareness about Diabetes and aim to have a fundraiser about it, be sure to cite stats such as how many people in the country have the disease, as well as a stat of how many people in your community are afflicted. The reality of statistics will give your grassroots movement a solid foundation and awake the cause within your community. 

*  You Got the Exposure, Begin Planning the Event: Much of the preliminary details such as where and when must be decided before you speak to the media. But there’s more to planning and implementing the details: food, entertainment, or speakers. Continuing to use the example of a grassroots movement for Diabetes, an appropriate speaker could be a local doctor or an artist or musician in the community. Often local authorities and celebrities will donate their time for a fundraiser. Put out calls in the community for appropriate speakers to perform or speak at your event.

*  Event Tickets for Your Fundraiser: Research event ticket designs: choose the perfect ticket template and create your own tickets online for speed and convenience. After your tickets have been designed and printed, begin selling within your community. In addition to selling your event tickets to your friends, neighbors, and coworkers, pound the pavement and do some selling door to door. Continue to promote the event, reminding potential guests about to get tickets. Use poster, flyers, Internet forums, microblogging, social networks, and your website. It is easy to create a simple website that can be exclusive to your cause with news and a schedule of events at this fundraiser and others to come. The website can also function as a way to educate the community about your cause as well as keep a running tally on the money that has been raised.

*  Don’t Stop When the Party’s Over: Your successful grassroots campaign has created a mobile army for your cause. Keep them mobilized. Encourage them to bring new and creative ideas to the table and run with them.

Grassroots Organization: Act Locally is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

You're planning a big event, and obviously, you want it to be well-attended. What you do have are great idea and good intentions. What you don't have is an army of marketing professionals, graphic designers and corporate backers to provide you with well-research, slickly designed promotional materials. You have a vision, but you're not so sure about collateral design or professionally printing event tickets.Your experience or your funds may be lacking, but you still want to pull off a solid event that delivers.

Establish a Web Presence!

·       Create a Central Online Location — It can be as simple as a free Facebook (www.facebook.com) event page,  or it can be a more complex,  professionally designed website.  Here you can post essential information about your occasion and provide links to registration, and once you print event tickets, you can share information about where to purchase them. When your event is over, you can continue to share pictures and details, as well begin planning next year's brilliant affair.

·       Take Advantage of Free Advertising—Event promotion sites are a great way to advertise for free. Sites like Eventful (http://eventful.com/), Upcoming (http://upcoming.yahoo.com/) and Zvents (http://www.zvents.com/) are great places start. You can list your event and its details and make it easier for potential attendees to find.

·       Keep Your Online Information Up-to-Date—A Twitter Account (www.twitter.com) or a simple blog can give you the ability to post breaking news, links to your website,  and allow you to interact with potential attendees. Let attendees know right away when you print event tickets for them to purchase, sign new sponsors  or announce special guests.

·       Create an Online Buzz—Get family, friends and colleagues to post and share links to your event. Use the power of social networking to help you sell event tickets!

Branch Out into the Real World

·       Press Releases—A well-written press release is an excellent way to draw attention to your occasion. Share it with local news outlets and interest groups,  and post it to your website and other online sources.

·       Face to Face Networking—Contact professional groups and constituencies that you know would be interested in your plans. They may be a great source of ideas, sponsorship and attendees. If you forge a strong partnership with an interested group, they may even offer to help with some costs related to your event, like venue rental or help you print event tickets.

Choose Professional Collateral

The caliber of your event will be reflected in the real world promotional materials you choose. If you're not a marketing professional or graphic designer, the task can seem daunting. One solution is to work with a vendor to help with printing event tickets. Sites like Ticketprinting.com (www.ticketprinting.com) offer event ticket printing services. You can browse through galleries of themed designs and choose one that fits your vision. A nice feature of sites like these is that they offer customization. Through the use of event ticket templates, you can add details specific to your event, so the design you choose won't seem like it's a cookie cutter solution.

A big advantage of choosing event collateral and printing event tickets through services such as these is that you've eliminated the need to hire someone to design your promotional materials or plan your campaign. You can simply choose your design, fill out the event ticket template and wait for your promotional materials to arrive. This saves you money and frees up your time, so you can focus your energy on planning your event.

DIY Event Promotion: Sell Your Own Event Tickets! is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

Having trouble selling event tickets? As Mark Twain famously said, "A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way." Some things you learn best by experience, and one of those things is event planning.

When you organize an annual event you  can't help but get savvy about what works and what doesn't. With each passing year, your neighborhood barbecue, school fundraiser, or fun run becomes easier to prepare for. You book the favored entertainers early, make sure the venue is reserved far in advance and print event tickets and promotional collateral on time. On the big day, everyone has a great time, and when it's over, you have every right to be proud of the job you've done. But, in the final analysis, do you wonder if you could have seen a higher attendance or raised more funds?

Experience and tradition are great. And, while these do serve you well, they can also stand in the way of the true potential of your group's biggest event. If you're looking for ways to reach more people and raise more money, it's not a bad idea to reexamine your approach. This is especially important in an environment where more and more groups are adding their voices to the fundraising chorus.

A good place to start is with your promotional materials. Using the same collateral and printing event tickets with the same look year after year may be a part of your tradition.Your regular attendees will recognize your signature marketing strategy right away. However, other potential valuable attendees may tune it out completely.

Freshen Up Your Event's Look

Freshen up you planning strategy by rebranding your event for a wider audience. Choose a new look for your promotional materials and print event tickets that will represent your occasion and become memorable reminders for your guests. Choosing new promotional materials and event ticket printing don't have to be a daunting tasks.

Meet with members of your group to discuss the look, feel or tone you would like your promotional materials to evoke. Brainstorm about new audiences for your event. Try to think about reaching further and touching more members of your community. What groups from your community would you like to see attend your event? How can you get their attention without losing your traditional attendees? You might choose to print event tickets and promotional materials that speak to completely different audiences.  

Choosing collateral and event ticket printing can be a fun task for your group to do together. You don't have to hire a graphic designer or compromise on the quality of your marketing materials. You can create and order them online by using an event ticket template. Discussing the design and the message, choosing collateral and printing event tickets can bring your team together in new ways and help you get creative when it comes to your tried and true annual event.

You may have years of event planning experience behind you, but it's never too late to enhance your skills and to broaden your experience. A thoughtful rebranding of your big fundraiser or organizational event can help to enrich that special occasion that everyone looks forward to.

Breathe New Life into Your Annual Event is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

Ready to write your own ticket? Some event promoters are born; others are promoted.

If you fall into the latter category, planning events because it’s your job, rather than your passion, you may find yourself throwing programs together with less and less enthusiasm, and, as a consequence, see your attendance wane. Your guests may simply be bored with the same old party, in which case you won't be able to give event tickets away.

For instance, consider the case of one after-school program for teens. In a pinch, the organizers would throw together arts and crafts party until every kid in the community was tired of arts and crafts, and indeed, no one wanted a free ticket. Taking this event to the next level breathed new life into it. The arts and crafts party became a Surrealist Soiree.

*  Event “A” Becomes Event “B”: Taking an arts and crafts afterschool program and turning it into something unique, fun, and special started with event tickets. Teens earned tickets to the Surrealist Soiree by completing tasks such as reading a book. An online event ticket template allowed organizers to print surreal tickets that included a puzzle piece: a clue for a game during the upcoming event. Images, such as the melting clocks in surrealist artist Salvador Dali’s painting, The Persistence of Memory become a part of a game where teens matched the clue on their event tickets to the correct painting to earn a prize.

*  Surreal Snacks: It wouldn’t be a party for teens without food. At the Surrealist Soiree, the event tickets were also clues to one of the snacks at the party: Random Cupcakes. Take a basic cupcake to the next level by adding random objects to the top. The teens matched the images on their event tickets with a detail from a cupcake to earn a prize. Or try Picasso punch using ice cube molds of noses, hands, and mouths to create a Cubist beverage.

*  Surreal Games: “Pin the Ear on Van Gogh” is a unique recharge of the popular party game, “Pin the Tail on the Donkey,” which furthers the surrealist theme of the branded arts and crafts party.

*  Surreal Crafts: Inkblots were a huge success. Using an eyedropper, teens dribbled India ink onto thick paper and folded it to create an inkblot design. The teens then performed the Rorschach test on one another, earning points and prizes for the most surreal and creative descriptions of the inkblot. This continued into mini surrealist poems, or an Exquisite Corpse game, where a piece of paper was passed around and each teen added a line to make a very surreal poem.

*  Event Tickets: Another function for the event tickets can be a raffle at the end of the party. You can print separate raffle tickets online, or just use the numbers on your event ticket stubs. Crown the winners King and Queen of the Surreal with a gift basket of wacky and toys and candies for the prize.

Creating something new and exciting turned an ill-received event into a popular, well-attended one. The custom designed event tickets were easily created and printed, and provided a special air: the event could only be attended by select teens who earned a ticket.

Recharge a tried-and-true event that has run its course: get creative and take that tired event to the next level.

Taking Your Event to the Next Level: From Art Party to Surrealist Soiree is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

Our events were free and functioned as a way to highlight the library’s place in the community, while also spotlighting the mystery book collection. For cost effective purposes, I got creative and wrote my own plays, casting them with local actors and teens in the community, as well as a few librarians. Ready to try? Here’s a step by step guide:  how to create this deadly exciting event.

• Theme of a Theme: Decide on a theme for your play. While the event itself is mystery-themed, it helps to create the play and the promotional materials with still another theme, allowing yourself the creative license to combine appealing elements. For example, in one of the plays, Harry Potter was found dead and the X-Files’ Scully and Mulder were sent in to solve the crime, with the help of the audience, of course. Once you have your theme down, you can create compelling event tickets using online event ticket templates.

• Figure Out Your Cast of Characters: Think of what characters you will need (and consider how you will cast them) before you begin writing the play. After you’ve figured out the characters, the plot and clues will come easier. Your event tickets can even incorporate an image or symbol that may give your audience a clue about the characters.

• Write Your Play: The play can begin with pure brainstorming; just get a plot going and begin to think about clues that would be appropriate to use in that plot. Of course, the plot should include a crime with clues, as well as a resolution. The resolution, however, should not be totally realized in the play itself. It will be the audience’s job to use the clues you set out in the play to solve the crime.

• Cast Your Play: Send out a casual call to community actors and teens in the community who enjoy theater. If you do this, you will invariably get a large response from enthusiastic amateurs. Your event gives them exposure as well.

• Promote Your Mystery Dinner Theater: I created posters in Microsoft Publisher to publicize my MDT, or you can print posters online. Create event tickets and make small postcards or bookmarks to hand out to customers. Your promotional material should include What, Where, When, as well as a clever title and tagline. For example: Solve a Mystery at Your Library: The Case of the Murdered Magician.

• Create Event Tickets: You can create and print fun event tickets online. Using a ticket template helps you include all relevant event information, and perhaps a logo or image appropriate for your event’s purpose. Playing with the template, you can use mystery imagery like magnifying glasses, caution tape, and, in the case of a library, a stack of mystery books.

• Something Extra: Even if your event is free, you may desire to have a raffle at the event for a door prize. Find raffle tickets templates online and sell chances for a small fee if you’re raising funds, or just use the stubs from the event tickets. Give away a prize that relates to your overall theme like a stack of Agatha Christie novels, some mystery DVDs and some popcorn.

• Have a Successful Event: Proper planning and organization, dedicated rehearsals with your actors, and the right publicity ensure a fun and successful event!

Case Closed: Hosting a Mystery Dinner Theater is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

In order to help ensure that your next raffle ticket event is a success, the rest of the article describes factors that you should take into consideration when planning your fundraiser. This raffle ticket calculator utility will help you price the correct amount of raffle tickets for your event.
Fundraising Goal
It is important to know how much profit your organization would like to earn during your raffle ticket event. This value should be the ideal net proceeds to the event after all other costs have been subtracted.

Raffle Costs – There are several costs that can be incurred during a raffle ticket event. The list below lists the most common ones.

Raffle Ticket Costs: whether you print your raffle tickets yourself or have a company like www.TicketPrinting.com print the tickets for you, your raffle tickets are going to cost money. Often times the look and feel of the raffle ticket will help convey a sense of value to your supporters allowing you to charge more for them. I have talked to customers that wanted custom raffle tickets designed that looked expensive so that it would be easier for them to sell the raffle tickets at a higher price. This price should include all related costs as well (shipping, sales tax, and other fees all add up to produce the total cost of generating the tickets that you will use for your event).

Raffle Prize Costs: More often than not, you will not find an organization that is willing to just give you an item for you to give away (at least not something cool enough to make people want to win it). Often times you will have to pay at lease part of the price of the prizes for your event. Most people will be willing to give you a prize at a reduced price after you sell them on the publicity that they will be receiving as a sponsor to your event.

Raffle Ticket Distribution Costs: The distribution costs of your raffle include all of the related costs of marketing and selling your raffle tickets. This could be posters that will be printed or even a television or radio advertisement. What ever the costs are; they will be a factor in how profitable the event is.

Total Expected Raffle Ticket Revenue – The total revenue that your organization will receive as a result of the sales of raffle tickets is a factor of two things: the number of raffle tickets sold, and the price at which the tickets are sold. These are most likely the two variables over which you have the most control and the ones that are most important to match up directly to your customer group.

Quantity of Raffle Tickets: The quantity of raffle tickets should be decided upon while thinking about the number of people in your community who are likely to buy raffle tickets. It is important to remember that people often buy more than one raffle ticket and this can be encouraged by offering a discount if you buy a larger quantity of tickets ($5 each or 5 for $20 is an example of quantity discounts).

Price of Raffle Tickets: The price that you can charge for raffle tickets will depend on the prizes that you are offering and the demographic of your target market. Selling $100 raffle tickets to college students might be a long shot as would be selling $15 raffle tickets for a chance to win a DVD. When deciding the price you need to take into consideration how much the prizes would be worth to most of your participants. It will also help boost sales if the ticket price is a convenient amount (most people do not want to pay $3.76 for a raffle ticket).

Finalizing Price and Quantity of Raffle Tickets – Once you have an idea of the price that people will pay for your tickets and how many you can sell, you can calculate how much money you can earn. First, add up all of the costs of your event. As an example, $75 for Raffle Tickets, $500 for prizes and $50 for additional marketing materials would give us a total cost of $625. The next step is to add the fundraising goal to that value. If we wanted to raise $2000 we would add that to the $625 that we already have spent to get $2625.

Calculate Price of Raffle Tickets: Once we have the total revenue to be raised ($2625) we can find out what the price of the tickets would need to be for a given quantity of raffle ticket sales. To do this we divide the total revenue by the quantity of tickets. As an example, if we thought that we could sell 1000 raffle tickets we would need to sell each one for $3.63 to reach our goal (I would recommend that we round up to the nearest dollar).

Calculate Quantity of Raffle Tickets: To calculate how many raffle tickets we need to sell we can divide the total amount of revenue by the price of the tickets to find out how many tickets we need to sell. In our example, if we wanted to sell each ticket for $5 we would need to sell 2625/5= 525 tickets to meet our goal. Again I recommend always rounding up as most organizations can deal with extra money easier than they can with too little money.

This simple calculation will make it easier to plan profitable raffle ticket events that do not leave you in the dark.

Pricing Raffle Tickets for Success is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

Great rewards require great effort. The payoffs from a prize draw can be substantial, if you make an investment of time, forethought, and common sense, but don’t count your revenue before it’s collected! Consider possible stumbling blocks. According to TicketPrinting.com’s survey of over 200 raffle holders, the top five most difficult tasks are:

• Selling Ticket
• Tracking Sales
• Encouraging Participation
• Soliciting Prize Donations
• Raising Awareness

There is no silver bullet solution, but there are resources and techniques to help your organization rise above obstacles.

1. Ticket Sales: By far, the #1 most difficult task reported was the ability to sell tickets. Different people have different tastes in prizes. Make sure your prizes make sense for your organization and your potential ticket purchasers. For instance, if your prize is a hunting package, you don’t go to animal rights groups to sell tickets. You try a sporting organization or a gun club! Do go to local business and other groups in your communities. Make your presence known at large gatherings, and don’t forget to ask your family and friends. Remember, you’ll sell more tickets with fun or clever promotions. Here are some ideas:

a.Early bird pricing: Offer a special low price in the early days of selling tickets. People love a good deal and will be more likely to buy.
b.Special deals: Find creative ways to give deals to customers. For example, offer $40 for as many tickets they can fit once around their head, waist, neck, etc…
c.Dunk, throw pies, or cut hair: Along with your prizes, find a sympathetic local celebrity (a school’s principal, a TV reporter, a popular coach) and sell tickets for a chance (or multiple chances) to dunk him, throw a pie at him, or cut his hair. Don’t forget to invite the newspaper and local media outlets for more publicity.
d. Advertise on your website, local radio, public events, newspapers, and at local business.
e. Prizes for sellers: Offering rewards for most tickets sold, most hours put in, or best attitude provides ticket sellers with an attractive goal.
It is also important that the consumer knows why you are selling tickets. You’re not just earning money for your cause, you’re also spreading its message. Create an enthusiastic sales pitch. Include your organization’s name and purpose, address frequently asked questions, and finish up with a request that the listener purchase tickets. Keep it short and sweet so you don’t lose their attention.

2. Tracking: Ticketprinting.com’s survey reported that 19% of nonprofits did not record ticket sales, but the government will require you to report the outcomes of your raffle. You’re legally obligated to keep track! Accurate tracking can also create a database of potential customers for your next raffle. Microsoft Excel was nonprofits’ favorite program for tracking, with 43% of all respondents using the program. Record everything! This includes names, relation to seller, phone number, email, addresses dates, ticket numbers. Excel allows you to easily set up a spreadsheet with all the required information. Set up your spreadsheet correctly, and it can be used over and over again. Below is an example of a typical recording spreadsheet in Excel:
   
   

   raffle spreadsheet
3. Participation: If your raffle will depend on volunteers, it may be hard to find reliable support. People can’t help if they don’t know about the raffle, so tell everyone about your opportunity. Joining online networks specifically for volunteering is an excellent way to connect your organization with people in your area who are ready and willing to help. Remember you must accommodate your volunteers. According to volunteermatch.org, 89% of volunteers think it is important for volunteering to fit into their schedule and 80% found it important to understand expectations. So be specific about your needs! Idle volunteers probably won’t come back. Always show your appreciation by following up with thank-you letters.
4. Donations: Finding the right prizes is the first step in initiating a successful raffle. There are many online sites where businesses and individuals can make donations. Sign up for one today and start collecting. Also, ask local business to provide prizes. They are often willing to give back to the community, especially if you can offer some positive publicity. Adding their logo to your Raffle Ticket or providing free ad space in your publication is a great motivator! Don’t be shy about approaching anyone who might help. You may be surprised when you find out how many powerful supporters you actually have.
5. Awareness: The most effective way to create awareness for a raffle is through word of mouth. Promote your raffle through your website, newsletters, email, TV, and meetings. Tell everyone about your raffle and ask them to do the same. 63% of the respondents in TicketPrinting.com’s survey said they hold raffles in conjunction with a major event such as a dinner or a sporting event. This way your raffle can be promoted through the event as well.

Now you know the challenges and the solutions. Get out there and start selling Raffle Tickets to support your organization!

Your Challenge: The Successful Raffle is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

]]> http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/your-challenge-the-successful-raffle/feed/ 0 http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/online-fundraising-for-nonprofit-organizations-part-1-of-5/ http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/online-fundraising-for-nonprofit-organizations-part-1-of-5/#comments Tue, 11 Aug 2009 12:32:46 +0000 Lance Trebesch and Dustin Stoltz http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/?p=490 Online Fundraising for Nonprofit Organizations Part 1 of 5 is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog
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Virtually Yours

Primary Objective:

You have passion for your cause, but passion alone is not enough. To create positive change you need resources: volunteers and donations. Traditional fundraising channels such as a banquet or raffles remain the most effective ways to create hype and generate donations. However, as the web continues to grow, it is becoming paramount to strike a balance between online and offline fundraising activities. Many businesses have already discovered that the web can be a powerful mechanism to reach new audiences.

With so many online tools available, nonprofits relying on limited time and resources may be overwhelmed by the options. This series will help you sift through online opportunities for nonprofits and provide a simplified, manageable view. Six distinct online channels have been identified and are discussed further in this guide. Each portion of the series will focus on a single topic and discuss how your nonprofit can leverage the Web to better your nonprofit organization. Topics to be discussed include:

1. Social Networking
2. Online Auctions
3. Email Campaigns
4. Wiki Pages and Event Calendars
5. Blogs
6. Online Raffles

1. Social Networking

Social networks allow those with similar interests to interact. Each social connection forms a vast network of users who can share information instantly. It’s word of mouth at high speed. The days of blindly blasting messages into the Web are over. Nonprofits that truly become involved and interact in social networks can share information about their cause to those who have expressed interest in it. Not only are you marketing your cause to those who care, but your contacts can also effortlessly market for you to their own network. Before we look at which social network(s) is right for your nonprofit, let’s discuss the basics of interacting with others on a network.

Create a Profile
To get started on a social network, you must create a profile for yourself and/or your company. For most nonprofit organizations, a profile for the organization will be the best choice, although an individual profile can be a good way to get to know the social network. Remember that members of social networks value openness and honesty, and do not take well to companies or organizations misrepresenting themselves. If you choose an individual profile it should represent you, not your organization masquerading as you!

Setting up a profile is not a one-time chore, but an ongoing process. Add interests and ideas as they come to you, and don’t be afraid to build and change your profile as your understanding of social networks expands. To create a truly viral campaign that spreads throughout the network, write a profile that is compelling, fresh, catchy, and ultimately makes others want to share. You want to make a good first impression, so think about what will be on your profile before you begin adding friends.

Connect with People
To make your profile relevant, establish a network of supporters who are willing to discuss and share details about your organization. The easiest way to begin finding online friends is to start with your close real-world supporters. Look for people who are already members of your organization or on your mailing list. Encourage them to connect with your profile and to invite others they feel would add to the network. Remember, people will value your online relationship more if you are active and respond often and in a timely manner.

Connect with Groups
Eventually, you will want to reach more people by becoming involved in online groups. Groups allow users to express and share their interests and passions with others within the online network. With millions of users, social networks have groups for almost any imaginable purpose. For instance, if you are looking for those who support fighting breast cancer you could choose from one of more than 177,000 groups found on MySpace alone. Groups are also a good way to stay up-to-date on the happenings relevant to your cause. Comment on their pages and respond to others’ comments. Become personally involved, interact, and establish your network.



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charity badge

Set up a Charity Badge
Charity badges allow you to create a tangible online link that connects your awareness campaign with your fundraising. After you have created a profile and established a network, you are ready to utilize a charity badge. Charity badges are online widgets, simple applications that produce attractive links, which can be easily copied and shared with others. Badges will often include a brief description, fundraising goal and progress, and a button to assist in a quick, easy donation, and these small pieces of code can be transferred effortlessly throughout your online network. The image shown to the left is an example of a charity badge powered by the Network for Good.

When using a charity badge remember the following tips:

1. Make your fundraising goal reasonable.
2. Begin with a small success in mind and work your way up.
3. Place your badge on your website, blog, social networking page, group pages, and anywhere else you possibly can!
4. Send thank you emails!

Selecting a Social Network
Wikipedia’s full list of social networks can be overwhelming. Consider your audience. The social network with the most users may not be the best choice; your message can get lost in the tide. Targeting individuals who share passion for your cause may prove easier on smaller, niche audience networks, where you can make a greater impression. This translates into a better return on the time invested.

Popular Non-Profit Social Networks

1. Change.org- Change.org is a social network dedicated solely to nonprofits and individuals with a specific cause. Unlike many social networks, where the primary purpose is basic interaction, Change.org is designed as a facilitator for users to connect, take action, and donate.
2. Care2- Approaching nearly 10 million strong, this is an incredible platform to create lasting relationships with people who share similar goals. This website allows users to start petitions or groups, post news stories, and create blogs all relating to a specific area of interest.
3. Squidoo- Squidoo allows each user to create his/her own “lens”: a single web page much like a profile. Creators use this one page to describe their passion or interest. Unlike other social networking sites, the purpose of Squidoo is to spark readers’ interest in a certain topic and then direct them via links and videos to information elsewhere on the web. Squidoo does not require those viewing your page to be members, and the site boasts an average 11 million viewers a month.


Popular Social Networks

1. Facebook- Facebook is one of the largest social networking sites and has a strong following with college aged students and the site claims that currently their fastest growing demographic is those 30 years old and older. While it may not be the appropriate platform for all nonprofit organizations, it can be an effective way to attract an audience of generally active young adults.
2. MySpace- MySpace users interact via pictures, video, blogs, forums and more and often create groups based on common interests. As of Fall 2008 there were 24,144 nonprofit and philanthropic groups. MySpace pages are also easily crawled by search engines, which can help you gain ranking in search engine results.
3. LinkedIn- While LinkedIn is not one of the top social network sites, it is a great resource for your business. LinkedIn is designed to facilitate professional relationships between business men and women. It’s also a great place to give and receive advice in regard to your organization’s operations.

As a final thought, be sure to build your social network before you need it. Asking for donations the moment you become someone’s friend is a good way to lose an online friend. Create rapport with your online community by consistently updating your pages with new content. If you can’t maintain the page yourself, designate someone to accept friend requests, post comments on groups and other people’s pages, and invite others to become friends on a regular basis. The more people feel you care about them, the more they will care about your cause.

Online Fundraising for Nonprofit Organizations Part 1 of 5 is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

]]> http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/online-fundraising-for-nonprofit-organizations-part-1-of-5/feed/ 0 http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/a-step-by-step-guide-to-online-fundraising-for-nonprofit-organizations-part-1-of-5/ http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/a-step-by-step-guide-to-online-fundraising-for-nonprofit-organizations-part-1-of-5/#comments Tue, 05 May 2009 19:55:13 +0000 Lance Trebesch and Dustin Stoltz http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/?p=343 A Step-by-Step Guide to Online Fundraising for Nonprofit Organizations: Part 1 of 5 is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog
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Having passion for a cause is a good start but passion alone is not enough. If you want to make positive changes you’ll need resources, namely volunteers and donations. Traditional fundraising channels such as a banquet or raffle remain the most effective ways to create hype around your cause and generate donations. However, as the web continues to grow, it is becoming paramount to strike a balance between online and offline fundraising activities. Many businesses have already discovered, if used aptly, the web can be an incredibly powerful mechanism to reach new audiences.

But with all the online tools available, it can be a bit overwhelming for nonprofits who often have limited time and resources to even know where to begin. This series will help you sift through the online opportunities that exist for nonprofits and provide a simplified, manageable view. Six distinct online channels have been identified and are discussed further in this guide. Each portion of the series will focus on a single topic and discuss how your nonprofit can leverage the web to better your nonprofit organization. Topics to be discussed include:

1. Social Networking
2. Online Auctions
3. Email Campaigns
4. Wiki Pages and Event Calendars
5. Blogs

1. Social Networking

Social networks facilitate those with similar interests or who are interested in understanding others interests to interact with one another. Why are they so important to your nonprofit organization? Each social “connection” forms a vast network of users who can share information instantly with each other…Its word of mouth at high speeds. The days of blindly blasting messages into the web hoping someone, somewhere would listen are over. Nonprofits which truly become involved and interact in social networks can share information about their cause to those who have expressed interest in your cause. Not only will you be marketing your cause to those who care, but they can also effortlessly market for you to their own network. Before we look at which social network(s) is right for your nonprofit, let’s discuss the basics of interacting with others on a network.

Create a Profile
To get started on a social network, you will need to create a profile for yourself and/or your company. For most nonprofit organizations a profile for the organization will be the best choice, although starting an individual profile can be a good way to get to know the social network. As a rule remember that members of social networks value being open and honest and do not take well to companies or organizations misrepresenting themselves. So be sure that if you choose to have an individual profile it is really you represented and not your organization masquerading as you! Something else to remember is that setting up a profile is not a one-time chore but rather an ongoing process. To create a truly viral campaign that spreads throughout the network, create a profile that is compelling, fresh, catchy, and ultimately makes others want to share. You want to make a good first impression, so think about what will be on your profile before you begin adding friends.

Connect with People
To make your profile relevant, you will need to establish a network of supporters who are willing to discuss and share about your organization. The easiest way to begin finding online “friends” is to first look to your close real-world supporters such as organization members. Encourage them to connect with your profile and to invite others they feel would add to the network. Remember people will value your online relationship more if you are active and respond often and in a timely manner.

Connect with Groups
At some point however, you will likely need to reach more people by becoming involved in online groups. Groups allow users to express and share their interests and passions with others within the online network. With millions of users, social networks have groups for almost any imaginable purpose. For instance, if you are looking for those who support fighting breast cancer you could choose from one of more than 177,000 groups found on MySpace alone (MySpace 8/21/08). Groups are also a good way to stay up to date on the happenings relevant to your cause. Become personally involved, interact, and establish your network.


charity-badge
Set up a Charity Badge
Charity badges allow you to create a tangible online link that connects your awareness campaign with your fundraising. After you have created a profile and established a network, you are ready to utilize a charity badge. If you are not familiar with charity badges, they are basically online widgets that can be easily copied and shared with others. So these small pieces of code can be transferred effortlessly throughout your online network. Badges will often include a brief description, fundraising goal and progress, and a button to assist in a quick, easy donation. The image shown to the left is an example of a charity badge powered by the Network for Good.

When using a charity badge remember the following tips:

1. Make your fundraising goal reasonable.
2. Begin with a small success in mind and work your way up.
3. Place your badge on your website, blog and anywhere else you possibly can!
4. Send thank you emails!

Selecting a Social Network
Wikipedia’s full list of social networks may prove to be a bit overwhelming. When selecting a social network be sure to consider who your audience is. It may seem like the best idea to join the social network with the most users; however you want to target individuals who share passion for your cause. This task may prove easier on smaller, niche audience networks. This will translate into a better return on the time invested.

Popular Non-Profit Social Networks

• Change.org – Change.org is a social network dedicated solely to nonprofits and individuals with a specific cause. Unlike many social networks, where the primary purpose is basic interaction, Change.org is designed as a facilitator for users to: Connect, Take action, Donate.
• Care2 – Approaching nearly 10 million strong, this is an incredible platform to create lasting relationships with people who share similar goals. This website allows users to start petitions, groups, post news stories, and create blogs all relating to a specific area of interest.
• Squidoo- Squidoo is a unique social network site; it allows each user to create his/her own “lens” which is basically a single web page (much like a profile). Creators use this one page to describe their passion or interest. Unlike other social networking sites, the purpose of Squidoo is to spark readers’ interest in a certain topic and then direct them via links, videos etc. to further information elsewhere on the web. Another unique element of Squidoo is that it does not require those viewing your page to be a member and boasts an average 11 million viewers a month.

Popular Social Networks

• Facebook - Facebook is one of the largest social networking sites and has a strong following with college aged students. While not the appropriate platform for all nonprofit organizations, it can be an effective way to attract an audience of generally active young adults. However, Facebook claims that currently their fastest growing demographic is those 30 years old and older.
• MySpace – MySpace users interact via pictures, video, blogs, forums and more and often create groups based on common interests. As of August 22, 2008 there were 24,144 nonprofit and philanthropic groups. MySpace pages are also easily “crawled” by search engines, so it will help you gain ranking in search engine results.
• LinkedIn- While LinkedIn is not one of the top largest social network sites it is a great resource for your business. LinkedIn is designed to facilitate professional relationships between business men and women and also a great place to give and receive advice in regards to your organizations operations.

As a final thought, be sure to build your social network before you need it. Asking for donations right as you become someone’s friend is a good way to lose an online friend. Gain rapport with your online community by consistently updating your pages with new content. Also have a designated person who will take the time to accept friend requests, post comments groups and other people’s pages and invite others to become friends. The more people feel you care about them; the more they will care about your cause.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Online Fundraising for Nonprofit Organizations: Part 1 of 5 is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

]]> http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/a-step-by-step-guide-to-online-fundraising-for-nonprofit-organizations-part-1-of-5/feed/ 2 http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/managing-a-raffle-from-start-to-finish/ http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/managing-a-raffle-from-start-to-finish/#comments Mon, 04 May 2009 18:12:53 +0000 Lance Trebesch and Dustin Stoltz http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/?p=277 Managing A Raffle: From Start To Finish is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog
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Once you have the essentials of your raffle planned out, it is important to manage efficiently. Managing a raffle continues throughout the whole process and will likely determine the overall profitability of the program. Let’s take a look at how to manage your raffle.

On Your Mark…

It is important to plan all aspects of your raffle beforehand to make sure you will reach your goals. Prepare for everything! Above nothing else, have the following sorted out to perfection:

• Prizes: Know what prizes you are raffling. Whether they are donated or you had to invest in some yourself, it is beneficial to have them before you start selling tickets. Prizes are one of the top factors in a successful raffle. There are a number of ways to obtain great tickets for your event, but the ticket pricing should reflect the perceived value of your prizes; not your costs.
• Volunteers/organizers: Make sure everyone knows their job by assigning tasks and positions. Set up group leaders to manage your various tasks, like ticket selling.
• Ticket sales process: Know how you will track your ticket sales! Whether it is by hand, on the web, or by an Excel spreadsheet, record everything. Analyzing this data can determine what needs to be improved, what areas you are doing well at, and perspective buyers for your next raffle.

Get Set…

An essential yet very difficult task in directing a raffle is managing the people involved. Most raffles are organized and managed solely by volunteers, or a mix of volunteers and the organization members. This means you have to get people motivated. As you probably already know, this is easier said than done. The top motivator for volunteers is to make it clear they are helping a great cause. Let everyone know your organizations purpose and tell them how their work will specifically help the organization reach its’ goals. Give updates on how the event is going and keep everyone informed.

From TicketPrinting.com’s survey, we found there are two very different approaches to getting volunteers involved in the ticket sales process. The first, and most popular approach, is to have prizes or awards for sellers with the greatest number of tickets sold (prizes for best attitude, hardest worker, etc. were also given in many situations). Conversely, the other option is to have sellers take only as many tickets as they think they can sell. Then, if all their tickets are not sold the specified deadline, they will have to purchase their remaining tickets. Whichever method you choose, remember to keep all volunteers busy and make them feel like they are making a difference!

GO!

As mentioned, tracking and recording sales is an essential part of hosting a raffle. Doing a poor job of tracking opens the doors for legal repercussions. According to our recent survey of over 200 nonprofit


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organizations, a surprising 19% had no tracking system at all. To effectively track ticket sales, you must at minimum record the seller/buyer’s name, amount sold, price, location, ticket numbers, and dates. You can track sales by hand, use an Excel spreadsheet, or invest in an online program. For those looking for a more inexpensive and simple tracking system, consider setting up a Microsoft Office template. The key to templates is to make them reusable, saving you the time of reproducing documents.

Now that you know the essentials in managing a raffle, put this knowledge to use! Raffles are great fundraisers and can have a real impact on your organization. The more time you put in before the raffle, the more likely you will be able to handle any unexpected setbacks. Following these steps will help ensure a smooth raffle and give you confidence for future events.

Managing A Raffle: From Start To Finish is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

]]> http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/managing-a-raffle-from-start-to-finish/feed/ 0 http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/10-reason-every-nonprofit-must-have-a-blog/ http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/index.php/10-reason-every-nonprofit-must-have-a-blog/#comments Mon, 27 Apr 2009 23:12:58 +0000 Lance http://www.ticketprinting.com/blog/?p=121 10 Reason Every Nonprofit Must Have A Blog is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog
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Think your nonprofit organization has no need for a blog? You may want to think again.  According to Technorati, nearly 10,500 blogs were tagged “charity”, 4,000 blogs “nonprofit” and 2,300 blogs “philanthropy” in January of 2007. Nonprofits are hopping onboard the social media bandwagon and are seeing returns. If you’re still not convinced here are ten reasons your nonprofit organizations should have a blog.

1. You ARE an Expert in the Field – Nonprofit organizations have a wealth of information when it comes to their cause. Share it! This information is highly desired in online blogging communities and passersby alike.  You know your stuff and by posting regularly in blogs, your organization will gain a reputation for being an expert. People trust experts. Donors want to know their money is being put to good use, and volunteers want to know the time they spend is making an impact. Readers will want to see more information authored by you and will follow links back to your organizations website.  According to the March, 2007 Blog Readership Report, 67.3% of bloggers found information by following links from other blogs.  To find blogs that are topically related to your organization use Technorati and Blogcatolog.  Icerocket has also done an excellent job dissecting blogs and making them more search friendly.

2.  Credibility – It is more important today than ever before for nonprofit organizations to be trustworthy in the eyes of their contributors. The public wants transparency.  A blog facilitates this relationship by showing consistency in your ideas and presentation. You put a lot of work into maintaining your blog on a consistent basis with meaningful material—that is a huge investment for you to lose and the public will notice this too. Another way to establish this relationship of trust is to make events, projects and progress as visible as possible.  By having weekly updates on projects and the projects successes, users will know exactly what difference their donations have made (or will make if they donate).  Project developments can be posted onto the blog keeping the organizations efforts and needs current (Have Fun Do Good Blog).

3.  Search engine optimization – Search engines take into consideration many factors when calculating a search result list.  A focused, well written blog hosted on your website is a key component in helping overall search performance.  A blog allows plenty of room to add keywords and phrases you wish to rank well for.  Additionally, if your blog has useful and meaningful material, other sites will want to link to it, improving your websites level of importance.  Also, search engines place higher value on pages that are constantly updated, so remember to ping them regularly to inform them you’ve added new content. You can use one of the many free tools such as Search Engine Land or (Technorati), more than 17 million of them are information thirsty bloggers who desire the kind of content your nonprofit blog could provide.  Blogs are continually being incorporated into social networking sites and in turn peoples’ daily routine.

5.  Negative Comments – Even if you haven’t been writing about your organization, other people have; they are talking and probably writing about you! Hopefully, their words are positive, but almost inevitably there will be some negative commentary. Many organizations see this negative commentary as a major deterrent to engaging in social media.  However, a blog provides a median to field complaints or concerns and defend the decisions the organization has made. Remember to listen. Some comments may be unfounded, but others may provide information that could improve your organization.  When replying keep a professional tone and respond quickly.

6.  Marketing Events – A regularly maintained blog will attract loyal readers who can easily be informed about upcoming events.  To incentivize new subscribers, or to increase the loyalty of existing subscribers, consider having special promotions on the blog before events.  However, a blog should work in combination with the traditional channels of marketing your event, not to replace them. (An event is also a great way to market your blog!)

7.  Annual Report – Many nonprofits (At least all of the ones I have worked with!) are required to compile an annual or semiannual report.  By working smarter and creating a blog, you will have most of the content for the report already completed before you even begin compiling it (Have Fun Do Good Blog).  In many ways blogs are more honest and accurate than formal annual reports, as they build a habit of (and comfort with) sharing information as it happens.  Your memories are fresh and the facts are at your finger tips…contrast this with the rush and toil characteristic of the last minute annual report – the effort required to create the content will be more cost effective.

8.  Gathering Information - One of the most difficult aspects of any nonprofit is gaining an understanding of its supporters. Two people may be supporting your organization for two entirely different reasons.  A blog can help tap into a resource of information and more that new technology provides.  Two major information related benefits include:

• Allowing users to create- A blog encourages involvement in the organization as it encourages discussion of your topics.  The AARP Issues Blog allows readers to create entries about what issues they feel are important and receive feedback from these entries.
• Provide information to supporters-and they will return the favor. If a picture can convey a thousand words, than a blog on your website will have a lot to say.  So much of the success of a fundraising campaign (whether you like it or not) comes from its emotional appeal.  By having a blog that contains pictures and stories, viewers will become more emotionally involved with the cause or service. If they feel a connection they are more likely to share with you and about you.

9.  Fundraising – That’s right you can use your blog to raise money, and not just with ChipIn and Network for Good both have charity badges available for a small fee.  Blogs bring in visitors looking for valuable information and in turn they will see your badge. There are countless examples of blogging communities that have worked together to raise money using charity badges.

10.  The “Heart” of the Organization – A blog gives you the unique opportunity to show the organization in a totally different way. A blog brings your humanity to the forefront.  After all, it is very difficult to write every day about something you’re passionate about and not have who you are come through.  The key to being successful with any marketing venture is telling a compelling story and building meaningful relationships, blogs are just another tool to do so.

10 Reason Every Nonprofit Must Have A Blog is a post from: TicketPrinting.com Blog

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