Organizing a successful fundraiser is a lot harder than it looks. The first thing you have to do is to find out the laws about fundraising in your community. There are many regulations you will have to follow. Some are standard and others are specific to certain cities. So take a trip down to your city hall and ask for some help on the guidelines for fundraisers. Making sure everything is on the up and up is the best way to make sure the entire event pushes through.
Next, make sure that the activity of the event is something that is easy to do for most people. The truth is that people aren’t willing to spend or donate money for something that will be a hassle for them to do. If all they need to do is spend some money and sit down to watch a show or event, you’re more likely to be successful than if everyone had to donate money AND participate in a sporting event. This goes hand in hand with picking a good time, date, and location. Having the event at the crack of dawn can ruin your chances for success, and so can planning it in a hard to get to place during the holiday season. Think about how much effort people will have to put into getting there. Usually, the less problematic it is, the more successful you’re bound to be!
Next, think about cost. Although the goal is to make money for a cause, the truth is that any successful fundraiser will cost some money to set up. You may have to pay for a stage, a sound system, some city permits, for the cost of advertising, etc. Consider everything that needs to be done and how much it will cost. Then ask yourself if you believe you really can raise enough funds to not only pay for the event, but to raise the money you wanted to raise as well.
Once you’ve decided on what the event is going to be and you’ve ironed out the cost, start to get the word out. Getting the right advertising can make or break the entire thing. Start by setting up posters and targeting major bulletin boards around town, getting an ad at the local newspaper, ask local businesses to hand out fliers, and set up a website where people can get all the information.

