How To Prelaunch Your PTA or PTO Fundraiser

by: JohannaAbleson
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Your PTA or PTO members usually do not "get it" the first time... or two... or three. The reason you are doing the fundraiser is important and should be "shouted from the rooftops" over and over again. You might find it hard to believe how long and loud you have to "get the word out" in order to get even a respectable number of PTA or PTO parents "in the know" on a particular point or event. Following are some guidelines to help you make sure that everyone knows what's up.

Give Specific Reasons For Why You Are Doing It. It is much better to give your parents very specific reasons for the PTA or PTO fundraising drive. You should have a specific goal set and a list of what the PTA or PTO is going to do with the money raised. Parents and teachers will be much more willing to help if they know exactly why you are raising the money

Methods: Letters, Two things I always suggest are to send a letter out to parents early in the year telling them what fundraisers you will be doing and when. Tell them how you're going to accomplish your goal i.e.: catalogs sale, cookie dough sale, car wash, smencils or such. This might keep them from feeling as though your hands are constantly in their wallets.

The second thing you will want to do is write and attach to your sales brochure a letter to the parents of your students. In this letter you will tell them again why you are doing a fundraising project. You might even take this opportunity to tell them what you spent the money on that was raised in last year's fundraiser.

Methods: E-Mail If your school has a school wide email system or a call out system, use it to announce your sale. This is a great way to let parents know to check their children's backpacks for their selling kits. I can't tell you the number of times people have said that they didn't even know a fundraiser was going on. That is missed opportunity every time it happens.

Methods: Marquee Announce your fundraiser on the school's marquee. Many parents drive to school twice a day and are likely to see it if it is left up for several days before the sale begins.

Methods: Reminders via students Send a note home with the students midway through your sale to remind them about the sale. I recommend sending it home right before a weekend so they can sell over the weekend while with family and friends. It is a good idea to put any special promotions on this note to keep it in their minds.

Methods: Signs If placed in strategic positions around the bus lanes and auto que lines, most of the parents will see them everyday. The main thing is that you don't want to simply start a sale and forget about it until "money collection" day.

Have signs posted at various locations around the school. This type of promotion is geared mainly to the students, so signs or posters that appeal to students is the best thing to do to get students to look at them and remember.

Methods: Do a live kick off This is much more motivating to students than a video presentation. They can see how the prizes work and it means that something different happened at school today. When parents ask their children about the day, they will remember this much better than sitting at their desk and seeing someone on a TV screen in their classroom.

Methods: Public Address System Do reminders on the daily announcements. This is a great opportunity to keep students motivated which in turn keeps them selling.

Working closely with your fundraising representative is paramount to your success. How you run your sale is literally as important as what you choose to sell. Planning and execution is the key to fundraiser if you want your parents, faculty, and students to support your fundraising drive. Your goal is to raise as much money as possible for your group in the particular sale you are planning. Remember, if you raise all the funds you need in the first fundraiser, you won't have to do a second one!

About the Author

There is no need to switch your cookie dough sale this year. Before throwing in the towel on finding Otis Spunkmeyer cookie dough, take note that AIM Fundraising is now a nationwide distributor for Otis Spunkmeyer sale products.  

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