Soapbox Engage Blog

Are you filling out your fall fundraising calendar and looking for something different to generate new excitement and enthusiasm from your supporters and donors? Or have you been tasked with growing your fundraising calendar by adding an autumn activity?

The fall is a great time for fundraising events, but it is essential to offer distinctive experiences to stand out from other fall activities and get onto your participant's calendars during such a busy season.

Whether you are looking to produce large events or to manage simpler, turnkey opportunities, you can switch up your fall fundraising with these unconventional ideas.

Table of Contents

• Get into the spirit with an Oktoberfest homebrew contest
• Make a mess with a post-Halloween pumpkin chunkin'
• Provide workers for a concession stand or parking lot at a football game
• Put on a Food Truck-or-Treat
• Raise a ruckus with a reverse raffle
• Organize your #GivingTuesday campaign

1. Get into the spirit with an Oktoberfest homebrew contest

Has the chili cook-off idea become too bland for your organization? Celebrate the festive fall season by having a homebrew beer contest with an Oktoberfest theme. With more than 1 million Americans brewing their own beer, you will likely have some excellent brewers in your community and supporter networks. To allow for outdoor social distancing, rent some tents and decorate them in the spirit of the grand tents of Munich's Oktoberfest.

Fall fundraiser proceeds can come from competitors' contest entry fees and ticket sales to the event. To make it more family-friendly, consider adding an oompah band or even a well-loved local act. You could even follow Cincinnati's lead and have a chicken dance competition! Bratwurst eating contests and cornhole games are also great fun for Oktoberfest attendees and provide easy and inexpensive fundraising activities to enhance the event.

2. Make a mess with a post-Halloween pumpkin chunkin'

Who wouldn't want the chance to see their old pumpkins fly and splat after Halloween without having to clean up the mess? In exchange for donations or an entry fee, invite participants to toss, sling, or drop their jack-o-lanterns. It's sure to be a fun family activity for everyone hyped up on Halloween candy.

Find a multi-level house or building with a balcony … or for more thrills, partner with a local pumpkin patch or corn maze that has a slingshot for your fundraiser. To up the ante, add a contest and award prizes for the longest toss, biggest mess, and most decayed and disgusting jack-o-lantern.

This fall fundraising activity requires little up-front cost and is sure to put your organization on the list of activities between Halloween and Thanksgiving.

3. Provide workers for a concession stand or parking lot at a football game

Many high school, college, and professional sports stadiums invite nonprofit groups to operate concession stands on game days to raise money. This is also a great way to increase visibility for your organization and share in the profits generated at the game.

Some stadiums offer a guaranteed minimum per person or commission from operating the stand.

The Soapbox Engage Forms app is an easy way to have your fall fundraising team sign up for volunteer shifts and keep everyone on schedule to help your organization perform optimally during these high-profile opportunities.

In 2018, 75 participating groups working at Nissan Stadium, home of the Tennessee Titans, raised more than $1.5 million for performing a variety of jobs, like ticketing, concessions, souvenir stands, custodial work, and parking.

The John Overton High School band students and parents made up to $100 per person per day directing cars at Nissan Stadium. Groups that worked concession stands at the stadium received 8 to 10 percent of the sales for their concession location.

4. Put on a Food Truck-or-Treat

Combine a food truck rodeo with a trunk-or-treat evening. Parents love trunk-or-treat events because they offer safety and convenience for their trick-or-treating children.

Why not pair this with a food truck rodeo, so the entire family can enjoy an evening out? Food truck fundraising events are straightforward. Truck owners donate a percentage of the sales to your cause. In exchange, the food trucks get exposure to your supporters and community members and a significant boost in "social good."

Invite a variety of food trucks to your fall fundraising event, and widely promote the event in your networks and community. Volunteers or staff from your organization can manage the trunk-or-treat stations and provide information about your organization, including other opportunities to support your cause.

This is a great opportunity to raise funds, grow awareness, and build partnerships with food trucks for future events.

5. Raise a ruckus with a reverse raffle

A reverse raffle is just as easy to prepare and present as a traditional raffle. You just need tickets, a method for drawing the winning tickets, and prizes to ensure people will want to purchase many tickets.

Instead of the first number drawn producing the winner, the last ticket drawn is the winner in a reverse raffle.

You can have a live raffle to fundraise at events and festivals this fall or hold a virtual video event to draw until the last number. Be sure that all your entrants know when you are pulling the tickets so they can be present (in person or online) to share in the excitement and anticipation of drawing down to the last number!

Our Events app can help you easily sell raffle tickets online for a virtual event and expand your reach for an in-person event. Offering online raffle sales also lets people share the event with friends and family. Be sure to consult the laws governing raffles in your locale.

Don't Forget to Organize Your #GivingTuesday Campaign

Advance planning this fall can make a huge difference in reaching new donors and generating maximum financial support for #GivingTuesday on November 30.

There are many great examples online of #GivingTuesday activities. You can also plan your program as a hybrid in-person and virtual event with fundraisers like auctions, virtual and in-person 5K runs, trivia nights, or bingo.

Start your #GivingTuesdayplanning by reviewing and evaluating the performance of past campaigns. Next, select a team or point person to lead and execute the activities, develop a communication plan and message. Don't forget to test your donation platform, too.

Choosing the right nonprofit CRM system is key to any fundraising campaign for managing contacts and donors, tracking interactions, automating emails, and processing donations. The Stripe payment processor, along with the Soapbox Engage Donations app, keeps your supporters engaged with your branded donation page and reassures them that they can donate with confidence.

With these five unconventional fall fundraiser ideas, you can help your organization stand out from the crowd during the fall fundraising season.

Here are three more resources to get you started.

• How to Drive Matching Gifts this Giving Tuesday 2021: Maximize your Giving Tuesday success this year with matching gifts. Check out our handy guide to increasing your Giving Tuesday revenue through corporate giving.
• 6 Social Media Best Practices for Engaging More Volunteers: Learn how volunteer coordinators can use social media strategically for volunteer recruitment and engagement. Your organization will benefit from the passion and support volunteers provide to your mission by boosting volunteer engagement. The more volunteers you can retain, the easier it is to gather supporters the next time you have a volunteer opportunity.
• Event Management Software: What Your Nonprofit Needs to Know: Event management software helps you plan better events with less stress, anxiety, and hassle. It can help organize and handle many aspects of event planning with a host of digital tools. However, not all event management software is created equal. Learn how to find the best software and tools to manage your events in this post.