Charities and Other Causes Need Good Fundraising Ideas - Here Is One That Works

This treatise is being written about a week before Christmas 2009. At 2:00 PM today I am heading to the local Wal-Mart to ring the bell by the familiar red Salvation Army donation bucket. What a wonderful outfit is the Salvation Army. Anyway, it brings me to the topic of charities and fundraising. Our economy is struggling, and so are most potential charitable donors. How to successfully raise funds for a charitable cause or for your organization can be a difficult choice.

What Is Available?

I suppose you could conduct a car wash in the parking lot of a local business…if the weather cooperates and you have enough young folks who are willing to spend an entire day cleaning other peoples' messy cars. How about sending your children door-to-door to sell overpriced candy or popcorn? Personally, I believe that people buy that stuff simply because they don't want to tell some cute little kid "no," and be labeled as the grumpy old guy who refused to help out. (Plus, it is dangerous. I am retired from law enforcement, and I have personal knowledge of many horror stories about children going door-to-door in "safe" neighborhoods.) Chili feeds and pancake breakfasts are another possibility. Again, it takes a lot of work from a lot of people, and the mess that is created is awful.

Try An Easier, Proven Fundraising Idea.

I've always been fond of the family style cookbook as a fundraiser. They are a collection of the best recipes from the finest cooks in your group or community that are bound into a professional looking cookbook. Since the recipes come from real people in your community, it becomes a valued keepsake as well as a great source of dining ideas. Imagine having access to "Aunt Sadie's" famous pork roast, or Mrs. Kincaide's pineapple cream cheese cake. (Those are real people whom I know, and real recipes. I'm putting on weight just thinking about them.) People will be anxious to make a donation if they can receive a great, personalized cookbook in return.

What Is The Process?

Pretty simple. First you create a committee to determine who/what/when/where. They must choose the right on-line cookbook publisher to work with. (More on that later on in this article.) The next step is to collect recipes. Everyone in your group can surely submit at least one or two, so you have quite a start already. Neighbors, friends and co-workers are great sources, too. Send e-mail messages to your friends and have them provide recipes. Contact the local fire department or a business with a lot of employees and see if they would be willing to gather some for you.

When your recipe library is sufficient, you need to design the cookbook. As mentioned prior, you need to work with a cookbook publisher that offers many options. Don't settle for one of a handful of templates. You should be able to select the style of cookbook, the organization, the paper stock and ink, the font, whether there will be dedication pages or advertisements, what kind of dividers to use, and the style of pictures and graphics. There are a lot of on-line publishers out there. Simply do a Google search for "cookbook publishers" and see what I mean!

The Finished Product

A reputable publisherreputable publisher will guide you through the process and help you decide how many to have printed. Marketing tips should also be offered. Obviously, most of your organization's members will buy one, as well as those outsiders who also provided recipes. From there you can sell them at school functions, church events, street fairs, and in local businesses who will give a little counter space for the cookbooks.

My experience with using family style cookbooks as a fundraising idea has been stellar. I belong to a family based organization, and we created one about 5 years ago. It sold well, and we have had it reprinted several times in the years since. They are still selling!

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Andy Barber is a retired police/fire/EMS dispatcher. After a quarter of a century of "stomping the pedal," as he likes to call it, he took an early retirement and became a freelance writer. Currently he is working for Cookbook Publishers, a company that has been helping people and organizations raise money since 1947. When Andy isn't writing, he spends time on his eastern Kansas farm with his wife and the 2 younger of their 3 sons. Andy also has a love for Harley Davidson motorcycles. He regularly criss-crosses the USA on his bike to meet with friends and see this beautiful country. Cookbook Publishers has been helping people with fundraisers for years, so check them out and see what they can do for you.