EVERYDAY FUNDRAISING IDEAS
People can't donate if they don't know you are walking! Talk about the AIDS Walk with everyone you come in contact with. Talk to your grocer, doctor, nurses, dentist, etc. Ask them if
they would be willing to support your efforts. See if you can check off every name on this list: Sponsor Checklist.
Recycle. Collect and recycle aluminum cans. Put a container in your break room for collecting cans and let colleagues know that recycling helps the AIDS Walk. Don't forget to collect cans at home and ask your neighbors for theirs as well.
Be a guest bartender. Ask your local bar if they’ll allow you to be a guest bartender for a night, or even for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. Send out an Evite, inviting everyone you know to join you there for a drink, and ask them to invite everyone they know. Create a sign to place on the bar or a flyer that reads, "All tips collected tonight will go directly to Joe Walker, who's walking 10 kilometers to raise money for people struggling with HIV/AIDS." When people see the sign, they may be willing to dig a little deeper in their pocket!
Ask your favorite restaurant to help you fundraise. Is there a local restaurant that you frequent? Are you friendly with any restaurateurs? Ask the owners if they will donate a portion of one evening’s proceeds to your AIDS Walk fundraising total. Then make flyers with the information, create an Evite, and invite everyone you know to dine there on this evening. You’ll bring in more business to the restaurant and more money to your AIDS Walk fundraising total.
Auction off your skills or trade your services for a donation. Are you a trained massage therapist? Can you organize a closet like no one else? What about cleaning house or re-vamping someone’s resume? You can even be the “designated driver” for your friends for a night out on the town. Let people know that you’re willing to trade your services for an AIDS Walk donation. Set your price high – it’s for a good cause!
RAISE MONEY ON THE JOB
Include AIDS Walk information as part of your e-mail automatic signature. Include a link to your AIDS Walk Web page in your signature. Each time you send a message, the recipient will be provided with a reminder to sponsor you.
Utilize corporate matching gift programs. Many employers will match the charitable donations made by their employees. Use the matching gift search function to look for the name of your own employer and for the company names of each of your sponsors’ employers. You may be able to double every donation you get!
Organize "Dress Down Days" at work. Ask management if you can have Dress Down Days to benefit your team at work. Charge people $5 to wear jeans to work on Fridays or any other specified day. This is a quick and easy way to raise big bucks. Everyone wants to be casual at work; help people fulfill their dreams and contribute to a great cause.
Sell goodies to your officemates. Pick up bulk packages of the most sought-after sweets and set up an "on your honor" snack area near the photocopy machine. Charge $1 per item.
Collect loose change. Everybody has a stash of loose change in a cup or jar just sitting around. Ask everyone to donate theirs toward your goal. You will be surprised how quickly it adds up.
Post an AIDS Walk poster or sign. Put up a sign by the elevator, coffee maker, copy machine, vending machine, break room, or bathroom letting everyone know that you are a Star Walker for the AIDS Walk and that you would be grateful for their donation. Get started now: Download a mini-poster for your desk.
Designate a certain day as AIDS Walk Awareness Day. Post these HIV/AIDS Statistics "Sponsor Me" Flyers. Give out red ribbons to each person who donates.
Hold an office potluck. Ask everyone to cook and donate an item for a themed luncheon in the office. Then ask everyone who partakes in the lunch to donate $5 to the AIDS
Walk.
Fundraising thermometer. Make a poster with a thermometer, your goal being the top, and fill it in as you raise money. If you did the AIDS Walk last year, hang up photos or awards. Get creative! Make sure people know that you are a member of the Star Walkers Club for the AIDS Walk, and you have a fundraising goal of $1,000. Make your own AIDS Walk New York Pledge-O-Meter!
FUNDRAISING EVENTS
Bake Sale. Bake sales are a sure fire way to raise money. Simply make some of your very best cookies, cupcakes, or pies. Have your co-workers and friends get involved, especially those that can’t sponsor you financially. Advertise the sale and then watch the profits come in.
Karaoke Night. Sell tickets for an evening of awful singing at a local bar or at home. Get people to donate money to stop their friends from singing or have a singing contest. Charge an entry fee and have proceeds from the ticket sales go to your Star Walker fund.
Roll Out the Barrel! Break out the ol' squeeze box and have a Polka Party! Everyone should dress in their best Polka attire and use their most convincing Midwestern accent ("hay dar guys")! Hold a Polka dance marathon to see who can dance the longest. Have people sponsor the dance teams and see if you can last until the cows come home.
Benefit Concerts/Gigs. If you know a rock band, barn dance caller, jazz group, DJ, or string quartet, ask them if they will do a benefit evening for the AIDS Walk at a local club or coffeehouse.
Flamingo Flocking. Hold a good, old-fashioned flocking at your office. Make cut-outs of pink flamingos and charge coworkers to flock their colleagues' offices or cubicles. Charge $1 per flamingo. Tape the cut-outs throughout the flockee's area. The bigger the flockin', the better!
IDEAS OF THE MONTH
January
Chili Cook Off: It’s cold outside, so warm up with a bowl of chili. Gather a couple of your friends who make a mean bowl of chili, and hold a competition for the best bowl. Guests will pay to taste and all the proceeds go to your AIDS Walk totals.
February
Valentine’s Day: The tradition on February 14 is to shower candy, gifts, and flowers on loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. Share the love in the name of AIDS
Walk New York to benefit people struggling with HIV/AIDS.
o Make “Sponsor Me” Valentine’s. Decorate personalized Valentine’s cards with information about why you’re participating in AIDS Walk New York, your goal, and instructions to sponsor you (“Go to www.aidswalk.net, click “Sponsor a Walker”, and type in my name.”)
o Throw a chocolate tasting event! This is a creative twist on your traditional wine tasting event, sure to attract a crowd! Best of all, it’s family-friendly!
o Sell single roses or flower bouquets in your school or workplace. Chocolate roses are a safe gift for non-romantic purposes, and they never go to waste!
o Solicit donations. Simply ask people to "have a heart" and donate to your cause. You can give donors a small token, such as heart-shaped candy, in return.
Award Shows: From the Oscars to the Golden Globes to the Grammys, Hollywood is abuzz with award shows this month! Whichever award show you happen to favor, turn it into a fundraiser!
o Throw a party on award show night and charge an entrance fee. Make up games to play throughout the night, like “The Red Carpet Best/Worst Dressed”. Make a list of some of the stars that will be there and have your guests rate their outfits and announce the best and worst dressed at the end of the night.
o Have a “predict the winners” contest! Print out the ballot of one of the awards shows, have people guess the winners and charge $10 for each ballot entry. Once the winners are announced, give the lucky winner, who guessed the most correctly, half the pot of money raised, and the other half goes to your AIDS Walk fundraising efforts!
March
Spring Cleaning: Spring starts on March 20. Clean out your place! Gather up items that you’d be willing to sell, encourage your friends and neighbors to do some spring cleaning as well, and bring their items to your place for a “stoop sale”. Post signs letting all your customers know that proceeds benefit AIDS Walk New York. If you don’t have a stoop, offer to clean up a friend or family members home for a donation.
St. Patrick’s Day:
o Candy Jar Guessing Game: Get a decorative jar and fill it with candy (be sure to keep a count of the candy you are putting in). Then, have people donate $2 to guess the total amount of candy in the jar – with no limit to the number of guesses. The person who comes closest to the actual number wins the candy, and you increase your AIDS Walk fundraising total!
o Sell Something Green! Help your co-workers and friends get festive. Buy shamrock fabric and make your own headbands or belts. Or sell ready-made St. Patty’s Day shamrock headbands and double the price when you sell because your proceeds are going to the AIDS Walk! You can also make some green Rice Crispy treats for a bake sale!
April
Earth Day: Celebrate the earth on April 22. Put out receptacles for people to recycle with information about your involvement with AIDS Walk. The money from the recycling benefits your AIDS Walk fundraising efforts.
Rain, Rain, Don’t Go Away: April showers brings May flowers. Use the rain to your advantage. On a rainy night (check the forecast in advance so you can plan), have your friends over for dinner. Charge admission and cook something cozy and warm.
May
National Pickle Week: Have an AIDS Walk New York Pickle sale May 19 to 24. Have your friends, co-workers pickle all sorts of things (cucumbers, artichokes, carrots, asparagus, beets, cabbage, pigs feet, eggs, etc.). Don’t like pickles? Have a sale of a dish that you make well. Offer to bring in your very best tuna casserole for lunch at the office, your co-workers will pay for their lunch by sponsoring you.
Lawn Sports Tournament: As the weather gets warmer people will be spending more time outdoors. Organize a fundraising kick ball, volleyball, badminton, or croquet tournament with your friends by charging an entrance fee that will benefit AIDS Walk New York. The wining team gets half the pot and the rest goes to your AIDS Walk fundraising total.
Carb-Loading Party: The night before the AIDS Walk, make lots of pasta and invite people over to carb-load for the 10k walkathon. They can sponsor you for a plate of pasta. This is a great opportunity to get excited for the AIDS Walk, get last minute donations from your procrastinator friends, and get additional donations from friends who might be walking with you.