Charity Events/Fundraising Events /Non-profit events - Setting targets and objectives

Fundraisers are events where the objective is to raise money for an organization or cause. Events
are a powerful fundraising tool for charities and nonprofits — if not the most powerful
fundraising channel. Charity / non-profit events are, for the most part, fundraisers—although
some charity / non-profit events are held for the purpose of education and awareness, rather than
raising money.

For example, a charity / non-profit might hold a press launch event whereby a celebrity endorses
a particular long-term fundraising initiative. No fundraising is done at the event and no tickets
are sold to it, rather the objective is to communicate an on-going campaign to the media. In 2013,
Beyonce launched Gucci’s new charity Chime for Change, which aims to raise and awareness
for girls' and women's empowerment by sharing ‘powerful stories’ from females around the
world.
"As a charity / fundraising / non-profit event planner, you have to bear in mind that you actually
have two roles, that of event planner and that of fundraiser. Your job is to create an event from
start to finish, ensure it runs smoothly, and also ensure you hit your financial targets for the
charity. The funds can’t be raised without the event taking place and if the event isn’t organized
correctly, it will have a negative impact on the fundraising—so basically you’re under twice the
pressure.” Farida Haqiqi is the former Events Manager for The British Red Cross

Planning a Successful Charity Event

Step 1: Define your cause/purpose and Plan
Step 2: Set a fundraising goal
In conjunction with the event host committee, organization staff, and key fundraisers,
you must decide what amount of money you plan to raise at the event. If this is truly a
fundraising event, then everything in the event plan will be geared to raising this specific
amount of money. The amount you choose should be what you hope to net, that is, the
amount you plan to raise after expenses are deducted.
Step 3: Create your charity event’s budget
You’ll need to raise funds above and beyond the amount you’re going to spend. A budget
will help keep your costs in perspective and get more for your money. Make sure it
includes every single detail — from the venue to the catering to the parking valets.
Always leave a little room in your budget for the unpredictable. Better to exceed your
goals than have them eaten into by unforeseen expenses.
Budgeting tips to consider include:
Opting for a single-plate meal as opposed to a buffet, or sticking to light refreshments
Entertainment – instead of hiring a professional entertainer, look for one willing to
volunteer his time.
Swag items – limit swag to small items that can be produced by the quantity at a low
cost, such as pens, coasters, and keychains.

Step 4: Pinpoint a target audience

Market it appropriately. Does your charity appeal to a particular generation or type of
interest? Is it a local fundraiser or a universal cause? Is it going to be an invite-only,
black-tie affair, or will you reach out to the general public?
 By defining your audience, you can determine the best ways to reach potential attendees
and donors. From there, your marketing and outreach plan will follow.
Step 5: Solicit sponsors
Step 5: Decide on your registration amount/ entry fee
Step 5: Find a venue, Book speakers (or host your own event), Entertainers, and Caterers
Choose a venue, possibly something non-traditional that will infuse your event with flair.
Shop around. Some venues might be willing to discount or even donate the space to be
associated with a good cause. Being flexible with your date can help secure a venue at a
lower cost.
Step 6: Establish a theme for your charity event
 Venue
 Layout, flow and decor
 Ancillary services (toilets , electric heaters,
 Menu Planning - "When it comes to creating the menu, you need to consider your
audience carefully—bearing in mind that people have paid a premium for their
ticket, maybe $1,000+ a plate. The food has to reflect the ticket price, yet still be
within your budget. (If you’re organizing a small function, you can request any
dietary requirements in advance, so your guests can specify if they can’t eat any
particular food, but for large-scale events, it’s generally safer to stay clear of pork
and shellfish as you will more than likely have Muslim and Jewish guests.)

People are excited to support a cause, but they also want to have a great time. Millennials
in particular are “the experiences generation.” They love spending money creating
memories, and the theme of your event will help tease what awaits.
Remember: “Raise money” is not a theme. “Singles charity night” is. To inspire donors,
come up with a fun, unique idea they’ll be excited to attend (and recap on their social
media feeds).
Step 7: Market your charity event aggressively
All events need marketing, but some need more marketing than others. For a charity
event or fundraiser, spreading the word is crucial — it directly affects your ability to meet
and exceed your goals.
Traditional fundraising models include mailed invitations, phone banks, and direct mail.
Today, of course, we have digital at our disposal. Create a strategy for which digital
channels you’ll employ: email marketing, content marketing, advertising, and more.
Social media is one of your biggest allies here. And specifically Twitter, which has been
shown to be a powerful platform for promoting fundraisers. In fact, a single share of an
event on Twitter generates an average of $8 in ticket purchases.
Step 8: Decide how you’ll accept donations (Set up registrations)
You’ll need at least one way to gather donations. But for the best (meaning most
lucrative) results, don’t limit yourself to just one donation method.
Start with an online event ticketing platform, which can take digital and mobile payments
in advance and help you track them. The best can also offer full-service payment
processing with enhanced options like reserved seating and direct deposits into your bank
account.
For at-the-door sales, choose a ticketing provider that provides an app to expedite last-
minute sales.
 And for those who can’t make the actual event, make it easy to give. Technology called
Text to Donate is pretty self-explanatory. You can also set up a donation option on your
event page for quick and easy digital giving.
Step 9: Lean on your greater community
Millennials love to express themselves online. Nearly half of them admit to attending live
events to have something to share on social. So give them something to share by
providing rich online content. And incentivize them to share your cause online with a
ticket giveaway.
There are other ways to arm your community with fundraising power, too. With
CrowdRise, enable ticket-buyers to create their own fundraising pages to support your
cause. Their networks then become an extended fundraising audience for your cause.
Step 10: Automate your charity event technology
Most fundraising and charity events don’t have enormous budgets (see step 4). Any way
you can make your operations or marketing more efficient will lower your costs. Today,
it’s easy to automate many tasks that humans do repetitively.
Automated emails can give attendees detailed event information upon ticket purchase.
Social media management tools can consolidate your posting and tracking efforts across
platforms. These are just a few ideas. For in-depth insight, read How to Use Event
Automation to Scale Your Events Business.
Step 11: Working with Volunteers and Committees
Step 11: Practise
While you probably won’t need a full run-through of your event, it is essential that
everyone who is working the event know, ahead of time, what their responsibilities are,
where they should be during the event, and how the event is going to “flow.” If you are
having a large or unusual event, the key event staff may want to have a practice run to
make sure that your operation is running smoothly.
Step 12: Evaluate our goals in the end through a follow up
Step 13: Thank you
One of the most oft heard complaints from contributors to charitable fundraising events is,
“They never even said ‘thank-you.’” Ditto for your event volunteers. Make sure that the
organization takes the time to send thank-you notes to everyone who is involved in your
event, including contributors, volunteers, staff and vendors. Keep your donors happy…
you’re probably going to be asking them for another donation sometime down the road.
* Continue to Promote After the Event
Your cause is an ongoing one, which is why awareness and contributions should continue well
after the event. Continue to use the event hashtag for a few more days and also encourage people
to continue to donate, all while keeping your followers updated on the total contribution amount
and how the funds will be dispersed.
In the weeks after, share pics or posts related to post-event activity. Perhaps this can be a pic of
you presenting a giant check to that children’s hospital you were raising funds for, or
construction work to build that park in the inner city neighborhood that your event helped pay
for.
People are donating because they care about the cause, so remind them of the difference that they
are a part of.
People like you and your nonprofit org truly make a difference. By following these guidelines
during charity event planning, you’ll maximize the positive impact and become a beacon of hope
for your noble cause.
* Think like a Donor
Fundraisers and charity / non-profit events can take many different forms, one of the most
common being a gala dinner or ‘ball’ consisting of a drinks reception, dinner, entertainment,
speeches, auctions or raffles, and dancing. However, there are many other different types
including:
gala dinners
Donations
Prize
Auctions and raffles...............tambola.....video games fun games at a price
Sale of products and merchandise
fashion shows
theatre and art previews
music concerts / stand up comedy shows
sporting and other challenge-based events... 3. bowling for a cause
‘pop-up’ shops and other sales
meetings and conferences
Gift wrapping at the mall over the holidays
Haunted house or maze leading up to Halloween
A summer picnic series in the park with live music or magic shows
A spring garden party complete with cocktails and horderves
Leaf raking teams that go from neighborhood to neighborhood
And some additional ideas for fall decor for events, winter-themed events, and spring event
themes
Award Ceremonies

Award Ceremonies could be organized by companies for their employees or they could as huge
as Oscars or Grammy's. Planning an awards ceremony can be an immense undertaking. The
purpose is to recognise the achievements of the people in your organization or in the industry
that went above and beyond their duty. You want to make it a moment of grandeur for the
recipients but also make it fun and worthwhile for the rest of the spectators that may otherwise
get bored listening to speech after speech.

Having a clear event strategy is key for the success of the occasion. Regardless of what
achievement you are aiming for, the main benefits to any event of this kind are:

 Increasing brand awareness

 Gaining additional donations or revenue from ticket sales and sponsorships

1. HAVE AN EVENT PLAN OR BLUEPRINT

2. CHOOSE A SUITABLE VENUE
3. HAVE A THEME
4. KNOW YOUR PRODUCTION BUDGET
Venue & decor
AV
Catering
Customised trophies
Entertainment Cost
Unforeseen Costs
5. ARRANGE FOR LOGISTICS AND ACCOMODATION
6. PROGRAMME AND REHEARSAL MANAGEMENT
7. AUDIO VISUAL DESIGN AND SUPPORT
8. STAGE DESIGN
9. VIDEO PRODUCTION/PHOTOGRAPHY
10. PLAN THE DETAILED EVENT SCHEDULE & ENTERTAINMENT SEQUENCE
Offer a wide range of creative awards categories or games.
Ideas for awards ceremonies have to include entertainment in one form or
another. The majority of the guests are not award recipients, and a good number
probably don’t even know any of the people being honoured. These people are
going to lose interest really quickly. The formal ceremony and speeches precedes
the entertainment. The latter is what many of the guests will be looking forward
to.
11. ARRANGE FOR THE SPEAKERS/HOST/MASTER OF CEREMONY
12. MAKE SPACE AND TIME FOR NETWORKING (as per layout & schedule)
13. AWARD MANAGEMENT
14. AWARD SONG\VIDEO
15. MARKETING THE EVENT
16. MEDIA COVERAGE TO BE PLANNED (if required)
17. FOOD AND DRINKS
18. ADD VALUE
 Roll out the red carpet
Make it luxurious
19. COMBINE YOUR AWARDS CEREMONY WITH ANOTHER EVENT
can also be doubled as a networking conference, gala dinner, charity event, etc
20. THANK YOU & POST EVENT EVALUATION