Charity Fundraising Ideas

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Online Sites

There are a number of online sites that you can use to help you raise money for a cause. What you may not be aware of though is that many of them make money from this. So for example JustGiving is a popular site for people to raise money on but it is a for profit organisation. It was launched in 2001. At the time of writing JustGiving charges a fee of 5% on donations. The positive side though is that JustGiving would argue that they are very successful in helping people raise a lot of money, in fact they have raised £3.4 bn in 164 countries. But there are other websites available  that will help you raise money.

BT MyDonate is a not for profit online fundraising service which charges no commission, no set up fee and no monthly subscription charges. There is also Wonderful.org, Virgin Money Giving, TheBigGive.org.uk, and PayPal Giving Fund. Do check them out and see if they work for your fundraising. Our advice however would be to check if they are profit or non profit making and to check all fees.

Cake Sale

This is one of the more traditional ways of making money for your chosen charity. They can however be highly effective. The key things to remember about a cake sake is to bake  cakes that people want and recognise. Most popular cakes include lemon drizzle, chocolate cake, coffee cake and biscuits. Make sure none of the cakes you bake contain nuts. Avoid cakes filled with cream as these don't keep well and can quickly collapse. You also need to ensure that you are making more than it costs to bake the cake. Scones are one of the best ideas. they are relatively cheap to make and are popular.

Supermarket Bag Packing

If you choose a busy supermarket and a busy time of the year like Xmas charities say you can make a lot of money. This is something often popular with children groups as they can get involved. The key is to get the permission from the supermarket first. Some get so many requests you may need to book a slot quite a bit in advance.

Marathon Running

Running a marathon is also  a great idea to raise funds. The London Marathon is in fact the largest annual fundraising event on the planet, runners have raised more than £890 million for good causes.since 1981.Many charities enter for the London Marathon as well as individual runners. To find out more about the London marathon contact them online.

50-50 Club

This may be one of the oldest ideas in the book but its surprisingly simple. If you are a school or club say you get everyone to donate a pound a month. You draw a winner every month and give them half of the value of the donated amount. The rest is for the charity and so it goes on each month.

Foreign Coin Exchange

Collecting every ones unwanted foreign currency could be a good way to make some money, particularly over the summer when people are getting foreign currency,

Top Tips For Raising Money

Whether you want to bake, organise a quiz night in your local pub, run a marathon there are a number of things that can really help you fundraise. Here we list a few of them

• Look at setting up an online way for people to give you money. We've listed a few of them at the start of this guide. Do be aware that some are not for profit but they will make it easy for people living anywhere to donate for your cause.
• Set yourself a target. Setting a target can help to focus your mind on what you are trying to achieve and motivate you.Try to be realistic about what you can achieve, its far better to smash a target than not to reach it. Keep a running total so that people can see what is being achieved.
• Plan out a programme of different events. If there are a group of you look at what people what to do. Holding a bake sale once a week can raise a good few £100 each week which soon adds up. Do space out the activities though as if you are not careful people could feel bombarded by your charity.
• Use social media channels. this can again help to raise your profile, instagarm, Linkedin, Twitter and Facebook can all help you here.