Fundraisers: 4 Guaranteed Steps to Help You Raise One Million Cedis

23rd Jun 2018 | Source: Kafui Dey

(The importance of deep pockets, starting early, thinking big and keeping it fun)

Fundraisers, how would you like to bring in one million Cedis at your book launches and charity events? I have done exactly that over the last ten years and you can too.

If you follow my method, you are guaranteed to raise at least 40,000 Cedis at your next event. Repeat the process for the next 24 events and you will hit the million mark.

There are only 4 steps you have to remember to make this possible.

Get great guests.

By all means invite your friends and family and work colleagues to support you at your book launch or charity fundraiser. But make sure you also have people with deep pockets to support you. Why? Because they are able to give large amounts of cash or write big cheques to support you financially. It’s a fact. Your relatives and friends will come to the event to give you moral support which is well and good. However, when was the last time moral support paid for refreshments and the event venue? Never.

Case in point. I emceed and raised funds recently at the launch of a non-governmental organization for mental health issues. Fully 80% of the proceeds were traced to the contributions of one businessman and 4 members of parliament.

It also helps if you can invite executives from recognized bodies as guests. Often the organization mandates its representatives to make a donation on its behalf and this can go a long way to swelling your fundraising coffers.

Start early

This is crucial to the success of your fundraiser. Assume you have invited the VIPs with deep pockets to your event. Don’t make them leave without giving because the event started late or dragged drag with speech after speech and performance after performance before getting to the real business of asking people for their money.

I have attended fundraisers where potential donors excused themselves after sitting for an hour and left the event. If this happens to you, pray that they leave a cheque behind as their donation. Even if that happens, the amount given is likely to be far less than if they gave the money during the event.

Start the event on time and get to the actual fundraiser quickly. There will be more time for speeches and musical interludes after the giving has been done.

Aim high

If you are selling items via an auction to raise funds, do some background work before the auction to find out which are the highest priced items. Start by auctioning them off first. And please make sure you get an auctioneer who is not scared to start high.

I have attended fundraisers where the auctioneer started off by asking for 1,000 Cedis when there were people in the hall who could have given 10,000 without batting an eyelid. And once someone has given a low amount, it is virtually impossible for others to give more.

Experience has taught me to always aim for more. If my client gives me a target of 40,000, I set my target 25% higher at 50,000 Cedis. My aim is to raise 20% of my personals target with the first donation. Expecting one person to cough up 10,000 Cedis may sound ambitious but remember, if you invited a few key guests as described in Step 1, you would have a few people in the audience who can easily give this amount.

So I smile and ask not for 10,000 but 13,000 0r even 14,000. There are some days I get lucky and someone gives the first amount I ask for. Most times, after announcing the initial offer and getting little response, I discount it to say 10,000. Which is the amount I wanted in the first place. It works.

The next step is to find 2 donors who can give a slightly lower figure than 10,000, say 8.000 each. When that round is done, I look for 3 donors at 5,000. With a total of 6 donors you will have raised more than 50% of your fundraising sum in a short while.

Keep it fun

Entertainment is the name of the game, even when people are donating what may seem to be eye-watering amounts of money. The fundraiser is responsible for keeping the audience in a good mood. I have this mantra I teach my audiences: “If you are not giving, you are clapping!” It keeps the energy levels in the room high and engages everyone. It also prevents the event from becoming a mere spectator sport.

I also encourage members of the audience to “betray” people in the audience who can make a large donation. It always makes the atmosphere lively and interactive. At the end, even those who did not give feel they were part of the process and everyone goes ways knowing they contributed to the success of the event,

This system has worked for me for over a decade. It does not matter what you are raising funds for, be it a book launch or the inauguration of a new foundation. These steps will guarantee that you raise at least 40,000 Cedis at your event. To recap, here they are: