Fundraising Tips

Easiest Way to Raise $200

Lead by example and donate $20 to yourself. Then ask 4 friends for $20

Ask 20 friends to donate $5 each

Fun Ways to Team FUNdraise 

Auction - Auction off sports tickets, gift certificates, lunches with a VIP. Book/Movie Sale - How many times can you read or watch Harry Potter? Recycle for $$. Car Wash - An oldie but a goodie!   Dance Party - Host a sock hop, beach party, disco, square dance or dance for senior citizens. Dinner - Potluck/Pancake/Spaghetti...whatever you can cook easily and people can eat a lot of! Flower and Plant Sale - Sell corsages, house plants, garden plants, bouquets etc. Garage or Yard Sale - Have team members clean out their basements and have a team sale. Gift Wrapping - During the holidays set up at a local mall or store and gift wrap for a donation. Handyman for a Day - Shovel snow, rake leaves, mow lawns, walk dogs etc. for a donations. Hot Dog For Cancer - Team captain agrees to dress up like a hot dog if the team reaches goal and lets everyone squirt ketchup, mustard and relish all over him/her. Ice Cream Social - Have an ice cream party with lots of do-it-yourself topping options. Casual Friday- For donations employees can wear jeans/casual clothes to work on selected Fridays. Relay Moons - Collect donations by displaying cut out suns and moons cut outs (available through your American Cancer Society staff partner) to honor or in memory of loved ones. Ask local retailers and ask them to offer suns and moons to their customers and create a display around the cash register.

Lotta Bottles - Hold a bottle/can drive and go door-to-door to collect them from neighbors. Bake Sale - Have a bakesale where everyone makes their favorite dessert item. Or let people get out of baking by making a $ donation.  Penny Wars - Set up coin jars by team or department.  The team with the most points wins a prize!  Pennies are worth positive points, other coin amounts are deducted.  Sabotage the other teams by dropping silver coins and cash into their jars! Pizza Box Promotion - Ask a local pizza franchise to agree to tape Relay Luminaria/Survivor Lap/ Donation forms on all their pizza boxes. Restaurants to the Rescue - Ask local restaurants to donate a portion of proceeds of a day's proceeds. Skunk 'em - Pass around a stuffed skunk (on desks or in rooms). People need to give a donation to be "de-skunked"  Team Challenges - I can do anything you can do BETTER! Who can raise the most $, send most emails/ letters etc.? Trick-Or-Treat - Get together on Halloween with decorated Relay cans and go door-to-door asking for spare change or donations. Windshield Washing - Ask a fast-food drive thru if you can collect donations for washing windshields. Wishing You Well - Set up a "wishing well" at your local school, business, church or store with a sign stating that all the proceeds benefit the American Cancer Society Relay For Life.

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Letter Writing Tips

The most successful teams use a combined approach of individual and team fundraising. The best way to raise money individually is to write letters. You can make it a team effort if you get together, make some snacks and get writing! Write personal letters to your family, friends and co-workers, and let them know how cancer has impacted your life. Share your feelings and the stories of those you know who have survived their cancer, have lost the battle, or are still fighting the disease. Compose a one-page letter. Write your own as if you are sending it individually to a close friend. Adjust one copy to send via mail and one to send via email Balance fact with feeling. Include what Relay is (fact); why you are involved/what it means to you (feeling); where and when your Relay is (fact); where the money goes (fact); describe the luminaria ceremony and how to purchase one (feeling and fact); remind them to seek a company gift match if offered (fact). Make copies of the letter, but handwrite in colored ink on the top of the letter the person's name and a quick line, "Hope you can support me!" Sign it to add a personal touch. It can also be compelling to include a pic of who you Relay for. Make it easy for people to donate! Include a self-addressed return envelope when you mail the letter as well as a donation form Send the e-mail to everyone who has ever sent you something! For e-mails, make sure to blind copy (bcc) them all. They don't need to see who is receiving your note. This can result in over 100 emails!  (HINT, if you take a little extra time to send out individual e-mails and start with Dear NAME on the top of your message, you will get a better response!) Early on in your message, make the ask. Don't limit your donors, but do ask for a specific range: "$10, $20, $50 or whatever your budget will allow." Give a 10 day deadline for a response. People respond when there is a sense of urgency. Tell them to write a check made out to the American Cancer Society and send it to your address. Or, if you're sending e-mail, encourage them to click on the link to you Web page where they can make a secure online donation. Now, sit back and watch the donations pile up. And they will. Make sure to send a brief handwritten THANK YOU immediately upon receiving a check. If they donate online, send an e-mail.