We have compiled a short list of some creative fundraising ideas that may help you raise funds for your upcoming music mission trip!
T-SHIRT FUNDRAISER: This is a fun and quite simple way to raise money for your trip! We would like to recommend a great and FREE tool called bonfire.com. First you create a nice t-shirt, and then you start a campaign (it can last for example 21 days) where people can go online and purchase the t-shirt directly. You can choose to design your own shirt (they have great tools there for you to create a simple design), upload a design you have someone create for you (you may also be able to use websites such as fiverr.com for a very cheap yet professional design) or get in touch with us if you would like to use one of GTM’s standard designs for free.
WHAT DOES THIS COST?
There is no cost with bonfire.com
However, you can choose to order t-shirts locally from another company to make more money per shirt, and sell them in person (you can also make bulk-orders of shirts directly from bonfire.com to sell in person). With most t-shirt companies you probably have to purchase the shirts up front, and you may run the risk of not selling all of them. But, we suggest you talk to your local t-shirt company to see what deals they offer. They may be able to come up with something that will work very well for you!
HOW MUCH CAN I RAISE?
With bonfire.com, the more shirts you sell, the more you make per shirt. If you sell about 50 of them (depending on type of shirt), you will usually be able to make about $500 (US dollar). If you design a nice shirt, and you put in a little extra effort in your marketing, you could possibly cover the entire cost of your trip with this!
INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP FUNDRAISER?
This can be used for either.
For a group, you would obviously have to sell a lot of t-shirts to offset the trip-cost for many people. But, you can also do more than one campaign with different designs each time to keep it exciting and potentially even sell more than one shirt to each customer.
KEEP IN MIND:
bonfire.com is a USA based company. There is a shipping cost of a few dollars for the customer ($3-4 within the USA). They also ship internationally, so this can be used in many countries; the international shipping rates are about 9-10 US dollars.
CONCERT FUNDRAISER: This requires more work than the T-SHIRT fundraiser, but it can be really fun, and is a highly effective way to invite people to support you and to hear about your trip! This fundraiser can also be combined with other fundraisers, such a t-shirt fundraiser, selling food/baked goods, a raffle, etc. Check out https://www.gtmministries.com/post/how-to-put-on-your-own-fundraising-concert for more tips on how to put on a fundraising concert! WHAT DOES THIS COST? We suggest you try to keep the costs as low as possible for this; such as asking your church/school etc to give you the venue for free, having volunteers help out with everything/most things. If you have to pay for everything; it may potentially not be worth it, so make sure you lower or even eliminate the costs. HOW MUCH CAN I RAISE? This depends a lot on your network, how many people come, and what type of fundraising you do there. If you base it solely on giving, the amount will not usually be very large (although for an individual, you could potentially raise the entire trip cost). However, if you make sure you have some creative ways for them to spend money at the concert in addition to the giving (food, baked goods, raffle, etc), you can usually raise an amount of money that will be significant to the various group members. INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP FUNDRAISER? This can be used for either. But it can be a lot of work (although potentially a great pay-off) for a single individual, while for a group this can be both pretty simple and a lot of fun!
RAFFLE FUNDRAISER: This is really entertaining and fun; and a tool that is used often and very effectively in Europe, and is especially common in fundraising for mission organizations.
HOWEVER, please note that it is not usually used within churches in the USA, mainly as it’s viewed as gambling.
This is great to do as a live (in-person) event, but can also be done quite effectively online. It can also be done in combination with a (mini) concert to draw a larger crowd.
WHAT DOES THIS COST?
We suggest you try to keep the costs at a minimum. It can be done pretty much for free if you make it an online event. A live event can be done for free as well if you get the venue for free, and volunteers to help etc. There may be a few minimal costs in purchasing raffle tickets, etc. The major potential cost to this is of course the raffle prices. BUT, we suggest you spend time beforehand in reaching out to companies, local businesses, friends etc to get some good prices donated for the cause. This is also a great time to challenge your creative friends to make some prices; such as knitting, artwork etc. And sometimes the most popular prices can be something anyone can make; such as a basket filled with fruit and candy! :) You can even add to the number of prices (making it likely for many to win) by donating something simple and affordable (candy bars, a box of cookies etc). The more prices and the more “rounds” of tickets you can sell, the better.
HOW MUCH CAN I RAISE? This depends on your network, the prices you have been given, and the work you put in to it. There is potential to raise a really good amount here that may be helpful in lowering the trip cost of the group members.
INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP FUNDRAISER? This works best for groups.
KEEP IN MIND: There may be certain rules within various countries in regards to raffles. So please check that out before you proceed. OTHER OPTIONS: RESTAURANT FUNDRAISER: Many restaurants will offer the opportunity to partner on a fundraiser at their location. It basically works like this: You bring in people to eat there for one evening, and you get a percentage of the proceeds for the people in your company. This is very easy, and it’s always fun to meet for a dinner. However, it’s usually not LARGE amounts to be made on this, but it’s so simple! And everything helps, right? This works the best for groups that have really large networks; such as a choir or school etc.
ENVELOPE FUNDRAISER: This type of fundraiser works best if you are in a very specific location. For example at a church. You can calculate how much you need to raise, and write various amounts on the front of envelopes (one amount per envelope). These amounts together make up the total amount that you are trying to raise. You then pin the envelopes on a board in a place visible to many (such as a lobby/front entrance). People who would like to support can then chose an envelope that works for them and put that exact amount inside of the envelope. It will be exciting to see when there are less and less envelopes left. We suggest you have many envelopes with small amounts written on them so that many people can join, instead of a few envelopes with large amounts written on them.
LOCAL COMMUNITY FUNDRAISERS: Many places offer fundraising opportunities for groups, which are only available in your community. Talk to your local community leaders to see if there is anything available for your group. This will ofte be a day of community service of various kinds (picking trash, collecting bottles for recycling, counting merchandize for businesses at the beginning of the year etc). These local community fundraisers are usually one-day projects, so even if the projects may not be the most exciting things to do; it can still be a great day of work together with your friends!
SELLING PRODUCTS: There may also be other local/national fundraisers specifically designed for groups; to sell products for a cut/percentage of the proceeds. These products are often very mainstream products that are easy to sell, such as toilet paper, paper towels, etc.
It will usually be a campaign that can be done within a short period of time. DONATION PAGES: You can get a donation page from GTM Ministries to ask people to support your trip through social media. This works in many ways like GoFundMe, but the money goes straight into your account at GTM Ministries. This means that there are no fees in regards to this; and for the people donating (if they live within the USA), it will be tax deductible as GTM Ministries is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. This is of course very easy, and is most effectively used among friends and family. (PS - the money donated here are non-refundable as the IRS prohibits us from giving refunds - and in case of any cancellation - they can be used toward a future music mission trip, or for the general work of GTM)
GRANTS & BUSINESSES: Sometimes there are various grants available where you live that will support groups or individuals for various projects. We suggest you check with some of the community leaders that may know about what is available. And there may also be local businesses (especially if there are owners invested in what you do) that may be interested in helping support your trip. Depending on the size and success of the business, the amount you can possibly receive will vary. EXTRA JOBS: For individuals, there are extra jobs that are easy to take on, which you can do at your convenience and as long as you need it. And pretty much anybody can sign up. In the USA you have for example the food delivery app DOOR DASH along with a few others. You can often quite easily make $100 in one evening by delivering food. Maybe there are other options like that where you live?
Please let us know if you have other suggestions! And we can keep growing the list and help more people travel on music mission trips! :)