One Month to Go! Keep up the Good Work.

One Month to Go!!

The countdown is on and we’re so excited about the progress all our dancers have made on fundraising. We know how hard it can be to keep that momentum going so here are 30 more fundraising ideas to help you along the way!

Super Bowl Ideas:

Super Bowl Party with a 50/50 Raffle

Raffle a chance to win cash with your employees/customers. For every dollar raised, half of the pot goes to the winner and the other half goes to CDM

Super Bowl Squares – You won’t be rooting for the Bears this year, but at least you can root for CDM! Sell squares and use half the money collected for quarterly payouts. You better hurry. Only one day left to sell those squares!

Chili Cookoff – What goes better together than chili and football? Charge an entry fee per chili submission and recruit volunteer judges.

CDM Football Challenges – We have two promotions running for Super Bowl weekend and you can use them to your advantage.  Let your friends and family know that if you raise the most money by kickoff Sunday, you could win a Mike Ditka autographed ball. Then promise that when you win, the ball will be given to the individual who made the largest donation during that time.

Spread the word – You know everyone is going to be on Facebook Sunday to cheer on their favorite team and complain about the bad calls. Let’s take advantage of that visibility and sprinkle in some CDM love. If you haven’t already, like us on Facebook, post status updates about DM, tweets, and share our Dance Marathon messages!

 

Ideas for the Office:

Chain of Hearts

During the month of February sell paper chain links and hearts to coworkers. Attach the links together to make a paper chain and use the hearts to decorate the chain. Hang it in your office to show everyone’s support for CDM.

Change a Child’s Life

Decorate glass jars with pictures of the kids or photos from DM and place them around the office.  Send your coworkers an email asking them to drop their change from lunch in the jar every day. 

Jeans Day

Professional office environment?  Ask your boss or HR department if they’d let employees wear jeans for a day in exchange for a $10 donation to CDM.

Employee Newsletter

Does your company already distribute one?  If so, ask your boss or the communications department if they would run a piece on your CDM participation with a link to your donation site.

Employee Payroll Giving

Have an open-minded HR department? Conduct an employee giving campaign through automatic paycheck deductions. And don’t forget about matching donations.  They’re a great way to double your efforts.

Brown Bag Lunch Day

Ask everyone in your company to bring lunch from home, and donate money that would have been spent for lunch.

Jail or Bail

Find a manager or exec willing to lock him or herself in a makeshift jail until a set amount of funds is released for “bail”.

VIP Parking

Would your CEO or other execs be willing to donate their reserved parking space for a week?  This can be a great motivator during a Chicago winter. You can auction it off to the highest bidder or sell raffle tickets for $5 and the winner gets the spot.

Backwards Bake Sale

Bake a couple batches of sugar cookies or other tasty treats and place 1-2 cookies in individual plastic bags.  Tie a note to each bag that says “I hope you enjoy the cookies.  I’ll be shaking my cookies for the kids at Lurie Children’s Hospital on Saturday March 2.  Donations would be appreciated!”  Include your online fundraising page link on each note and leave the cookies in the lunch room for all to enjoy.

Vendor Letters

Don’t confine the fundraising efforts to your colleagues, there are plenty of vendors and other partners you work with on a day to day basis.  Write them a short letter telling them about CDM and asking for a donation. 

Team Fundraiser Ideas

Silent Auction

Gather donations of gift certificates, spa or golf packages and other prizes and host a silent auction during another fundraising event or online.  Not sure where to get prizes?  Start with your hair salon, gym, favorite bar, etc.  You get the idea.

Poker Tournament

Work with a local venue or host it right in your basement.  Set a buy-in fee per player and either split the pot with the winner or get prizes donated from local businesses and keep all the proceeds for DM.

Service Auction

Do you and your teammates have any unique skills or talents?  Consider setting up an auction of your services....Almost any talent can be turned into a service prize…Tax Preparation, Resume Editing, Personal Training Session, Handyman Services, Handmade Scarf Knitted to the Winner’s Specifications,  Dinner for 2 Delivered to the Winner’s Door.  What other ideas can you come up with?

Flock of Flamingos

Pick up 25 plastic flamingos (or other cheesy lawn ornament) from a home and garden retailer and place them in yard of a friend, neighbor or family member, along with a ransom note:  For a $25 donation to your online fundraising account, the flamingos will be immediately removed.  For a $50 donation, they can designate where the flamingos fly to next.  If no donation is made after three days, we recommend moving the flock. (This works best for prospective donors with a sense of humor)

Wine Tasting

Work with a local wine bar or host your own home wine tasting with a variety of selections from your neighborhood wine merchant. Charge guests a standard fee for X number of tastings and be sure to have a donation jar handy.  People often feel generous after a few pours of wine.

Miniature Golf Marathon

Work with an indoor Putt Putt facility to put together a fun twist on the traditional golf outing.  Golfers pay an outing fee for a chance to win prices (get these donated by local businesses).

Funny Bowling Tournament

Set silly rules for each frame (bowl between your legs, bowl with your eyes closed, kick the ball with two feet) and set a prize for the best score of the night.  Bowlers pay an entry fee.  Be sure to ask the bowling alley for a special discount.

Bag Toss Tournament
This doesn’t have to be a summer sport.  Gain access to a local school or community center gymnasium and set up bag boards.  Charge an entry fee per team with the winner keeping half the pot and the other half going to DM.

Craft Show
Ask a local craft show organizer to donate a free space, then work with your teammates to create handmade gifts to sell at the show.  No Sew fleece blankets are a great easy craft anyone can make, but use the talents of your team to come up with other ideas.

Art Show
Are you a dancing mom? Teacher? Nanny?  Have the kids draw or paint one of a kind masterpieces. Then mat and frame them (using inexpensive frames) and host an auction online or in conjunction with another event.

Easy Ideas You Can Do Yourself:

Guest Bartend:
Ask your favorite local hangout if they’d let you man the bar for a night and keep all tips for CDM.

Stake Out

Ask the local big box, convenience store or bar to let you set up a table at the entrance for a day and ask shoppers for a small donation on their way in or out of the store.  Those small donations can really add up in a big way!
 

Hit the Streets

Take an opportunity to get out and meet your neighbors.  Just like your old cookie selling days, go door to door to let everyone know you’re dancing and ask for a donation.  Don’t want to knock?  Then write up a short flyer about why CDM is important to you, include your online donation link, and leave the flyer on everyone’s door.

Catalog Party
From custom handbags to gourmet food items to storage containers.  Many of the most popular catalog party companies will actually allow you to host a charity catalog party and keep the profits for CDM.

Tips for Kids
Are you a server, stylist or other service worker.  Designate a day or two between now and March 2 when your tips will go to CDM.  Then create a button that says “All Tips Today go to Chicago Dance Marathon” so customers know to be extra generous.  Not only is this a great fundraising idea, but it’s also a great way to tell the world about CDM.