Nonprofit Raffles and Sweepstakes

Fundraising is an integral part of a nonprofit’s existence, as it allows these organizations to secure the necessary resources to carry out their mission. Here are some common fundraising methods:

• Fundraising events or galas. These formal events include dinner, entertainment, auctions, and appeals for donations.
• Crowdfunding campaigns for specific projects or needs using sites such as GoFundMe or Kickstarter.
• Donation drives – Nonprofits collect donated items like food, clothing, books, etc. to support their cause.
• Direct mail/letter campaigns – Nonprofits send out appeals and information by mail asking supporters to donate.
• Membership programs – Nonprofits offer exclusive benefits and events to members who donate set amounts each year.
• Charity events such as walks or runs – Participants collect pledges and donations for completing a 5K, marathon, etc.
• Donation programs – Nonprofits accept donated cars, boats, RVs and many other valuable items which they can sell at auction.
• Corporate sponsorships – Nonprofits partner with corporations for cause-marketing campaigns, event sponsorships, etc.
• Celebrity endorsements – Celebrities lend their star power to fundraising campaigns.
• Merchandise sales – Nonprofits sell branded apparel, bags, mugs, etc. to raise unrestricted funds.
• Planned giving or bequests – Nonprofits encourage supporters to name them in their wills and estate plans.

One method that is often combined with the above-mentioned methods is the winner drawing. We will take a deeper look at how nonprofits use winner drawings for fundraising, the regulations surrounding raffles, best practices for organizing and marketing winner drawings, and real-world examples of effective winner drawings.

Winner Drawings for Nonprofits

Winner drawings can be a mighty tool in a nonprofit’s fundraising arsenal. They offer a unique way to engage donors, motivate higher spending, and attract a broader audience.

People are more likely to donate if they know they could win something in return. Even small prize drawings can boost donations. The allure of winner drawings lies in the potential for a win-win situation – donors contribute to a worthy cause and simultaneously stand a chance to win a prize. This double incentive can make the donation experience more exciting and personally rewarding for the participant.

Unlike a traditional donation where the giver receives a thank-you note or a tax write-off, the competitive element of a drawing adds an element of fun and anticipation. Prizes often vary from small tokens of appreciation to grand prizes like vacations, cars, or even houses, further stimulating interest and participation.

A well-executed winner drawing can encourage individuals to donate more than they usually would. The prospect of winning an appealing prize can motivate donors to increase their donation amount, the size of the donation can raise the number of entries in the drawing.

Moreover, drawings can attract a wider audience – people who may not have previously considered donating to a particular cause might be enticed to contribute due to the added benefit of the potential prize.

Raffles or sweepstakes can build your donor email list. To enter drawings, people need to provide their contact info.

It’s also worth noting that winner drawings can generate buzz and publicity for the nonprofit organization. As people share it with their friends and family, the organization and its cause can reach a larger audience. This can lead to increased awareness about the nonprofit’s work, attracting new donors and volunteers.

As with any fundraising strategy, it’s essential to implement the drawings in a transparent and ethical manner, ensuring that the process is fair, and the focus remains on the causes that the organization serves.

Drawings work for non-profits of any size. From local charities to large national groups, winner drawings are an accessible and effective fundraising tool. The format is easily scalable.

Be Transparent – Fairness Is Critical.

Fairness is important to feel like a legitimate chance to support a cause, not just the specific fundraising event. Transparency builds good faith with donors and sets proper expectations about your organization.

Use a random number generator or other impartial method like publicly pulling tickets from a bin to select the winner. Have the drawing supervised or conducted by an independent third party to verify fairness. This could be a public notary, or lawyer. Another option is using a third-party drawing service to remove bias and make the drawing verifiably random. Yes – that’s when RandomPicker comes into play.

Keep contest rules simple. Overly complex rules create loopholes and confusion. Clearly disclose number of tickets, prizes, rules for participation, and other important information.

Participant and Entries

How do you actually collect participant entries and choose winners? While the old-school methods still work, new online options streamline the process.

Traditional Offline Entry Collection: The classic way to collect drawing entries is by selling physical paper tickets. This involves printing numbered ticket stubs and distributing them to sellers around the community. Buyers receive the stub as proof of entry. All stubs then get collected and thrown into a hat or bin for the drawing. You can also collect entries by accepting names, emails, and phone numbers written directly on paper sign-up sheets. Compiling these into a spreadsheet allows you to assign each a number. Print the list, cut into strips, and add to the drawing bin.

While these manual methods work, they mean lots of paper to organize and store. Transferring information to spreadsheets is also time-consuming and prone to data entry errors.

Streamlined Online Entry Options: For digital-friendly nonprofits, online forms simplify collecting drawing entries. Online entry collection saves nonprofits time by eliminating manual data entry. Digital access also makes it easy for supporters to participate from anywhere. For drawing management that’s easy, efficient, and engaging, digital entry collection is ideal for modern nonprofits.

You can create a basic submission form using an online form builder like Google Forms, MS Forms, TypeForm, MailChimp, SurveyMonkey or any other form solution. For WordPress websites, there are several form plugins like WP Forms, Ninja Forms and others. They allow participants to submit their information so you can easily download the list and process the entries. RandomPicker supports imports from several different file types (xlsx, csv, txt).

RandomPicker also provides a registration form feature that collects entries and stores them directly in the platform for easy drawing. You can choose from several different drawing mechanics:

• Participants get random prizes; every participant has the same chance of winning.
• Participants get random prizes; each participant can have a different chance of winning (the more tickets they buy, the higher is the chance to win).
• Participants can win their preferred prize by allocating their tickets into the specific prize/s.

Raffle Prizes

The prizes offered are one of the most important factors in a nonprofit raffle. Attractive prizes entice participation, help sell more tickets, and enable you to raise more money for your cause. Taking time to curate exciting prizes tailored to your audience is key: handpick prizes your supporters would love to win.

One big prize or many small prizes?

Offer multiple prizes. Having only one prize means very low odds. Multiple prizes give more people a chance.

Rather than just one standout prize, having multiple prize levels and options broadens appeal. Offering both the chance at a big prize along with consolation prizes increases participation. Prizes like gift cards, gift baskets, and branded merchandise can have lower costs while still exciting donors.

It’s recommended to keep total prize values under 10% of your fundraising goals. You can also try to find prize donors or negotiate sponsorship deals with local businesses to reduce out-of-pocket expenses. Here are some useful tips for negotiating prize sponsorship:

• Make a wish list of ideal prizes and reach out to relevant businesses that could donate those items. Clearly explain how they would benefit from the exposure/publicity. Frame the sponsorship as an opportunity to align their brand with a meaningful cause that fits their target consumer or improve relationship with local communities.
• See if you can trade marketing exposure to your base in return for no-cost or discounted prizes. Offer sponsor logos and mentions in all raffle promotions and materials as well as web and social media recognition. Sponsors are often interested in advertising value and website backlinks.
• Leverage any connections board members or key supporters have with local businesses and get introductions to decision-makers.
• Negotiate deals of partial monetary sponsorship and partial in-kind donation if needed to offset costs.
• Propose creative co-promotional opportunities around the prize:
  • Sponsor sets up a booth/table at the event to engage attendees and promote their business.
  • Raffle tickets sold at the sponsor’s retail locations.
  • Sponsors mentioned in all promotional announcements about the prize they are providing.
  • Digital ad or video ad from the sponsor plays at the raffle drawing event between announcements.
  • Sponsor provides coupons or samples to all raffle ticket purchasers.
  • Sponsor is invited to announce their sponsored prize at the event.
  • Raffle winners are announced on the sponsor’s social media as well as the nonprofit’s channels.
  • Sponsor name/logo on keepsake certificates for raffle ticket purchasers.
  • VIP tickets for sponsor executives to attend nonprofit’s event.