Whether your booster club is part of an affluent community in a major metropolitan area or operates in a smaller, tight-knit neighborhood, raising more revenue is undoubtedly one of your top goals this coming year. The question is “how?” You are probably already using the usual tactics like operating concession stands during games and encouraging student athletes to reach out to loved ones for donations. These tried-and-true strategies can certainly help bring in some revenue. However, they are most effective when raising funds for larger teams, not smaller clubs. Fortunately, there are a few ways to give your revenue a boost and help young athletes get funding for the sports or music programs they love. If you want to raise more money for your booster club, follow these suggestions.
Connect with the Community
Grassroots movements can be incredibly powerful. That is why step one for any booster club should be to connect with the local community. Get together with other booster club members to spread the word about your program and to encourage people to get involved. The first way friends, family, and community members will want to engage with your club is by attending the games or music program performances. A concerted effort to attract attendance is key. This can be throught advertising, social media, encouraging each of your families to bring guests, encouraging kid-friendly activities, holding grandparent nights, and asking businesses to sponsor an event.
You can also host community events so residents see the great things students are doing. The booster club could coordinate with coaches to arrange a parent night. Your club can sell meal tickets and cater the event to generate funds for the team. The players can conduct clinics for younger students, attracting their parents to begin to support the program their child will one day join.
Make Donating Simple
One of the biggest barriers to donating is that it is often not simple enough. While some members of your target audience likely still carry cash, many do not.
According to a recent Gallup poll, 49% of respondents reported that they make very few purchases with cash, and 11% said that they make no cash purchases whatsoever. This means that 60% of potential donors may not even have cash on hand to donate.
The good news is that you can make it simple to donate by investing in booster club software. The easier it is to donate, the more likely it is that people will. BoosterHub’s integrated fundraising platform, BoosterBucks, is unusual among fundraising platforms in that it’s platform fees are very low, only 5%. The benefit of this is that your club keeps 95% of its proceeds. Not only that, but unlike other platforms, BoosterBucks funds are available the next day. No need to wait weeks and month for your money!
Network with Local Businesses
When you need more revenue, your first instinct may be to reach out to major chains operating within your area. But while they might be able to donate, these managers also have way more hoops to jump through. This can make obtaining funds challenging, especially if time is about to expire and you need revenue fast.
On the other hand, local business owners are usually more than happy to help out local athletes and fine art students. They can also get money to your booster club quickly because they don’t have to clear the donation with a corporate office. The next time your booster club needs to rally to meet a funding goal, check with local business owners. The first step in this process is to connect with the small businesses of family members associated with your players and students.
Get Active on Social Media
Staying active on social media is an excellent way to draw attention to your cause. You can communicate with parents and donors, provide updates on events, share your message, and highlight athlete accomplishments. It is a good idea to put at least one person in your club in charge of social media outreach. Delegating this responsibility allows efficient communication and enables the person in charge to balance and plan which posts, frequency, tone, which platform, etc.
When choosing which channels to leverage, be strategic. For most booster clubs, Instagram and Facebook represent the best options. However, you may want to explore other channels as well, especially if you have a large club with quite a few members.
Upgrade Your Tech
If you really want to make donating easy and get more people involved, you need the right technology in place. A tech platform for booster clubs allows you to set up an online store, process concession payments, sell tickets, and much more. One of the benefits of BoosterHub is that all of the tools are in one place. When a parent goes to communicate regarding practice, for example, that parent is already in the app and can see volunteer opportunities, can see swag for sale, can see sponsorships for sale, can see calendar and upcoming fundraising events. This centralized system makes engagement easy for your members.
A dynamic booster club solution will serve as the centerpiece of all of your other fundraising efforts and help you raise more revenue for your school’s teams. The more efficient you are at raising money, the less time you will have to spend doing it. And the less time you have to spend fundraising, the more time you and your team’s parents will have to be in the stands cheering on your students. That is really the goal of the booster club and the goal of the technology used to support the booster club.
