Having Trouble with a Fundraiser? Try a House Party

I have read quite a few articles on this writing site and have heard quite a few complaints from my friends in their clubs about having trouble with fundraising. Almost everyone in a club or organization needs to have fundraising events; otherwise you will have a lot of difficulty in planning events and activities because you will be strapped for cash. As the Public Relations Director and Social Director of two clubs myself on my college campus, I really know a thing or two about fundraising. So don't fear, I am here to help you. Here are my most recent and best money making ideas.

House Party: In your club or organization, even on a college campus, someone usually has a house. Even if it isn't that big you can still have a house party in it. Buy a few drinks, alcoholic or not, whatever you prefer, cups, food, plates, music, CDs and there you go. Easy as one-two-three. As for music, get a sound system or music speakers you can rent pretty cheaply or buy for under $30. Charge an admissions fee at the door. Make sure you have CDs and music that cater to your audience. For example, if you have middle aged people at a party, do not play rap music which they probably wouldn't enjoy. The key is to be smart. Plan the event carefully. Buy everything first after you think of how many people will come. Don't buy food to feed an army if you are only going to have a dozen or fewer people. For a college party, advertise of your college campus by networking and word of mouth. Print up cheap flyers and hand them out in populated areas of your school. On the flyer list the house address, time of party, and the host with a contact number and email. You might also want to create a Face book or Myspace party event in which you can send invites to your friends and other college students. Facebook groups also allow you to see who is coming, who might be coming, and who cannot make it to your party. This will also give you a better estimate of the amount of people who will be coming to your house party.

When having the house party, make sure that all valuables of the owner of the house are secured and put away under lock and key if needed. You never know who to trust when random strangers are invited into a party. Also calculate how much you will need to charge for admission. Some people drink a lot more or eat a lot more than others so make sure to take this into account as well. If you decide to have drinks which I highly recommend, have cups and plates for food. Pizza is always a good choice as it is fast and can be delivered.

For admission fees, have someone standing at the door collecting money. You might consider issuing some kind of recent if people want to go in and out of the party and come back. This way you will know who has already paid. You might also want to set up some kind of games such as beer pong or card games. If there is a big sports game on television that is usually a popular choice to have on to attract people. Betting games also attract money and the host can usually make some kind of profit off of that.

Finally, and I cannot stress this enough, make sure that you have mixed company of both guys and girls at the party. If there is a domination of one gender, the party will flop and be a failure and people will leave early. With both men and women at a party, people will socially interact and feel comfortable and have an enjoyable atmosphere to be in.