Donation appeal
Also called: Direct donation appeal (letter, email, newsletter, social post)
Ask your own people directly for a gift towards a specific, costed need.
Typically raises
$2,000
$200–15,000 per campaignest.
About $200 per organiser hour
Based on a small group's network of dozens to a few hundred
Is it right for us?
- Money
- $2,000–10,000
- Work
- An afternoon
- Helpers
- 1–2 people
- Lead time
- 2–3 weeks
- Red tape
- None
Common: a familiar newsletter ask that every group makes
- People
- 1-3
- Organiser time
- 5-15
- Lead time
- 2-4 weeks
- Up-front cost
- Nothing up front
- Risk
- none
- Who can use it
- Anyone can ask. Donors only get the 33⅓% tax credit if the recipient is an approved donee organisation and issues a proper receipt.
How it works
The money, as an example sum
Sell at $50 a gift, keep $50, so 40 gifts = $2,000. That’s about the typical result.
Using the figures on this page. Your prices and costs will differ.
Where the money figure comes from
ESTIMATE: no NZ benchmark data found; range reflects a small group's own network (dozens to a few hundred people). Treat as illustrative.
Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.
Ways to run it
- Matched giving
- A business or major donor promises to match public gifts dollar-for-dollar up to a cap, for a set window.
Step by step
- Pick one concrete, costed need (e.g. '$1,800 for new junior goalposts').
- List everyone with a real connection: members, parents, past players, old boys/girls, parishioners.
- Write a short appeal: the need, the amount, the deadline, how to give (bank account + reference, or a Givealittle link).
- Send personally where you can; a named person asking beats a group email.
- Post a progress figure weekly.
- Issue receipts promptly (donee organisations: include all IRD-required fields).
- Thank every donor within a week and report what the money bought.
Add this to your plan
These notes come from the October 2026 research. Figures describe separate examples, not extra money to add to the headline amount.
Matched giving
A business or major donor promises to match public gifts dollar-for-dollar up to a cap, for a set window.
Separate example: $2,000 per campaign after costs (estimate). one matched window
ESTIMATE: matched pot plus public gifts. Givealittle says matches are generally larger than $500.
Helpers: 1-2. Lead time: 2-4 weeks to find a matcher. Cash risk: none
- Find a matcher: a local business owner, a major donor, a staff-matching employer.
- Agree the cap, dates and how the matcher is acknowledged.
- Set up the matching window on the page.
- Announce 'every dollar doubled until Friday'.
- Push hard during the window; post the running total.
- Thank the matcher publicly and privately.
Rules to check for this version
- Givealittle matching is dollar-for-dollar only.
- A business matcher receives an invoice; whether that is a deductible donation or sponsorship depends on donee status and any advertising received (see the donations and tax rules).
Tips for this version
- Short windows (24-72 hours) create urgency.
- Ask donors' employers about staff-matching programmes.
Watch out for
- Over-promising the match ('doubled!') after the cap is used up.
Sources: givealittle.co.nz
Getting the word out
Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.
- Ask for help
- Members to pass the ask on to people they know.
- Ask people to buy
- People and businesses to give.
- When to start
- Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 3–4 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.
Where to put it
- Asking people yourselfMost yeses come from someone asking directly. Give every member a short message they can send to family and workmates.
- Email lists and group chatsYour members’ email list and the class, team or church group chats. Short, with one date or one link.
- School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
- Local Facebook pages and community groupsPost in your town’s community page and local groups (check their rules), and share from your group’s own page.
The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.
What you’ll need
- Place
- Not neededNone needed
- Landowner’s permission
- Not needed
- Council permit
- Not needed
- Food rules
- Not neededNo food sold
- Alcohol
- Not neededNo alcohol sold
- Gambling rules
- Not neededNot gambling
Only an approved donee organisation can issue receipts for the 33 1/3% donation tax credit, and only for gifts that buy nothing in return.
Make more from it
Business matches donations for a set window
can double gifts up to the cap
donors give more when each dollar counts twice
Givealittle page for online gifts
often 20-50% more gifts (estimate)
lets distant supporters give and issues receipts automatically for donee groups
Tips
- Mention the tax credit only if you are on the IRD donee list: '$100 costs you $66.67 after your tax credit'.
- Give suggested amounts tied to things ('$50 buys a ball').
Watch out for
- Vague appeals ('support the club') raise little.
- Over-asking the same parent group that already pays fees and runs every other fundraiser.
Donation appeal: checklist
0 of 7 done
Before
After
Only an approved donee organisation can issue receipts for the 33 1/3% donation tax credit, and only for gifts that buy nothing in return.
* General fundraising information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Money figures are examples and estimates, not promises. Check current official requirements before you commit. About this guide