Checklist for any idea
Pick your fundraiser and get a checklist in three parts: before, on the day and after. 153 ideas, each built from its own steps, rules and common mistakes.
Stalls and food
- Bake sale or cake stall
- Carols by candlelight evening
- Christmas market
- Float in a Christmas parade
- Game-day BBQ or club canteen
- Join an existing event instead of running your own (stall, float or collection)
- Lemonade stand or kids' drink stall
- Market stall
- Mother's Day or Father's Day gift stall
- Plant and seedling sale
- Regular treat sales at school (ice blocks, popcorn)
- Run a car boot sale or regular community market (organiser's guide)
- Sausage sizzle at a hardware store (Bunnings, Mitre 10)
- School ag day or calf club day with stalls
- School gala or fair
- Stall or food stand at an A&P show
Selling things
- Branded or personalised merchandise (socks, hoodies, hats, bottles)
- Butter fundraiser (Westgold)
- Cadet unit service fundraising (catering, marshalling, quiz nights)
- Charity car wash
- Children's art on calendars, cards and gifts
- Chocolate carry boxes (Cadbury, Whittaker's and others)
- Christmas gift-wrapping stand
- Christmas tree sale and delivery
- Cookie Time bulk packs and Christmas buckets
- Entertainment membership (formerly the Entertainment Book)
- Event parking, gate or marshalling crew
- Everyday purchase give-back (toilet paper, school lunches)
- Firewood sale
- Frozen cookie dough (and croissant) pre-order
- Garage sale, jumble sale or white elephant stall
- Guide biscuits (national GirlGuiding NZ campaign)
- Hāngī or boil-up meal pre-sale
- Homemade bulk-bake pre-order (sausage rolls, lamingtons, soup)
- Keepsake tea towels with every child's drawing
- Meat pack pre-order (butcher or supplier programme)
- Paid junior coaching clinic
- Pantry and gift products (olive oil, cheese, sauces, snack bars)
- Pie fundraiser
- Samosa fundraiser
- Santa photo booth
- School holiday programme run by a club or school
- School photographer commission and extra photo days
- Scout job week (odd jobs for donations)
- Seasonal bakery pre-orders (hot cross buns, Christmas cakes)
- Second-hand book sale or book fair
- Second-hand uniform and sports gear sale
- Seed packet and garden gift fundraiser (Kings Seeds)
- Sushi, pizza or lunch order days with a supplier rebate
- Valentine's rose-grams and candy-grams
- Wine fundraiser (18+)
Events
- Benefit concert or gig
- Business-leader cook-off (Auckland City Mission model)
- Casino or poker night
- Charity golf day (Ambrose)
- Cinema fundraiser screening
- Class art auction
- Colour run or fun run
- Comedy night
- Community festival or fair on a park or reserve
- Gala dinner or charity ball
- Guy Fawkes fireworks night (stall or full display)
- Halloween haunted house or trail
- Head shave event (Shave for a Cure style)
- High tea
- Host a junior tournament or festival
- Hosted breakfast or morning tea for a national campaign
- Industry dinner, debate and auction
- Invite-only philanthropy gala
- Live auction
- Long lunch
- Matariki kite day (manu tukutuku)
- Matariki whānau night (kai, stars and stalls)
- Month-long abstain or do challenge (Dry July style)
- Moustache or grooming challenge (Movember style)
- Online auction
- Outdoor or drive-in movie night
- Personal endurance challenge
- Quiz night
- Race night
- Read-a-thon
- Restaurant fundraising dinner
- School ball committee fundraising
- School disco
- School production or show: tickets, programme ads, interval food
- Silent auction
- Spellathon or mathathon (sponsored spelling or maths test)
- Sponsored cross-country or lap run
- Sponsored tree-planting day
- Sponsored walk or hikoi
- Sponsors' evening (thank, re-sign and sell)
- Street parade (Christmas, Santa or community parade)
- Supper club or chef-hosted dinner series
- Swim-a-thon
- Talent show
- Team relay or overnight walk (Relay For Life style)
- Ticketed Easter egg hunt
- Trunk-or-treat car-park Halloween event
- Wine, beer or whisky tasting evening
Raffles and games
- 50/50 draw
- Calcutta (sweepstake plus auction)
- Chocolate wheel
- Fishing competition (tagged fish or heaviest catch, plus prize draw)
- Footy tipping competition (paid entry)
- Grocery grab / trolley dash raffle
- Guess the lollies in the jar
- Hamper raffle (class-contributed or donated)
- Housie (bingo) night
- Meat raffle at the pub or club
- Multi-prize raffle from local business donations
- Online raffle (Class 3 licensed)
- Pick-a-square board (100 squares)
- Printed ticket raffle (one headline prize)
- Raffle on the night (quiz night, gala, prizegiving)
- Scratchies or mystery envelopes
- Small class or team raffle (Class 1, up to $500)
- Sweepstake (Melbourne Cup, Rugby World Cup, etc.)
Donations and sponsorship
- Anzac Day: what your group can and cannot do
- Bequests (gifts in wills)
- Boosted (arts crowdfunding)
- Business donation (no advertising in return)
- Business sponsorship tiers (Gold/Silver/Bronze)
- Buy-a-brick, seat or plaque (capital appeal)
- Buy-a-square grid (no-prize version)
- Club contribution to an individual member's trip
- Direct donation appeal (letter, email, newsletter, social post)
- Family and friends sponsorship (personal sponsorship letter)
- Fill My Jersey (pick-a-number jersey)
- Givealittle page
- Ground, fence and clubroom signage
- In-kind sponsorship and donated goods or services
- Individual's overseas trip or world champs campaign
- Jersey and playing-kit sponsorship
- Matched giving
- Membership or 'Friends of' scheme
- Mufti (non-uniform) day for a gold coin
- Naming rights
- Other crowdfunding platforms (overseas or rewards-based)
- Payroll giving
- Pick-a-date calendar
- Pick-a-number board or envelope wall
- Regular giving (monthly automatic payment)
- School camp fund
- Sponsor-a-player or sponsor-a-place
- Street collection (bucket appeal)
Grants
- Applying through an umbrella organisation (club, school or national body)
- Class 4 gaming trust grants (NZCT, Lion Foundation, Pub Charity, Aotearoa Gaming Trust, Four Winds and others)
- Community trust grants (Foundation North, Trust Waikato, Toi Foundation, BayTrust, Rātā and others)
- Council community and local-board grants
- Grants and scholarships open to individuals
- Lottery Grants Board (via Community Matters)
- Sport NZ Rural Travel Fund (via councils)
- Sport NZ Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa (via regional sports trusts)