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Special Events

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SPECIAL EVENTS

Party, party, party! If your organization has lots of volunteer support and loves to party, then special events might be just your funding ticket. To quote Joan Flanagan in her classic text, The Grass Roots Fundraising Book, "The ideal event is one that raises money, conveys a message about your program, and offers something for the spirit."

Upside:

  • The possibilities are endless and limited only by your imagination, including:
    • bake sales
    • auctions
    • raffles
    • dinner parties
    • movie openings
    • garage sales
    • dance parties
    • house tours
    • wine tastings
  • Special events can be fun and are good for morale of staff, Board and volunteers.
  • An effective event that becomes an annual tradition can turn into an important source of income.
  • Special events can bring added media attention to your organization.
  • The event can introduce new contributors to your work, provides an excellent mechanism for soliciting corporate/business sponsorships, and is a good opportunity to lure in new major individual donors.
  • Special events offer your staff a chance to hone their skills in marketing, public relations, event planning, and volunteer relations.


Downside:


  • These events are very labor-intensive eating up many staff and volunteer hours that might otherwise be spent on other activities; they run the risk of overshadowing all the other work of your organization.
  • An event will take a lot of planning, with a great deal of lead time.
  • It can take years to build a strong event; it's not unusual for a large annual special event to lose money in its first and second years, and not turn a profit until year three.
  • A perceived "profit" might actually be a loss if you fail to factor in the cost of paid staff time in your event's budget.
  • Outdoor events are vulnerable to the vicissitudes of weather.


SOME STORIES:


FRAMELINE / SAN FRANCISCO INTERNATIONAL LESBIAN AND GAY FILM FESTIVAL (SAN FRANCISCO, CA)
As told by K. C. Price, Capital Campaign Manager, Ninth Street Independent Film Center (formerly Development Director of Frameline).