Do you like Parties? I sure do. Parties are fun, and the more the merrier! But what makes a party fun? I usually make sure my “fun” friends are invited. Of course, I will invite everyone in that circle to attend as well, based on my party planning. I might even ask my other guest to bring their “fun” friends. This creates the FUN-Factor. Having those “fun” friends at the party really makes it special and can add a lot to the overall experience of attending.
This is a similar occurrence at your galas. Of course, we love having the fun crowd, making sure those who are passionate and engaged with our mission can attend. That is the epitome of a “friend-raiser.” A friend-raiser can be essential to broadening the reach of your mission, and that is a good thing.
But let’s talk a minute about something else besides engagement and fun that is crucial to your mission: FUNDRAISING. It is time to become intentional with your guest list to affect fundraising in the same way you want to affect the fun-factor at a party. Let me explain. Your board and supporters may find it easy to bring the fun to your event. If you put on a fun event, the people will come. But are we getting the right people in the room. More succinctly, are we inviting enough of the right people to attend our event?
For a fundraising event, it is essential we become intentional about how we fill seats at the event. Having a frank discussion with your team to be carefully
selecting people to invite who have the propensity to give and the capacity to give to your event. You will often find your team is so focused, they lose sight of the most important goal of fundraising. And if we don’t fill the seats with money, we are missing out on a key element to overachieving your fundraising goals.
Each board member and key supporter should sign up to be a “table captain.” Their mission is to fill ONE table with the “right folks.” They are free to fill additional seats and tables with any and all who love and support your cause. Having 10+ board members or key supporters filling a combined total of at least 10 tables with “money,” is your goal to dramatically impact your event’s fundraising success.
I recently had an event where one board member was so enthused about this concept, he invited 16 tables of people who had the capacity and propensity to give. This is in addition to the other board members filling tables. Result? We took their fundraising that night from $800,000 to $2.2 Million!!! WOW! (NOTE: every time I tell this story, I get asked for his contact information for other events!)
You don’t need to have one special board member who can bring that many people to your event. But having 10+ tables filled with money will allow the fundraising program to be energized. Put on a good program, and let your professionally trained auctioneer shepherd your attendees to do what they came to do, and that is GIVE to your cause.
As a client, our team will present to your board on this concept, and help create the paradigm you need to take your fundraising to the next level!
