... FUNDRAISING ...

1. Form a booster club and hold meetings a few times a year.
2. Ask for a volunteer to be in charge of fundraising.
3. Have quotas that each dancer must reach.
4. Set group goals.
5. Let parents know why you are raising the money.
6. Give the dancers the option of fundraising or paying a fee.
7. It is better to have 1 or 2 big fundraisers than lots of smaller ones.
Make the ones you do a success by being super organized.
8. Keep individual records on each dancer.

My Best Fundraisers are:
Meat Sales: This is by far my team's best fundraiser. We have done it annually since 1988. We sell frozen steaks (by the case), chicken breasts and pizza. I have come up with an order form. Each dancer takes orders from her customers. Our profit margin is about 40-50%. The most we have made on this event is $30,000.00 profit! WOW!!!! Each dancer is directly credited for her sales. We find it is much easier to go out and sell products that our clients can really use.

Wreaths: In conjunction with the meat sales we sell Holiday wreaths. We have a local green house produce them. We are making a 50% profit on these. Each dancers usually sells about 10. (As of this printing, our profit is $7.50 per wreath.)

Spring Show: Have an annual spring show. Invite other acts to volunteer their performances. Have your group do several numbers. Sell tickets. Advertise like crazy. This is also a good PR project because you get your name established around your community. (See Spring Show.)

OTHER IDEAS:
Sell: Buttons, bumper stickers, mugs, community or school birthday calendars, pizzas, candy, cards, stationary, baked goods, crafts, etc.
Rummage Sale: Plan it out. Have others in the community donate goods. Advertise like crazy. Hold it in a public place. Have each dancer directly credited for their sales so they are more apt to donate!
Suppers: The night of a big game, hold a pre-game supper. Spaghetti, sloppy joe or whatever.
Raffle: Get area businesses to donate items. Sell tickets.
Car Wash: Always pre-sell tickets. Some people won't show and you'll still have made some $$.
Coupon-A-Thon: Save manufacturer's coupons, get a local grocery store to allow you to tape coupons on corresponding products. When the items goes through the check out, the clerk will ask the person if they would like to donate the money to the dance team, the coupons are thrown in a bag and totaled at the end of the week.
Inventory a large department store.
Bring in a big name star or act and sell tickets.
Kick-A-Thon: Each dancer gets pledges.
School Dance: Sponsor an annual dance. Play records using a theme.
Pizza Sales: Profits from this fundraiser can be quite good. The pizza comes in six packs with choice of toppings.
Bingo: During the halftime of games, sell the cards for $1. Whoever wins will split the money that is collected. One team made $800 just at the basketball games.
Donations: Ask the Chamber of Commerce, Lion's Club, Rotary Club, and any other community organization for support, ideas, and donations.
Basketball Game: Sponsor a basketball challenge. Have a popular radio station advertise a basketball game between the local disc jockeys and police (or any other community groups). All proceeds go to your group or club. One group raised $3000 from one game! Don't forget to have a concession stand at the game!
Coat Check: Run a coat check at basketball games.

HINTS:
• At the beginning of the year, create a typed list of all of your members with columns for checking in and out merchandise and payments. Your record keeping is very important.
• Publicity is imperative to a successful fundraiser. Approach your project as a business would. Consider radio talk shows, newspapers, flyers on cars or in grocery bags. Make the public aware of your event.
• Work on having an annual event which the public will begin to recognize.
• Remember to keep in mind the profit margin you make on anything you sell. It should be approximately 50%. Consider how much money you make per sale. You would have to sell 10 bags of M & M's compared to one steak.

Meat Sales
Harkers 320-253-8842 or Quality Meats / Mark 701-282-0202
This has been one of our most successful fundraisers. Dancers sell cases of meat at a 50 % profit. Two sales may be done, one in the spring and one just prior to Thanksgiving.

Gold Cards
Varsity Gold Cards. 800-245-2093
Dancers sell cards containing discounts for area businesses. Cards sell for $10.00 dancers profit 50%. Average response. Some communities do very well with this others don't do so well. Works well in larger town with a variety of businesses.

Lollipops
Kaner Distributing Inc Bob Kaner 612-545-5834
Dancers can sell suckers in school in the spring. The profit from each sucker is only 23-25¢ but sales are good if the timing is right and girls are into selling. Girls must purchase their own suckers and then turn in their profits weekly. Permission is sometimes needed to sell them during school hours.

Happening books
Happening books are available to sell in some communities.

Garage Sales
It is recommend if dancers wish to hold garage sales that they do so individually.

Seasonal Greenhouse Sales
Consider selling wreaths around Thanksgiving time, Easter lillys in the Spring, hanging baskets around Mother's Day, etc. Call your local greenhouse to see if they would offer you a whole sale price on these items for a fundraiser.