In an effort to help you tackle your fundraising goals leading up to Training Camp and launch, the mobilization team is sharing stories of the fundraisers that worked best for them as they prepared for their respective World Race experiences. Last week Jacob, the route 1 mobilizer shared, and this week Shawndell, the route 3 mobilizer, is sharing.
Sell Your Passion
People buy into passion more than they buy into fundraisers. I am an artist, and I had a collection of paintings and drawings that I decided to sell as a fundraiser. I'm no Monet or Degas or Van Gogh here, so I had to sell a lot more than just my paintings themselves. I had to sell the idea. I made sure people understood they weren't just buying art, but they were supporting my creative efforts as well as my missions work.
I made it a silent auction, with people writing their bids for artwork on pieces of paper and placing them in a box. This way, nobody knew what was the highest bid on an item and were more likely to bid higher to guarantee their winning bid.
I used my skills and passions. I sold an investment in my creativity and my passion for missions. I didn't sell my paintings themselves. So what are your skills and passions? How can you use those to sell an investment in you rather than a product?
Get Others Involved
At the time of my art auction, I had between 10 and 15 pieces of artwork of my own that I could sell. I knew I needed more. So I made a list of people with similar creative passions to mine: fellow artists, photographers, quilters — even my little sister! I asked these people if they would be willing to donate some of their work to me to sell.
Some people may not be able to donate financially, but would love to donate time and/or resources. I was able to get items for my auction from four different artists. I doubled my inventory and getting other artists involved helped to legitimize my own.
To best utilize your resources, spread out your requests. I asked for pieces from several artists, I asked a church to host my art auction and I asked my sister and my mom to bake treats for the attendees (pay attention to details!). Think about your friends, family and connections… What resources do they have that you can use?
I was able to raise $1,600 from a fundraiser thrown together in about 2 weeks… What can the Lord do with your passions?
