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Business Charitable Donations: How to Get Items Donated for Your Online Raffles

By Whit Hunter

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Securing events for your online raffle or fundraiser is one of the hardest things to do ahead of your event. The most important facet to remember? Don’t focus on just one type of donor for in-kind or monetary donations. When you expand your outreach efforts, you can secure good items for raffles, sometimes from sources you’d least expect.

Getting businesses to respond to your raffle donation request isn’t as intimidating as you might think. It just requires a little thinking outside of the box and a different strategy than the one you’d use for individual donors. Put the finishing touches on your outreach strategy and start securing incredible items for your online raffle with a few simple steps.

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Step 1: Know Who to Ask for Business Donations

Even though 69% of charitable donations come from individual donors, that doesn’t mean you should write off corporations and businesses when determining who to approach. Companies are still giving to charities and organizations. It’s just more competitive. You’ll need to do some work to find out which ones will donate raffle items to you.

To start your task, sit down and create a short list of companies you want to approach for donations to your online raffle. Compile a list of places where you already have some sort of connection. Maybe you know someone who works there. Or maybe someone who works there has a strong connection to your organization or your mission. Think of any “in” you might have.

You should also consider whether you have similar missions and values, if they’ve donated to similar organizations in the past, or if they have a strong philanthropic history. You should review thoroughly before adding a business to your potential donor list.

Step 2: Explain How Your Organization Relates to Their Business

People are more likely to donate to causes that mean something to them. If you can tie your organization to their business, it’s even more likely that they will respond positively to your raffle donation request.

For example, if you run a dog rescue, consider approaching local groomers, veterinarians, or pet food supply stores. These places are more likely to respond to your request because your organization is relevant to their business. You might not get positive results when you approach a company with a completely unrelated mission.

Step 3: Ask For Exactly What You Want

Businesses are busy! It’s that simple. If you want them to respond to your online donation requests for raffles, make it simple. Give them raffle item ideas and tell them what they can donate that will help your mission.

Business donations don’t always have to be dollar amounts. You’ll probably find that it’s easier to get businesses to donate in a different way, such as:

  • In-kind donations, such as items for online raffles
  • Corporate sponsorships, such as letting them sponsor your giveaway or raffle
  • Matching gift programs, where they will match a donation their employee made
  • Employee programs, such as paid volunteer days where you could use their workforce to set up for your raffle or auction

While all of these things aren’t monetary donations, they’re still critical and will benefit your organization’s fundraising efforts.

Step 4: Show Proof of Prior Success Stories

What to increase the likelihood of receiving business donations for your event? Show them how donating to your online raffle will benefit them.

Show them how your events have succeeded in the past or how much good your organization does in your community. If you have a record of businesses that have donated to you multiple times, show them how happy those businesses were with your partnership. This will make them also want to be partnered with your organization.

Better yet, show them how your online raffle will be set up using a platform like BetterWorld. Once they see how easy it will be for people to find and purchase raffle tickets online for your event, they will be more likely to give you raffle donations. For them, an easy-to-access event will drive more exposure for their business.

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Step 5: Follow Up on Your Raffle Donation Request

Securing business charitable donations is not a one-time contact. You’ll need to allow time for the business to process your request and decide what they can afford to donate to your online raffle.

This doesn’t mean that you should wait around forever, though. Within a few days to a week after your initial contact, reach out again either by calling, sending an email, or messaging them on a social media site, such as LinkedIn.

Don’t bombard them with new information or repeated requests. Instead, repeat a few of your main points about how donating to your online raffle will benefit their business and then ask if they have any questions for you.

To avoid contacting them too many times or forgetting to follow up altogether, use an online donor management system. This system will keep you moving full steam ahead on securing the best items to raffle for a fundraiser while ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.

Step 6: Build a Sustainable Relationship

Once you find a business that supports your organization, stay in contact with your point person. Nurture that relationship by sending updates about how their business donations have impacted your organization and your community.

Frequent updates on how you’re making a difference in your community are a great way for the business to feel engaged. When businesses feel engaged, you will probably be able to count on them to become corporate sponsors, develop a community partnership, or secure other raffle donations in the future.

When it comes to securing business charitable donations, it isn’t rocket science. You just have to understand how to use your skills and connections to benefit their business. The next time you want to schedule an online auction, reach out to BetterWorld for a free demo. We can help with everything from donor management to online ticket sales and raffle bidding.

Request a committment-free demo from BetterWorld today!

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Whit Hunter
AUTHOR

About Whit Hunter

Whit Hunter is the co-founder of BetterWorld, the free, easy-to-use online fundraising platform. His passion for empowering nonprofits and tech expertise have shaped BetterWorld’s mission to make fundraising more accessible and efficient.

Whit's innovative vision has helped countless organizations raise more funds and reach their goals, driving BetterWorld’s ongoing success.

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