November 23, 2021

12 Unique Ideas for Memorable Fundraising

Raising money for charity should be fun and innovative. If your fundraising campaigns, projects and ideas stand out from the crowd, they’re much more likely to have an impact. When done well, a unique left-field campaign can bring large groups of people together to enact positive change, raise money for charity and generate publicity. All it takes is a little bit of out-of-the-box thinking. 

Think that maybe silent auctions, casino nights or standard raffles are a tad predictable? You’re not the only one…

Take the ‘Free Timmy’ campaign used by Invisible Children as an example. ‘Timmy’, one of their members of staff, volunteered to live in a huge cage at their office, only to be freed once they had reached their fundraising target. Thousands of donors were engaged by the sense of urgency that the charity created through live-streaming Timmy’s ‘imprisonment’, raising funds to free him. Not only was ‘Free Timmy’ a novel concept, but as an online event it had considerable reach, which is a crucial factor in a successful fundraising campaign.

Another great example is the altruistic advertising used in the Flemish League Against Cancer’s Stick Out Your Tongue campaign. The campaign asked supporters to post pictures of themselves sticking out their tongues to cancer, which were uploaded to the campaign’s website. They even created TV and radio adverts for the campaign, which injected a sense of fun into publicly showing your support for the fight against cancer. 

There are plenty of great creative ideas out there, and plenty more waiting to take shape. But sometimes, trying to think of wacky and unique fundraising ideas for charity on the spot can be a bit difficult. After all, innovation doesn’t necessarily work on demand. Here at GoodBox, we try to embrace anything unique and forward-thinking. So we’ve put together a list of some of our favourite weird and wacky fundraising ideas to get your creative juices flowing. 

Unique fundraising ideas for charity:

Virtual treasure hunt

Over the course of lockdown, many charities and non-profit organisations created innovative virtual versions of popular fundraising activities. A fantastic example of this is the classic treasure hunt. Taking place over Zoom (or a similar video conference app), participants make a donation as their entry fee and are then tasked with finding an assortment of objects from around their home (the more random and obscure the better!). Each round also includes a ‘show and tell’, where everyone shares an entertaining fact or anecdote about their object. Every successful find is rewarded with points, and of course, the goal is to score the most points possible. One of the main selling points of a virtual treasure hunt is that it takes a concept that everyone is familiar with and makes it accessible and affordable. The only thing you’ll need to spend money on is a prize for the lucky winners.

Reverse raffle

You’re likely familiar with the traditional raffle, a mainstay of schools and village halls up and down the country. A reverse raffle turns this concept on its head. How it works is that all the losing tickets are drawn first, with the prize winners decided by the process of elimination. Once you’ve narrowed it down to the final lucky ticket holders, the reverse raffle will have audiences on the edge of their seats until you announce who has won the grand prize. Reverse raffles are a unique take on one of the all-time classic fundraisers while being just as simple to organise. The only caveat is that they can run on for longer than your traditional raffle. So you may want to consider including it as part of a larger fundraising event or having an intermission with other fun games and activities.

Extreme fundraising

For the adrenaline junkies and thrill-seekers out there, why not take your favourite extreme sports or try out a new one on behalf of a great cause? Sponsored bungee jumping, skydiving, wing-walking, abseiling and many more types of adventurous and extreme sponsored sports events are perfect for fundraisers who like to push themselves out of their comfort zone.

Take inspiration from David Walliams’ Swimming The Thames (140 miles) for Sport Relief and sign up for events such as the Great Swim, the UK’s largest open water swimming event. Push your body to the limit by taking part in physical challenges such as Tough Mudder or you even create your own challenge or obstacle course, selling tickets for participation and refreshments afterwards.

If walking is more of your thing, you also can raise funds by taking part in trekking and hiking events. The mental health charity Mind runs various sponsored trekking challenges as part of their Trek For Mind initiative, both in urban centres and more rural and challenging locations such as the Scottish Highlands and Mount Snowdon. As these types of events are more challenging than traditional fundraising ideas and are not something people do every day, it’s often easy to acquire sponsorships and raise a substantial amount for your cause. Extreme fundraising events can also be a goldmine for social media content, and as we all know, going viral will almost certainly supercharge any future fundraising endeavours.

Dunk tank

One for the Summer months! A dunk tank gives people a chance to poke a bit of fun at bosses, teachers and public figures while raising money for a good cause. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept, a group of brave participants sit over a tank of water next to a target. Simply toss a ball at the target, and if your aim’s right someone will get a soaking! If authority figures or even minor celebrities get involved, this is sure to draw a crowd who are more than willing to pay a good price. Another benefit of dunk tanks is that instead of a single charge for entry, people will often keep on paying in the hope that their next shot will be a bullseye. In terms of practical considerations, you’ll want to carry out a thorough health and safety assessment and rental fees can be expensive. That said, you can always try and negotiate a deal since the money is going to a worthy cause.

Sponsored outfit

This is a more interesting take on the good old fancy dress day. Instead of exercising your free will in the choice of your costume, a sponsored outfit gives the power over to your donors who are the ones who choose your outfit. They vote on what costume you should wear and for how long, then pay a sponsorship fee for having a good laugh at your expense. You could even involve your furry friend as your sidekick by dressing your beloved pet up in a weird and adorable outfit to help raise extra funds. Think Dachshunds dressed up as hot dogs, Pugs pulling off unicorn costumes and Persian cats flaunting their stuff in tuxedos.

It’s behind you!

Everyone loves a pantomime, so why not organise your own? You can recruit your cast and directors from local and amateur actors, and enlist the help of artists and DIY-lovers to make your set. Or, if you can get yourself a sponsor, they can help to finance the operations and transform the performance into a more professional production. A corporate sponsor can help with renting a performance space, funding the creation of the stage set as well as advertising to raise awareness about the production. Funds can be raised through your ticket and programme sales, refreshments and drink sales.

Paint jams

In thriving cities like London where amazing street art can be found around every corner, paint jams are a great way to celebrate creativity and foster a sense of community spirit while raising money at the same time. Paint jams are pop-up art events that give artists full creative licence, while fans and street art lovers can come and watch the live street art installation in action. At the end of the event, you can auction the paintings online or on-site to raise money for your cause. While the artists are in action, give the day a carnival atmosphere by bringing in live music, food and drink vendors and fun activities, all of which can be used to raise additional funds for your cause.

Sleep rough

If you’re looking for a unique fundraising idea that really puts your cause at the heart of what you’re doing, then why not try sleeping rough for a night? Raise awareness for homeless charities such as Shelter, TAP London and Centrepoint by spending a night on the streets. Documenting your experience of what it’s like to be homeless for 24 hours through IG TV, Instagram stories, going Live on Facebook and YouTube can help to raise even more funds aside from your initial sponsorship as people can donate to your cause as they hear and follow your journey through the night. This will also help to document some of the daily hardships and difficulties that homeless individuals face in real-time, raising greater awareness and increasing the number of potential donations.

Carnival

Plan and organise a community carnival to help raise money for your chosen charity while providing your community with a vibrant and memorable event. Carnivals have traditionally been used for bringing communities together to enjoy a day or two (sometimes longer) of fun and celebration. They involve colourful street performances and parades, indulgent food, uplifting music, elaborate costumes and street parties, often taking inspiration from the circus and festivals. This unique fundraising idea allows you to bring together multiple different organisations and groups. Local restaurants and bars can provide pop-up food and drink stalls. Performers and music groups can help to organise and participate in the parades, while amateur musicians and local bands can provide the soundtrack to the event. You can charge visitors tickets to enter the event, or find businesses who are happy to sponsor the carnival. 

TLC-fest

Everyone loves a spot of pampering from time to time, so why not create a wellness or beauty festival to give the public a chance to treat themselves to their favourite beauty treatments all in the name of charity. Contact local beauticians, masseuses, nail technicians, yoga instructors and hairdressers who can each set up their own stall offering their services or taster versions, and ask them to donate a percentage of their profits to your cause. Visitors can purchase tickets to attend the event, while the businesses involved will get the benefit of free brand promotion and finding potential new customers. 

Quick dip

The Boxing Day Dip is a charity fundraising event celebrated every year up and down the country. This fancy dress swim asks swimmers to brave the not-so-warm waters of the British seaside in the name of their chosen cause. The largest and potentially barmiest gathering is held in Sunderland where participants have to take a dip in the North Sea. This is not only a good way to work off all the Christmas dinner and chocolate of the day before (and presumably the bubble & squeak and turkey sandwiches later on) but also to raise funds for those in need. Participants can collect sponsorship for taking part in the event, and could even be coupled with a sponsored outfit to double the money raised. 

Mentorship auction

Finding an experienced and knowledgeable mentor can help young people kick-start and accelerate their careers by learning from seasoned professionals in their field. But finding the right role model can be difficult, which is where a mentorship auction comes in. All you have to do is find industry experts, business leaders and innovators who, instead of providing high-value auction items, are happy to volunteer their time. Then set up bidding for one-to-one sessions with the mentors for budding entrepreneurs and those on the first few rungs on the career ladder. The participants will get a chance to speak to experts in their industry and gain valuable insights, all the while raising money for a good cause.

How GoodBox can help

Some things are just meant to go together. Like fish and chips, strawberries and cream, Pimms and the British Summer. The same goes for great ideas and digital technology. To us, it’s a no-brainer that innovative and wacky fundraising ideas should be paired with revolutionary fundraising technology. 

GoodBox is a FinTech startup that helps nationally recognised charities and nonprofits make the most out of their efforts through digital transformation. We also regularly partner with corporations to help maximise their CSR fundraising efforts. Through integrating our contactless donation technology into how they operate, charities can maximise their potential and deliver greater change to those in need. 

By renting or purchasing one of our affordable and versatile contactless giving devices, you can maximise the number of potential donations you can collect. As well as spare change and sponsorship, supporters can donate to your cause with just one tap of their contactless card or mobile payment device. Fundraising has never been easier with GoodBox’s range of products. 

To find out more about renting or purchasing one of our contactless fundraising boxes, get in touch with our team today or download a pricing brochure.

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