California TSA Newsletter December 2013 | Page 8

FUNDRAISER IDEAS By Alice, Claire, and Nicole As State Conference draws near, many chapters will ask the same thing: how can we pay for the expenses. Though it is common to collect money from members, many chapters prefer to fundraise in order to minimize the personal costs. Here are some fundraising ideas for your chapter! Business Sponsors Chances are, local stores are looking to help their community and advertise their products. Asking for a sponsorship from a nearby restaurant or shop is a great way to gather support and funds. Preferably, you should ask to speak to a manager in person, but make sure to be prepared! Provide brochures and a presentation that will describe your organization’s purpose and what they will receive in return for helping out. Usually, clubs provide a tier system in which there are different benefits for a certain amount of money donated. Make sure you mention your audience size and if you have a website, offer placing their logo on your homepage! Also, when you meet the manager, don’t forget to dress formally and represent yourself as a potential business partner. Sales School organizations often sell products ranging from chocolate to flash drives. Whether the sale lasts for 30 minutes or several weeks depends on the product itself. What are some things that your peers would be willing to buy? In my school, boba is a hot commodity. Our chapter arranges a monthly boba sale for 30 minutes after school ends and earns $100-300, depending on the weather and number of sales. Though the profit of one sale does not seem much, money builds up over the months. Boba is something that we know will bring steady profit. If your chapter is looking for a long term sale, chocolate, lollipop, or caramel apple are few of the possibilities. Carry them around and you might find people coming up to you to buy them. Don’t we all like to sneak some food in class? But if your chapter is thinking of selling t-shirts or flash drives and unable to purchase them with the money currently in your account, a pre-sale can solve the problem. During a limited time before the products arrive, you can put forth a cheaper price. When the products