Fool-proof Guide to Fundraising for your Unit

Struggling to get your unit fundraising off the ground? Here are some top tips that our unit has used to support what has been a successful year of fundraising!

1. Have a goal and a budget established first
   Know what you are working towards. It’s also important to be realistic when setting your fundraising goals and calendar. For example, do you have enough bandwidth to successfully run multiple events in a given term? Do you have helpers available for the dates you’ve set aside? Furthermore, sometimes you have to spend money to make money. Having a budget beforehand will give you an idea of how much money you can really afford to spend before you dig yourself into a hole!
2. Use your team members’ strengths
   Is one of your team members a brilliant artist? Do you have a social media whiz in your midst? Use these skills sets with abandon to get the widest audience possible for your events. Like any team, using each person’s strengths only makes the group (and your fundraising event) better. Plus, with so many leaders coming from so many different backgrounds, you’ll be able to offer a range of multi-faceted events that wouldn’t be possible with one team member alone.
3. Involve the girls
   It’s not just your adult team members that are wonderful and talented, but also your girls! Our Brownies put together wonderful and creative invitations and table decorations for our afternoon tea fundraiser. We also had an older Six organize and bake for a very successful bake sale that sold out within minutes – all with minimal guidance from us leaders.
4. Give while you get
   Give while you get means two things: giving people a bang for their buck (please excuse my American expression, I couldn’t help myself!) and giving back to your community.

   The best press you can get for your next fundraising event is your last fundraising event. Make sure people walk away with an experience that they won’t forget—and leaves them wanting to come back for more. This could be by providing an amazing meal alongside your event or creating lasting memories from events such as a ceilidh or quiz night.

   Second, if it’s something your unit is able to afford, spread the wealth. Give back to your community a portion of your profits. Whilst fundraising for our Centenary Celebrations, the 4th and 4th A Brownies were proud to be able to give back to multiple charities such as Socks for the Street and a school uniform exchange.

5. Re-evaluate and adjust as you go
   There’s nothing Girlguding loves more than an evaluation activity – so why not do one for your fundraising events? Listen to feedback and adjust accordingly as you move forward.

   If you feel like you planned an awesome event but attendance was low, consider getting the word out in new ways (Girlguiding leaders’ Facebook groups, Wednesday Weekly, among others). When an event goes well consider whether or not you could easily repeat the event with similar success. For example, we did a Monopoly wide game (which you can read about here) that got awesome feedback, so we’re running another one this term (you can find more information here if you want to join us!).

6. Do your research and ask for help
   Know your limits and ask for help. If time and helpers are limited, research grants that may be available to you in your local community or from Girlguiding itself. Some examples include the Scotmid Community Grant or the Cashback for Communities Small Grants Scheme.

Are you a fundraising pro? Let us know your top tips and tricks over on Twitter @GirlguidingEdin