If you’ve never run a t-shirt fundraising campaign, trying to nail down a game plan can seem daunting, but you’ve come to the right place! At Morningstar Screen Printing, we are experts in screen printing and design and have the resources to help you organize a successful fundraiser. We love a good cause and want to help you raise funds for the organization, business, or charity that matters to you. Keep reading for the steps to take for a successful t-shirt fundraising campaign.
Figuring out the ‘why’ for your t-shirt fundraising campaign is most likely the easiest part of the process. After all, if you are looking to raise money for a cause it’s probably something you are very passionate about. However, since the cause is so obvious to you, it is at risk of not being communicated effectively.
We’re throwing it back with a grammar school lesson on interrogative words. To make sure you can get buy-in for your campaign, you should know the answers to the following questions:
Start here and make sure you can clearly define the purpose of the campaign in a couple of sentences in the simplest form.
This is the purpose and heart of your campaign. Why does this cause/business/organization need help fundraising? Why now and why is it important?
With so many great causes out there people like to know how their money will go to use. The more specific the better.
Pro Tip: If you have opportunities for people to donate time in some way to help make sure to communicate those as well. You may find there are more helping hands available that aren’t able to help monetarily.
Obviously, and most importantly make sure people know when they can donate and when they can expect their shirts, along with any associated event details or special dates they should make sure to wear their shirt to help represent that cause. Defining your “when” can help you reach your goals more quickly by creating a sense of urgency and FOMO.
The key is to have a clearly defined mission and plan, to inspire others to join you in supporting the cause.
Once you have the who, what, when, why, and how covered, it’s time for the fun part – creating your design for your t-shirt. Whether the shirt is the main tool of your fundraising campaign or serves an added extra to an organized event, you want to make your shirt eye-catching and something people will reach for in their closet over and over. Our team will work with you to find the best shirt options and printing techniques to make your ideas come to life.
If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it does it make a sound? Ok, forget the philosophy lesson, but we do know that if you don’t promote your fundraiser no one will buy a shirt.
Make a Facebook page for your fundraiser and start sharing! If you have some budget to put towards ads this can be a great way to help gain traction but you’ll find people are eager to share your posts organically if you have steps one and two from this blog covered. Get buy-in from local “influencers” to help spread your message on and offline – yes, the chatty Cathy from PTA can come in handy! Network in your community by wearing your shirt, if you have a great design people will be sure to ask you about it.
Get started today on your t-shirt fundraising campaign by contacting one of our Daymakers. Looking for more content? Check out our last blog post on 5 Employee Holiday Gifts Your Team Will Love.
