The holidays are a perfect time to hold any kind of fundraiser, as people generally feel in a giving mood, and choosing to do a Christmas wreath fundraiser is a great way to mix holiday lore with charity. Whether you're looking to use your funds on future projects or for holiday-related activities, drawing on the support of your community is a great way to make your fundraiser a success.
What Is a Christmas Wreath Fundraiser?
A Christmas wreath fundraiser can be a great way to let the members of your group put their creative talents to work whilst raising money for your organization. Specifically, this holiday fundraiser involves selling decorated wreaths to your local community in exchange for a standard monetary rate.
Christmas Wreath Fundraiser Types and Prices
They're two types of Christmas wreath fundraisers you can hold: pre-sale or same-day sales. Of these types, each of them generally average wreath prices between $8-$12, depending on the amount of money that went in to making/buying the wreaths. Both types have their positives and their negatives, but it's up to you and your organization to decide which one best fits your group's parameters.
Pre-Sale
These fundraisers involve you and your organization coming together to sell future wreaths to your community for a set rate. Once you've finished collecting orders, you and your group come together to craft the wreaths themselves and deliver them to the buyers at a later date.
Same-Day Sale
Same-day sale wreath fundraisers only occur if you've already procured your product that you're wanting to sell. Usually, people who choose this option are either buying pre-made wreaths from a reputable company or have a community that holds an annual holiday convention where you, and other groups, can set-up booths to sell your goods.
Planning Process for Christmas Wreath Fundraisers
As with any fundraiser, there's a lot of planning that needs to be completed before you start the actual raising-money part. Take a look at the important steps you should take when planning your Christmas wreath fundraiser:
1. Decide On Making or Buying the Wreaths
First and foremost when planning a Christmas wreath fundraiser is for you and your organization to decide whether you're going to make the wreaths you're selling yourselves or partner with a reputable organization to send you the wreaths that're purchased. Pre-made wreaths will have a certain consistency to their appearance that some people prefer, but you can make handmade wreaths unique, which some organizations might be more interested in.
To make this decision, you'll need to weigh the costs of the materials for making your wreaths and the number of volunteers you have to make them against the anticipated number of orders; if this turns out to be ineffective, then you might want to considering partnering with one of the following organizations to have them provide you with your wreaths:
- Evergreen Industries
- Jen's Wreaths
- Sherwood Forest Farms
- Belle Plaine Nursery
- Northeast Kingdom Balsam
2. Make a Schedule and Recruit in Advance
You shouldn't wait to start planning the logistics of your wreath fundraiser; rather, a few months in advance you should set the dates for when you're going to hold the fundraiser and begin reaching out to your organization to see who wants to volunteer and in what capacity. Since the holidays are such a busy period for everyone, it's important that you go ahead and ask people for their future commitment before their calendars get blacked out with holiday cheer.
3. Establish a Budget
Whether you're choosing to make your wreaths or buy them from a third-party, you're going to need to allocate a budget. Research the costs of pre-made wreaths and/or the materials that are used to make them and come up with a realistic figure for how much your organization can afford to invest in it.
4. Create a Marketing Campaign
A vital component of any fundraiser is marketing. If people don't know that there's a fundraiser going on, they're not going to participate, and creating a memorable marketing campaign in advance of your Christmas wreath fundraiser can be the thing that makes or breaks your success. Here are some ways to think about marketing your campaigns to get the public interested in both your cause and your fundraiser:
- Post on social media - Not every organization has a dedicated social media team, but even a simple post explaining the dates and prices of your Christmas wreath fundraiser can make a difference in your fundraiser's numbers.
- Reach out to previous donors - Making sure to personally reach out to previous donors via emails, text messages, or phone calls to let them know about your coming fundraiser as well as to enquire on whether they'd like to participate in it can give you a fundraiser 'nest egg' of sorts to launch your fundraiser on.
- Get exposure - If you're planning on holding any single-day sales events with your fundraiser, these can be great marketing tools to help you get exposure for your fundraiser; even if someone doesn't purchase your wreaths, they might mention the fundraiser they saw to someone else who will.
5. Make the Wreaths
If you're choosing to make the wreaths yourselves, then the key is to have enough materials and to not use an overly complicated design. You want to choose a pattern that most laymen can follow with precision. Here are a few different ways you can create holiday themed wreaths, but don't be afraid to put your own personal touch on the classic formula to create a wreath special to your organization. Lastly, be sure not to sell any wreaths that aren't visually appealing; everyone loves to have their children's help, but a wreath covered in half-chewed popcorn pieces isn't going to cut it.
6. Distribute the Wreaths on Time
If there's one thing that any fundraiser which is selling physical goods is meant to be, its prompt. That means that you and your group absolutely have to have your wreaths delivered to your patrons by the date that you told them to expect to have their wreaths by. Failing to do so may make them unlikely to donate in the future and will give you and your organization a bad reputation in the community.
Bring the Holiday Cheer
While your Christmas wreath fundraiser is meant to help financially support your organization's ongoing work, in the end the most important thing to do is to have fun and spread the holiday cheer around your coworkers and your community. Just think about how beautiful your neighborhood will look with your wreaths brightening up the front doors of the houses that're lined up and down the block.
