fundraising for student tours and field trips
DESCRIPTION
What’s stopping you from taking your students on an educational adventure? If your biggest barrier is a financial one, fundraising is your solution to overcoming it. We designed this e-book as a launching pad for teachers and performance art directors who want to raise money for student travel, field trips and other adventures.TRANSCRIPT
School Fundraising Planning Executing amp Succeeding | 1
$$
DC
DC
DC
FUNDRAISING FORSTUDENT TOURS amp FIELD TRIPS
TABLE OFCONTENTS
01 | Planning Process
03 | Promoting Your Fundraiser
07 | Asking for Donations
08 | Collecting Tracking amp Managing Funds
09 | Unique Fundraising Ideas
13 | Educational Value of Fundraising
14 | Fundraising for Student Tours
15 | Tools amp Resources
16 | About Brightspark Travel
DC
DC
DC
Whatrsquos stopping you from taking your students on an educational adventure If
your biggest barrier is a financial one fundraising is your solution to overcoming it
We designed this e-book as a launching pad for teachers and performance
art directors who want to raise money for student travel field trips and other
adventures Wersquoll describe how fundraising for a student adventure is unique and
wersquoll help you make the most of your fundraiser via excellent organization smart
resources and creativity
Yoursquoll find tips for every step of the planning and executing process from
promoting your fundraiser to collecting and tracking funds Additionally we
share some of our favorite resources and the thought processes behind unique
fundraisers that left us inspired
Lastly we inquire how fundraisers can be used to benefit and educate students in
ways that go beyond monetary values We also highlight the benefits of planning a
fundraiser for your student tour with Brightspark Travel
Forward
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 1
A well-organized plan gives your fundraiser focus and ensures that your fundraiser is in line with
your set of circumstances To create a solid plan there are several things you must do
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCEThe first question you must ask is who would you want to help make your educational
adventure happen Parents friends and relatives are safe bets Think of community
members with ties to your goals such as former band students who want to help the current
class attend a performance tour or local artists who will donate toward your art clubrsquos museum
visits Defining your relationship with your audience is essential to the methods of fundraising
you choose
Think of what your audience has to offer Would people donate large sums small sums time
or resources Think of nonfinancial ways audience members could help your fundraiser
For example if a studentrsquos parents own a restaurant they may allow you to use the space for
a fundraising event
Your audiencersquos demographic and psychographic will play a huge factor in your fundraiser Ask
yourself questions such as what are their interests and what are their motivations for fundraising
PLANNING PROCESS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 2
MATCH IDEAS TO GOALS AND REALITIESIt is easy to get carried away with a larger-than-life idea but if that idea
has small profit margins or is unrealistic for your timeline all your
work will be for naught Be clear about what you are fundraising
for and the amount of money you would like to raise Also consider
resources such as skills your students may have your pre-existing
budget and unique support parents can provide
STRATEGIC TIMELINEWhen planning a fundraiser your timeline is everything Base it off the departure dates or payment
due dates of your outing
77 of all Americans have contributed to school fundraisers
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 3
5 TACTICS FOR PROMOTING YOUR FUNDRAISER
1 PARENT LETTERKeeping parents in the loop is essential In addition to speaking with parents about your
fundraiser during face to face interactions you must officially announce your fundraiser
with a well-crafted letter
This letter should include the following
a Your mission statement This paragraph-long statement should include the reason for
your fundraiser your fundraising methods (see unique fundraising ideas) and your goal amount
b Any details relating to your fundraiser Tell parents how they can help with the fundraiser
and if there will be any events Be sure to include important dates
Keep in mind that there is a small mailing cost associated with this parent letter Passing the
letter out in class may be a way to avoid this cost mdash just make sure you can trust students to
get the letter into parentsrsquo hands
Check out sample letters from one of our favorite resources wwwschool-fundraiserscom
See our resource page for other helpful websites
Mr John Smith335 Sylvan Lake Road Hopewell Jct NY 12533
PROMOTINGYOUR FUNDRAISER
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
TABLE OFCONTENTS
01 | Planning Process
03 | Promoting Your Fundraiser
07 | Asking for Donations
08 | Collecting Tracking amp Managing Funds
09 | Unique Fundraising Ideas
13 | Educational Value of Fundraising
14 | Fundraising for Student Tours
15 | Tools amp Resources
16 | About Brightspark Travel
DC
DC
DC
Whatrsquos stopping you from taking your students on an educational adventure If
your biggest barrier is a financial one fundraising is your solution to overcoming it
We designed this e-book as a launching pad for teachers and performance
art directors who want to raise money for student travel field trips and other
adventures Wersquoll describe how fundraising for a student adventure is unique and
wersquoll help you make the most of your fundraiser via excellent organization smart
resources and creativity
Yoursquoll find tips for every step of the planning and executing process from
promoting your fundraiser to collecting and tracking funds Additionally we
share some of our favorite resources and the thought processes behind unique
fundraisers that left us inspired
Lastly we inquire how fundraisers can be used to benefit and educate students in
ways that go beyond monetary values We also highlight the benefits of planning a
fundraiser for your student tour with Brightspark Travel
Forward
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 1
A well-organized plan gives your fundraiser focus and ensures that your fundraiser is in line with
your set of circumstances To create a solid plan there are several things you must do
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCEThe first question you must ask is who would you want to help make your educational
adventure happen Parents friends and relatives are safe bets Think of community
members with ties to your goals such as former band students who want to help the current
class attend a performance tour or local artists who will donate toward your art clubrsquos museum
visits Defining your relationship with your audience is essential to the methods of fundraising
you choose
Think of what your audience has to offer Would people donate large sums small sums time
or resources Think of nonfinancial ways audience members could help your fundraiser
For example if a studentrsquos parents own a restaurant they may allow you to use the space for
a fundraising event
Your audiencersquos demographic and psychographic will play a huge factor in your fundraiser Ask
yourself questions such as what are their interests and what are their motivations for fundraising
PLANNING PROCESS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 2
MATCH IDEAS TO GOALS AND REALITIESIt is easy to get carried away with a larger-than-life idea but if that idea
has small profit margins or is unrealistic for your timeline all your
work will be for naught Be clear about what you are fundraising
for and the amount of money you would like to raise Also consider
resources such as skills your students may have your pre-existing
budget and unique support parents can provide
STRATEGIC TIMELINEWhen planning a fundraiser your timeline is everything Base it off the departure dates or payment
due dates of your outing
77 of all Americans have contributed to school fundraisers
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 3
5 TACTICS FOR PROMOTING YOUR FUNDRAISER
1 PARENT LETTERKeeping parents in the loop is essential In addition to speaking with parents about your
fundraiser during face to face interactions you must officially announce your fundraiser
with a well-crafted letter
This letter should include the following
a Your mission statement This paragraph-long statement should include the reason for
your fundraiser your fundraising methods (see unique fundraising ideas) and your goal amount
b Any details relating to your fundraiser Tell parents how they can help with the fundraiser
and if there will be any events Be sure to include important dates
Keep in mind that there is a small mailing cost associated with this parent letter Passing the
letter out in class may be a way to avoid this cost mdash just make sure you can trust students to
get the letter into parentsrsquo hands
Check out sample letters from one of our favorite resources wwwschool-fundraiserscom
See our resource page for other helpful websites
Mr John Smith335 Sylvan Lake Road Hopewell Jct NY 12533
PROMOTINGYOUR FUNDRAISER
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
DC
DC
DC
Whatrsquos stopping you from taking your students on an educational adventure If
your biggest barrier is a financial one fundraising is your solution to overcoming it
We designed this e-book as a launching pad for teachers and performance
art directors who want to raise money for student travel field trips and other
adventures Wersquoll describe how fundraising for a student adventure is unique and
wersquoll help you make the most of your fundraiser via excellent organization smart
resources and creativity
Yoursquoll find tips for every step of the planning and executing process from
promoting your fundraiser to collecting and tracking funds Additionally we
share some of our favorite resources and the thought processes behind unique
fundraisers that left us inspired
Lastly we inquire how fundraisers can be used to benefit and educate students in
ways that go beyond monetary values We also highlight the benefits of planning a
fundraiser for your student tour with Brightspark Travel
Forward
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 1
A well-organized plan gives your fundraiser focus and ensures that your fundraiser is in line with
your set of circumstances To create a solid plan there are several things you must do
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCEThe first question you must ask is who would you want to help make your educational
adventure happen Parents friends and relatives are safe bets Think of community
members with ties to your goals such as former band students who want to help the current
class attend a performance tour or local artists who will donate toward your art clubrsquos museum
visits Defining your relationship with your audience is essential to the methods of fundraising
you choose
Think of what your audience has to offer Would people donate large sums small sums time
or resources Think of nonfinancial ways audience members could help your fundraiser
For example if a studentrsquos parents own a restaurant they may allow you to use the space for
a fundraising event
Your audiencersquos demographic and psychographic will play a huge factor in your fundraiser Ask
yourself questions such as what are their interests and what are their motivations for fundraising
PLANNING PROCESS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 2
MATCH IDEAS TO GOALS AND REALITIESIt is easy to get carried away with a larger-than-life idea but if that idea
has small profit margins or is unrealistic for your timeline all your
work will be for naught Be clear about what you are fundraising
for and the amount of money you would like to raise Also consider
resources such as skills your students may have your pre-existing
budget and unique support parents can provide
STRATEGIC TIMELINEWhen planning a fundraiser your timeline is everything Base it off the departure dates or payment
due dates of your outing
77 of all Americans have contributed to school fundraisers
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 3
5 TACTICS FOR PROMOTING YOUR FUNDRAISER
1 PARENT LETTERKeeping parents in the loop is essential In addition to speaking with parents about your
fundraiser during face to face interactions you must officially announce your fundraiser
with a well-crafted letter
This letter should include the following
a Your mission statement This paragraph-long statement should include the reason for
your fundraiser your fundraising methods (see unique fundraising ideas) and your goal amount
b Any details relating to your fundraiser Tell parents how they can help with the fundraiser
and if there will be any events Be sure to include important dates
Keep in mind that there is a small mailing cost associated with this parent letter Passing the
letter out in class may be a way to avoid this cost mdash just make sure you can trust students to
get the letter into parentsrsquo hands
Check out sample letters from one of our favorite resources wwwschool-fundraiserscom
See our resource page for other helpful websites
Mr John Smith335 Sylvan Lake Road Hopewell Jct NY 12533
PROMOTINGYOUR FUNDRAISER
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 1
A well-organized plan gives your fundraiser focus and ensures that your fundraiser is in line with
your set of circumstances To create a solid plan there are several things you must do
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCEThe first question you must ask is who would you want to help make your educational
adventure happen Parents friends and relatives are safe bets Think of community
members with ties to your goals such as former band students who want to help the current
class attend a performance tour or local artists who will donate toward your art clubrsquos museum
visits Defining your relationship with your audience is essential to the methods of fundraising
you choose
Think of what your audience has to offer Would people donate large sums small sums time
or resources Think of nonfinancial ways audience members could help your fundraiser
For example if a studentrsquos parents own a restaurant they may allow you to use the space for
a fundraising event
Your audiencersquos demographic and psychographic will play a huge factor in your fundraiser Ask
yourself questions such as what are their interests and what are their motivations for fundraising
PLANNING PROCESS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 2
MATCH IDEAS TO GOALS AND REALITIESIt is easy to get carried away with a larger-than-life idea but if that idea
has small profit margins or is unrealistic for your timeline all your
work will be for naught Be clear about what you are fundraising
for and the amount of money you would like to raise Also consider
resources such as skills your students may have your pre-existing
budget and unique support parents can provide
STRATEGIC TIMELINEWhen planning a fundraiser your timeline is everything Base it off the departure dates or payment
due dates of your outing
77 of all Americans have contributed to school fundraisers
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 3
5 TACTICS FOR PROMOTING YOUR FUNDRAISER
1 PARENT LETTERKeeping parents in the loop is essential In addition to speaking with parents about your
fundraiser during face to face interactions you must officially announce your fundraiser
with a well-crafted letter
This letter should include the following
a Your mission statement This paragraph-long statement should include the reason for
your fundraiser your fundraising methods (see unique fundraising ideas) and your goal amount
b Any details relating to your fundraiser Tell parents how they can help with the fundraiser
and if there will be any events Be sure to include important dates
Keep in mind that there is a small mailing cost associated with this parent letter Passing the
letter out in class may be a way to avoid this cost mdash just make sure you can trust students to
get the letter into parentsrsquo hands
Check out sample letters from one of our favorite resources wwwschool-fundraiserscom
See our resource page for other helpful websites
Mr John Smith335 Sylvan Lake Road Hopewell Jct NY 12533
PROMOTINGYOUR FUNDRAISER
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 2
MATCH IDEAS TO GOALS AND REALITIESIt is easy to get carried away with a larger-than-life idea but if that idea
has small profit margins or is unrealistic for your timeline all your
work will be for naught Be clear about what you are fundraising
for and the amount of money you would like to raise Also consider
resources such as skills your students may have your pre-existing
budget and unique support parents can provide
STRATEGIC TIMELINEWhen planning a fundraiser your timeline is everything Base it off the departure dates or payment
due dates of your outing
77 of all Americans have contributed to school fundraisers
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 3
5 TACTICS FOR PROMOTING YOUR FUNDRAISER
1 PARENT LETTERKeeping parents in the loop is essential In addition to speaking with parents about your
fundraiser during face to face interactions you must officially announce your fundraiser
with a well-crafted letter
This letter should include the following
a Your mission statement This paragraph-long statement should include the reason for
your fundraiser your fundraising methods (see unique fundraising ideas) and your goal amount
b Any details relating to your fundraiser Tell parents how they can help with the fundraiser
and if there will be any events Be sure to include important dates
Keep in mind that there is a small mailing cost associated with this parent letter Passing the
letter out in class may be a way to avoid this cost mdash just make sure you can trust students to
get the letter into parentsrsquo hands
Check out sample letters from one of our favorite resources wwwschool-fundraiserscom
See our resource page for other helpful websites
Mr John Smith335 Sylvan Lake Road Hopewell Jct NY 12533
PROMOTINGYOUR FUNDRAISER
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 3
5 TACTICS FOR PROMOTING YOUR FUNDRAISER
1 PARENT LETTERKeeping parents in the loop is essential In addition to speaking with parents about your
fundraiser during face to face interactions you must officially announce your fundraiser
with a well-crafted letter
This letter should include the following
a Your mission statement This paragraph-long statement should include the reason for
your fundraiser your fundraising methods (see unique fundraising ideas) and your goal amount
b Any details relating to your fundraiser Tell parents how they can help with the fundraiser
and if there will be any events Be sure to include important dates
Keep in mind that there is a small mailing cost associated with this parent letter Passing the
letter out in class may be a way to avoid this cost mdash just make sure you can trust students to
get the letter into parentsrsquo hands
Check out sample letters from one of our favorite resources wwwschool-fundraiserscom
See our resource page for other helpful websites
Mr John Smith335 Sylvan Lake Road Hopewell Jct NY 12533
PROMOTINGYOUR FUNDRAISER
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 4
2 EMAIL BLASTIn addition to sending parents and other contacts information via snail mail you can keep them
updated with a series of emails Relevantly spaced out these could cover subjects such as
bull An announcement kick off similar to the parent letter
bull Details and information about upcoming events
bull A halfway mark reporting progress towards goals
bull Reminders to get faraway friends and relatives involved
bull Fun fact about the educational adventure you are planning
bull Post fundraiser thank you with event results
Check out some of our favorite email tools in our resource section
3 POSTERS amp FLYERSDistributing posters and flyers around your school and community is a great way to raise awareness
for your fundraiser To best know where to place these materials think about where your target
audience spends time
You can choose between designing your own poster or flyer and utilizing the services of an
artistically inclined student seeking experience in graphic design Though designs for posters and
flyers should be adjusted to their format they should have similar aesthetics to help with your
fundraiserrsquos overall design Here are some other tips
a You may use photographs drawings or a unique combination of graphics
b Fonts can be creative but more importantly they must be legible
c Keep the text clear and minimal pair a clever tagline with essential information such as dates
times cost group name and locations
d Donrsquot know where to start Check out Pinterest for inspiration
Like mailers posters can have an associated cost To avoid this see if your school offers high quality
printing or if you are feeling crafty try screen printing Learn how here
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 5
4 LOCAL MEDIA COVERAGELocal newspapers websites and stations are always looking for unique human interest pieces
and features on education Write a press release about your upcoming adventure and how it will
benefit your students Or if you have a unique fundraiser you can write about the fundraiser
yourself In your press release be sure to mention how readers can contribute
Get more information on writing press releases here
5 SOCIAL MEDIAStudents parents and community members are on social media Your fundraiser should be too
You can set up profiles on Twitter Facebook Instagram and LinkedIn mdash just make sure you are
on the social media outlet that matches with your audience and messaging Specific outlets are
more appropriate than others for different types of posts
You can set up pages for your student adventure in general or specifically for your fundraiser
On the next page we list some ideas for types of posts and outline which outlets work best for
each post type
For tips on promoting a school play concert or show read our blog gt
DONrsquoT FORGETAfter your fundraiser has come to an end be sure to thank donors
volunteers event attendees and students Thank you letters to
donors should outline where funds are going and how an individualrsquos
contribution made a difference General thank you announcements
can be made in social media or in local media
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 6
Fun facts about your educational adventure
Pictures related to your educational adventure
Pictures of students working on the fundraiser
Highlights and pictures of specific products or services you are selling
Videos related to your fundraiser or educationaladventure
Online Fundraising Challenge (See Unique Ideas)
Ask for donations using tips from our section ldquoThe Askrdquo
Start a hashtag related to your fundraiser or educational adventure Encourage students and donors to use this hashtag
Announcements leading up to important events
Announcements related to progress towards goals
Links to content related to your educational adventure This can include articles blog posts and videos
All posts must include a related image
Remember that many of these post types can be combined For example combining an
announcement on your progress towards your goal with a request for a donation could be effective
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 7
ldquoThe Askrdquo
ASKING FORDONATIONS
To get the most out of your messaging follow these tips
bull Clearly yet persuasively explain the benefits and importance
of your educational adventure
bull Suggest a specific donation amount and tie it clearly to
a tangible benefit Eg ldquoYour gift of $50 will pay for Juliersquos
workshop with a Disney professionalrdquo
bull Clarify timelines and deadlines for donations
bull Detail consequences of not acting
bull If possible find a large source to match donations Matching
a donor is a great selling point
ldquoThe Askrdquo is the moment when you or your student requests
someonersquos donation either over the internet phone or in a
face to face interaction For the perfect execution of ldquothe
askrdquo plenty of preparation surrounding your message and
target audience is necessary The Planning Process section
of this e-book will help you
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 8
There is no single ldquorightrdquo way to collect manage and track your funds mdash it all depends on what
works best for your fundraising method
Note Many of these programs require small to moderate payments or portions of profits
COLLECTING TRACKING amp MANAGING FUNDS
Crowdfunding sites are a great resource for collecting and tracking donations and event tickets mdash particularly for fundraisers with a strong online presence
Additionally they allow you to communicate with your target audience witha personal web page as well as with connections with Facebook Twitter and email accounts The capabilities of these sites vary and we encourage you to explore some of our favorite crowdfunding sites in order to find the right one for you
Paypal accounts can help you collect funds both online and at events With PayPal you can add a ldquodonaterdquo button to your website or you can sell specific products online During face to face interactions at events such as healthy bake sales purchases can be made on PayPal Here a mobile payment solution that allows people to pay for items via a thumb-sized card reader attached to a mobile phone
When it comes to managing funds QuickBooks Intuit is a great accounting software that can be synchronized to your bank or PayPal account This software provides quick online reports on subjects such as profits and losses sales and cash flows
Collecting managing and tracking funds can be one of
the most rewarding aspects of the fundraising process
It can however come with problems With misplaced
cash returned checks and multiple individuals handling
donations manual tracking systems make it difficult to
ensure accuracy In the online era computer-like precision
is expected and necessary mdash especially with increasingly
complicated fundraising methods As such we recommend
utilizing online tools for this
Note When fundraising for a student tour many students will want their fundraising money to go towards their individual trip This may be difficult as more and more states require fundraising money to be pooled
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 9
The era of generic fundraisers is over The increased
popularity of fundraisers has led to competition mdash and bland
bake sales wonrsquot stand out Wersquove taken some of our favorite
unique fundraising ideas and dissected how they were planned
in accordance to their groups audience restraints resources
and end goals as well as happenings within their communities
HEALTH FOOD FUNDRAISERSIn many states much-debated movements towards ending
obesity have led to the demise of a fundraising tradition the
bake sale While opponents of the junk food ban lament that
ldquofruit simply doesnrsquot sell as well as cookiesrdquo we believe that
with a little effort and creativity health food can out-fun sweets
Several schools have taken advantage of this fad by pairing up
with Jamba Juice The national juice and smoothie company
will put on an event at your school complete with smoothies
staff and money management A percentage of the proceeds
will go towards your organization A B C
ADULT SPELLING BEE
JUICE VOUCHERS
MATTRESS SALE
UNIQUE FUNDRAISING IDEAS
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 10
RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL BUSINESSESDo parents and community members have local businesses Encourage them to donate their
resources to your fundraiser
Developing partnerships with retail businesses is a great way to get items for silent auctions
During a silent auction event available items are numbered and placed next to a correlating
ldquobidding sheetrdquo This sheet should include a minimum bid along with space for bidders to
include their name contact information and bidding amount
STUDENT SKILLSAn event showcasing student talent is a great opportunity for fundraising Whether you have
a concert band that can put on a recital or a history class that can put on a quirky eclectic
talent show give students a chance to get creative
One marching band student with a knack for photography sold framed photographs and put
the proceeds towards buying instruments for his school band
OUT OF THE BOX FUNDRAISERSIn addition to catching the attention of onlookers quirky fundraising events can be quite
lucrative For example Custom Fundraising Solutions sets up one-day-only mattress sales in
school auditoriums where name brand mattresses can be bought at a discounted price Even
with this discount there is significant profit with each sale mdash much more than with cheap
trinkets mdash and this profit goes directly to the school
In another quirky fundraiser one school set up a sumo wrestling tournament amongst
teachers Throughout the week leading up to the tournament students donated money to
select which teachers would participate
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 11
DESTINATION-THEMED FUNDRAISERS
If yoursquore traveling to an awesome destination
or site use it as inspiration for your fundraiser
One group that was raising funds for their
international student tour to Germany sold
fresh Bavarian-style pretzels for a
destination-themed fundraiser Read
more about this on our blog
Whether yoursquore hosting salsa dancing
lessons for your Spanish trip or a Disney-
themed concert for your bandrsquos trip to
Walt Disney World a destination-inspired
fundraising is fun and relevant
SOCIAL MEDIA BASED FUNDRAISERS
Online fundraising challenges were met with
unprecedented popularity in 2014 when many
individuals participated in the ldquoice bucket
challengerdquo for ALS People took videos of
themselves dumping ice water on their heads
and then ldquochallengedrdquo online friends to do
the same Participants who dumped water
on their head were asked to donate a lower
amount while those who did not partake in
the challenge donated a higher amount
Creating your own online fundraising
challenge is a great idea if your audience has
a strong social media presence Challenge
donors to take photographs or videos of
themselves engaging in a fun activity such as
lip-singing their favorite song
SEASONAL EVENTS DESTINATION-THEMED SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGES
Each year schools and youth groups earn around $2 billion with fundraisers
Did You Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 12
SEASONAL EVENTSIf your fundraiser happens to take place near a major holiday take advantage of the seasonrsquos
spirit For a December fundraiser one marching band parked outside of a popular department
store and offered to wrap shoppersrsquo gifts for a nominal fee
DONOR PARTICIPATIONAdult donors often want to feel involved in a manner that goes beyond monetary contributions
Give them what they want with events such as an adult spelling bee For an entry fee adults can
participate in a favorite classroom activity that they probably havenrsquot experienced for years
RESTAURANT FUNDRAISERSMany chain restaurants give back to the community by offering fundraising nights Work with a
restaurant to plan an evening in which 10-20 of the restaurantrsquos receipts go towards your cause
Make the most of a fundraising night by promoting it within your school and your community To
find a restaurant offering a fundraising night in your area check out this list of participants
ldquoThe thing that works best for us is when we ask
local restaurants in our neighborhood to sponsor an
event Next Tuesday for example the local pizza
place is giving us 20 of that dayrsquos proceedsrdquo
- Catilin M Language Arts Teacher
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 13
While monetary benefits are obvious fundraisers also allow students to develop skills that
theyrsquoll carry into the future
STRATEGY ampPLANNINGInvolve students in the planning
process as much as possible
Let them know why you made
a decision and encourage them
to share their ideas As you
progress towards your goal ask
them why they think a certain
method did or did not work well
SPECIALIZED SKILLSYour artsy student designs the
poster while your math whiz is
in charge of tracking Students
learn how their unique skills can
contribute to the team as a whole
SALES amp MARKETINGFrom the promotion to ldquothe
askrdquo fundraisers are often
the first times in which students
must ldquosellrdquo to others
Encourage students to be
persuasive professional
and upbeat even in rejection
RESUME BUILDERWhen students work hard towards
a fundraiser they can include
the skills they developed on their
resumes and college applications
EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF FUNDRAISING
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 14
More specifically when you are raising money for your Brightspark Travel tour you will benefit
from the following
bull Resources such as e-books and blog posts
bull Assistance from our staff of experts who have worked with fundraisers before
bull Option to automatically send donation requests to friends and relatives
Fundraising for Field Trips vs Student Tours
Fundraising for a field trip has a lot of similarities to fundraising for a student tour but due to the
nature of these two educational adventures each possess unique elements
In general field trips cost less per person than student tours due to their shorter length The
fundraising goal is often less and it is plausible that the entire cost of the field trip could be
covered through the fundraiser Consequently students will have fewer qualms about pooling the
funds
Because student tours are more expensive and often have a bigger impact than field trips students
and parents are more likely feel personal connections to their fundraising efforts Though this can
be difficult if your state requires you to pool money it also means that students are more likely to
put more effort into the fundraiser and that their friends and loved ones will be more likely to offer
financial support
Moving From Field Trips to Student Tours
If yoursquore planning a field trip you probably have the enthusiasm and organizational skills it takes to
plan a student tour Learn how easy it can be with the help of a trusted student travel company like
Brightspark by reading about one teacherrsquos first tour-planning experience
FUNDRAISING FOR STUDENT TOURS
Brightspark Travel works with one school that raised $33000
Did Y ou Know
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 15
TOOLS amp RESOURCES
CROWDFUNDING SITESFundly
Fundrazr
Pay It Square
Go Fund Me
My Events
You Caring
Tilt
FUN RUN TOOLSMy Fun Run
OTHERPayPal
EBay
FUNDRAISING INSPIRATIONTop School Fundraisers
School-FundraisersRazoo
POSTER-MAKING TOOLSCanva
Lucid Press
Comet Doc
Educators Technology
EMAIL TOOLSMail Chimp
Litmus
99 Design
SEND USTO DC
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2
DC
DC
DC
Fundraising for Student Tours and Field Trips | 16
Stay Up to Date on Education Performance and Travel
Brightspark Travel offers custom educational and performance tours and events in
a broad range of domestic and international locations Our team of experts works
closely with clients to create inspiring hassle-free custom tours that perfectly fit
their needs and interests
Thinking of fundraising for a student tour Check out great destination and event
ideas in our education e-catalog or performance e-catalog
Read the EducationE-Catalog gt
Read the PerformanceE-Catalog gt
16_SimK12 Update Fundraising E-book_V2