4 Lessons a Congregation Can Learn from Product Fundraising

Imagine your church just hosted a product fundraiser to fund a youth mission trip. Your congregants worked together to promote your campaign and sell cookie dough to other community members, resulting in $6,000 raised for your church.

The campaign was a success not only because you met your fundraising goal but also because you leveraged the power of your community. These interactions with your congregants and community members teach important lessons that you can apply to your operations and future fundraisers.

Explore the lessons your congregation can learn from product fundraising and how you can apply these teachings to better your organization.

1. How to Understand Community Preferences

Product fundraisers are unique because they require you to sell a product, and whether your congregants like that product will influence their participation. Therefore, this type of campaign allows you to learn more about your congregation and what products resonate with them so you can align future campaigns with their interests.

How to Maximize This Lesson

• Analyze campaign data. Assess the results of your campaign to determine not only which products your audience prefers but also the most effective ways to sell those products. For instance, you may find that your online fundraising store raised significantly more funds than in-person sales, prompting you to prioritize online fundraising during your next campaign.
• Survey participants after your campaign. Ask your congregants and donors for feedback on your product, campaign marketing strategy, and overall process. Store this information in your constituent relationship management platform (CRM) so you can apply it to future fundraising efforts.
• Organize focus groups. Consider conducting a focus group to collect even more in-depth thoughts on your campaign. Gather donors, volunteers, sponsors, and other stakeholders to gain diverse perspectives on your product fundraiser.

2. How to Build Lasting Partnerships

Whether you enlist the help of a company to sponsor your campaign or sell products outside a local business, product fundraisers are a prime opportunity to foster connections with local businesses and vendors. This type of campaign can lead to lasting partnerships that fuel your mission for years to come.

How to Maximize This Lesson

• Follow up with new sponsors or partners. Let’s say you hosted a discount card fundraiser where you sold cards that offer discounts to local businesses. As ABC Fundraising explains, “Discount card fundraisers are excellent ways for merchants, restaurants, and stores in your community to support your group and in turn for the community members to support those businesses that support you.” Strengthen these relationships by following up with these businesses and proposing longer-term partnerships in which they sponsor your church to do even more good.
• Tap into other corporate philanthropy opportunities. From matching gifts to volunteer grants to payroll giving, many companies offer additional corporate philanthropy opportunities that you can encourage your congregants to take advantage of. According to 360MatchPro’s corporate philanthropy trends guide, your “strongest tool for tapping into corporate philanthropy is the relationships you can build with business leaders,” so collaborating on a product fundraiser can be the gateway to powerful partnerships.
• Create an in-kind donation policy. Some businesses may be willing to support your church through donated items or services, otherwise known as in-kind donations. Motivate companies to help in this way by developing an in-kind donation policy that outlines exactly what they can give and how to contribute it.

3. How to Communicate Effectively

A product fundraiser is a chance to experiment with different communication strategies and determine what works best for your congregation. Testing different ways to articulate your goals and needs helps you align your messaging with your audience and secure as many donations as possible.

How to Maximize This Lesson

• Share impact. Inspire a culture of giving by informing donors of their impact. During the campaign, let donors know what certain donation amounts will allow your organization to achieve. An appeal that asks donors to buy cookie dough to support your mission trip is much less persuasive than one that explains that every cookie dough tub sold covers travel costs for one mission trip participant. After the campaign, share the total amount raised and what you’ll accomplish with those funds.
• Revamp your marketing strategy. Take this opportunity to evaluate your marketing messaging and channels to optimize your strategy. For instance, you may find that direct mail is an extremely effective channel for your audience and invest more heavily in it in the future.
• Brainstorm how to promote church values while fundraising. There may be a disconnect between purchasing something and understanding how this action upholds church values. Weave in what your church stands for by creating value-based campaign themes, sharing stories of your church’s community, and incorporating faith-based messaging.

4. How to Manage Volunteers

Product fundraising relies on volunteers to promote and facilitate your campaign. As a result, you can practice volunteer management to wrangle your community on behalf of your cause effectively.

How to Maximize This Lesson

• Leverage volunteer management software. The right platform allows you to organize volunteer information, automate communications, and schedule shifts, taking your volunteer management strategy to the next level.
• Promote additional volunteer opportunities. Keep product volunteers engaged by following up with additional opportunities. Maximize participation by offering a variety of ways congregants can help, including micro-volunteering, which refers to smaller, less time-consuming opportunities, and skills-based tasks.
• Provide volunteer training. Investing in volunteers’ success can motivate them to put their best foot forward and volunteer with your church again in the future. Consider providing in-person training or volunteer resources that help volunteers understand their roles and perform them as well as possible.

Church fundraising is all about gathering your community to raise money for initiatives that further your mission. With product fundraising, you can generate revenue and improve relationships with community members to sustain your church over time, allowing your congregation to thrive for years to come.