Putting on the perfect fundraising event

Just weeks after the 21st annual American Cancer Society’s Cattle Baron’s Ball in Eaton, Colo., Nancy Clarke is already starting to plan next year’s event.

As the American Cancer Society’s Great West Division senior specialist for distinguished events, Clarke will make phone calls to sponsors and donors to see what they enjoyed about the event. She’ll meet with the new event chair and begin organizing volunteers. With changes and improvements to keep the annual event that more than 1,000 people attend new and exciting, preparation takes place all year long.

“You’ve got to keep it fresh, ” Clarke said. “It’s a good cause, but there’s a lot of good causes out there.”

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Whether it’s a fundraising event to benefit cancer, AIDS research or hospice care, there are basic elements of planning that help ensure a well-organized, successful fundraising campaign. For Clarke, one of those basics starts with the event’s chairperson. Though the Cattle Baron’s Ball is held at the same location yearly, Clarke said a new chairperson is selected each year, giving the annual event a new look with a fresh perspective.

“I think keeping it fresh for us starts with the event chair,” Clarke said. “There’s a new chair each year and they give it their all; give it their signature.”

Set a realistic goal

At the 21st Cattle Baron’s Ball this year, Clarke said they raised more than $500,000 – money that will help fund cancer research. And Clarke said the event is one filled with passion and purpose as its volunteer committee of 50 members and more than 300 volunteers strive to meet the set goal.

“You always have to have a goal or you don’t know what to aim for,” Clarke said.

Nicki McDermott, special events and marketing officer for the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole, said a goal can help motivate volunteers, sponsors and donors. During the past 16 years, the foundation’s annual Old Bill’s Fun Run For Charities has helped local charities raise nearly $91 million. Those dollars have helped house homeless pets, feed the hungry, teach children and protect Jackson’s natural beauty. This year, McDermott said the committee set a goal of bringing the lifetime total up to $100 million.

“We wanted to raise over $9 million to try to meet the $100 million mark,” McDermott said. Though they are still tallying up donations at press time, McDermott said she thinks they met that goal.

Setting a clear, obtainable goal helps determine the success of a fundraiser, Clarke said. Keeping volunteers and staff members apprised of how close or how far from a goal the event is can help push them to get more people involved or sell more tickets.

“This is a volunteer-driven event,” Clarke said. “Our volunteers are passionate and focused on our goal.”

Organize volunteers

Those volunteers are key to a successful fundraiser. One person cannot single-handedly run a successful fundraiser. McDermott knows firsthand the value of volunteers. During its annual Fun Run, the Jackson Hole Town Square was overflowing with runners, supporters and vendors. Keeping it all organized and running smoothly took more than 300 volunteers.

“There were 3,600 people on the Square,” McDermott said. “We have volunteers keeping the runners safe, directing traffic and helping get vendors set up. I can’t imagine what my job would be like without the 28-member committee and all the volunteers. They handle so many different pieces of this event.”

McDermott said assigning responsibilities to volunteers shuffles out the work without overtaxing one person.

Keep it simple

Highly successful, McDermott thinks part of the appeal to the Old Bill’s Fun Run is its straightforwardness.

“Donors really appreciate the simplicity of this event,” she said.

Through the annual event, McDermott said donors can designate what local charity they want their donation to benefit. There are thousands of charities the event helps fund. The donors’ gifts are then matched by Mr. and Mrs. Old Bill, “co-challengers” and “friends of the match.”

“It all stays in Teton County,” McDermott said. “It’s a really straightforward event. In reality, it’s quite complicated for the event organizers, … but for the donors, it is simple.”

McDermott and her committee are looking at ways to improve and “tweek” Old Bill’s Fun Run all year long. But they don’t change much. After all, the event is successful and supported by the community as is.

“The community has really embraced the event,” McDermott said. “People are motivated to give.”

Listen to sponsors and donors

Clarke said her phone calls and conversations with her donors and sponsors are vital to the success of the Cattle Baron’s Ball. Not only do they improve the next event, but they also help guarantee donation dollars.

“It takes work to keep sponsors,” Clarke said. “It is not always a given that you will have the same sponsors you have had.”

Listening to concerns and advice of sponsors helps them know they are important partners in an event’s success.

“You try to make sponsors know that they can say both the positive and the negative,” Clarke said. “Both are important.”

Let history speak

Past fundraising raising event experience can lend clues to what will or will not be successful. Researching former fundraising records and visiting with past volunteers or committee members can help determine what events were successful and which ones failed.

Though Polo on the Lawn was a popular event, it wasn’t always the right fit for HospiceCare. Members of the nonprofit organization are currently revamping some of their fundraising efforts because of complications involved with fundraising. Though the organization, which provides physical and emotional care to people dealing with the end stages of terminal illness, as well as grief and loss support for families, used to host events such as Polo on the Lawn and Pizzazz, the annual events overtaxed a small staff.

“We’ve had to switch gears on fundraising,´ said Myra Cseke, philanthropic services manager for HospiceCare of Boulder and Broomfield Counties in Colorado.

“They were too time-intensive for our staff,” Cseke said.

Now Cseke said they are focusing on setting up small events with different corporations and local businesses. They have teamed with a local magazine that hosts a Kentucky Derby party and a local bank that partners with an art gallery to host benefits for HospiceCare. It’s a win-win situation for all involved, Cseke said.

“They get the publicity they want and we get proceeds we need,” she said.