subject: Bingo Games Make Excellent Fundraising Events [print this page] Fundraising is an important part of charity work, and organising a successful event which raises cash for a cause or charity you believe in is a rewarding experience. As well as raising money, events like these represent an opportunity to build new skills and experiences, in recruitment, promotion, project management and a range of different skills.
Fundraising events come in all shapes and sizes, from fun runs to disco dances, baked bean baths to beard contests. If you really want to boost attendance to your fundraising event then it can be a good idea to keep it simple and provide an activity which many people already enjoy. Bingo is easy to play, enjoyed by people of many backgrounds and age groups, and represents an opportunity for players to make winnings as well as donate to charity. Bingo games work well as fundraising events, as long as the prizes are desirable enough to attract a sufficient number of players.
Most people are very familiar with the rules of bingo, and the materials which you need to play are relatively easily available. This can include number books, a number generator and a microphone. Once the number is selected it is called, and then marked off the bingo books by players with market pens or bingo dabbers. It's a family-friendly activity which can be conducted at a really low cost.
When organising a fundraising event, be clear about what cause it is you are raising money for. Attendants may judge whether to attend or not based on the size of the prizes, or the worthiness of the cause, and the charity could also influence other parts of the organisation of the event, including who to invite and where to promote it.
In order to get decent prizes, you need to sell a lot of books, but there are other ways of getting prizes. You could approach local businesses to see if they would be prepared to donate prizes, as it also serves as a PR exercise and an advertisement of products. You could also ask for donations from relevant businesses or associations.
Remember that a bingo fundraising event doesn't have to start and finish with a bingo game; once you have a roomful of participants it can be easy to introduce additional games or competitions to lift the atmosphere and raise some extra cash for the cause. If you're using a PA system to announce the bingo numbers then there's no reason why you couldn't also operate a talent contest or karaoke sessions. Bingo games make excellent fundraising events.
