The past year has evoked a lot of questions for charitable organisations.
- How do you fundraise with social distancing?
- How can you raise money in lockdown?
- How can you fundraise online?
- Can you fundraise virtually?
If you’ve thought these questions, or maybe even typed them into Google (hello, if that’s how you’ve found us!) then you’re in the right place.
Our blog is dedicated to providing plenty of fundraising ideas and tips. Over the last year it’s predominantly focused on the above questions. Fundraising has been forced to move online by lockdown restrictions and social distancing regulations.
We’ve got various blogs about online fundraising ideas, socially distanced fundraisers and tips on virtual fundraising.
This week is set to be the warmest of the year so far, with temperatures due to reach 21 degrees where we’re based! So in this article we’re going to look at some socially distanced fundraising ideas that you can do outside. Let’s make the most of that sunshine, and raise some vital funds at the same time.
Socially Distanced Fundraising Ideas You Can Do Outside
Here are a selection of socially distanced fundraisers your supporters can enjoy doing outside in the long-awaited sunshine!
Dog Walking
Research has shown that dogs improve our mood. If you haven’t got a pet of your own, why not offer your time to your local community, asking if anyone needs help walking or looking after their dog? Volunteers will ask for a small fee which they can then donate to your charity. Dogs and sunshine – What more do you need?
Cycling Scavenger Hunt
If the sun’s going to be out, so are the people. Why not encourage your supporters to do a sponsored cycle? They could set themselves a challenge of 2, 5 or 10 miles – Raising money for hitting their goal and donating it to your cause. Bring about a buzz on social media by adding in a bonus photo scavenger hunt along their way. Funny cloud shapes, their reflection in something, a strange piece of litter, some wildlife, something shiny in the sunlight. Share your favourites on your Stories – People love their photos to be shared.
Walk to ……
Encourage your supporters to get outside in the sunshine and do a bit of exercise. Perhaps your charity has links to another country, or maybe you’re about to celebrate a birthday? Ask donors to log their miles walked and track everyone’s progress until you virtually reach your destination. If your charity helps people in Africa, then the challenge is to virtually walk to Africa! If you’re about to celebrate 50 years of your charitable organisation, then see if you and your supporters can reach a goal of 5000 miles covered! The more relevant to your charity and cause the better; Get those sponsorships marching in!
Easter Trail
This weekend it’s Easter Sunday – The perfect opportunity for a trail for families around a village or housing estate. Create a map and hide clues along a route – Maybe letters to spell out a word at the end? Ask for a small fee to obtain the route map, and offer a treat at the end for the children. Perfect to get families out in the fresh air whilst raising money! This type of fundraiser also works well at Halloween and Christmas.
Swap Driving for Walking / Cycling
It’s going to be so sunny this week, why not ask your followers to swap driving for walking or cycling this week (where possible). Not only will they be able to enjoy the sunshine and warm temperatures, they will also save money in fuel costs. Ask your loyal supporters to donate the money they save to your very worthy cause.
De-Clutter and Donate
Many of us have utilised the extra time at home by sorting and de-cluttering. There are still a few weeks left before charity shops can re-open, and they’re quite likely once again to be inundated with donations of clothes, unwanted toys and old books. The worst thing about de-cluttering is waiting to get rid of all that stuff! So why not suggest your supporters hold a socially distanced garage sale? They can set up a sale in their front garden and donate all the proceeds to your fund!
Private Tuition
As of the 31st March, we’re allowed to meet people outside and have visitors in our gardens. Perhaps some of your donors are instrumental music teachers, a cricket coach or a maths and English tutor! They could donate their time to private tuition, where they hold a lesson in their garden (socially distanced) and their pupil donates the money for their time to your cause.
Community Clean-Up Competition
With sunshine in the sky and warmer temperatures, people are going to start enjoying their local outside spaces more. Make the most of the good weather and encourage families spend an hour cleaning up their road or local park. They can buy bin bags and borrow litter pickers from your marshals for a small fee, and the family with the biggest bin bag(s) wins a prize! This one is a winner for everyone involved.
Photograph Competition
Ask your supporters to snap a photo of them and their family enjoying the sunshine. Charge a small fee to enter the competition, and make it a condition of entry to upload it and tag your social media profiles to reach an even bigger audience. Approach local companies to donate some really great prizes to encourage lots of entries!
Family Sporting Challenges
There are so many ways families can get outside, do a bit of exercise and gain sponsorships to raise money for your cause. Walking, running, cycling, maybe even some wild swimming! Challenge your supporters to get involved and raise money whilst they’re out and about enjoying the sunny weather!
We’d love to hear your socially distanced fundraising ideas!
We hope these ideas inspired you to organise a socially distanced outdoor fundraiser to raise money for your cause. Got any more ideas for outdoor socially distanced fundraising? We’d love to hear them! Send a message or drop us a comment on our Instagram, Facebook or Twitter pages.
For more socially distanced fundraising ideas and online fundraising tips, head over to our blog.
What We Do at Donater
We also offer a suite of digital fundraising tools, from turning your donation tins to contactless collection boxes via QR codes, to Smart Stickers with NFC tags and ‘tap to donate’ technology. We can also set up your own dedicated, branded online donation page and link it directly to your website.
If you would like any more information on any of these, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’d love to chat about how these digital tools could work for your charitable organisation. Fundraise faster with Donater.