Events: The Buyout Option

I’m blaming it on summer fun! I’ve been teasing you about the eBook on events that I’m putting together...and it’s not finished yet. :(  So to help ease the pain, I’m going to give you a fun, outside-the-box idea that I’ve come up with that can be a great supplement – or maybe even a substitution - for your nonprofit fundraiser ticketed event.

In all honesty, I didn’t invent this – it’s an idea that I heard of several years ago that I believe should become a bigger idea, so I’m adding a new level to it.

Back in the day, I caught wind of an organization holding a “plateless” dinner. And, wow, was I jealous! Here I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off organizing a black-tie fundraiser gala - spending more and more hours of my week on just this one thing as the end of September neared – while some genius was raking in the money and planning nothing!?

To explain further, the plateless dinner was a fundraiser for this particular nonprofit organization. They sent out fancy invitations to their donors and explained about the scrumptious dinner they weren’t going to have catered, the fabulous band they weren’t going to book, the awesome silent auction they weren’t going to host, etc. and asked that people purchase tickets in lieu of the organization spending tens of thousands of dollars on the event. It was a way for them to communicate with donors and show how dedicated they were to spending their time furthering their mission.

Many organizations love their events, especially the fancy galas and mega fundraisers. Because, let’s face it, for many nonprofits - the money raised at these events is a great boost to their budgets. And it’s a good way to engage with donors face-to-face.

Let’s assume your organization is one of the organizations that plans to continue with this type of fundraiser – or any type of ticketed event. Have you thought about enhancing that event by offering a “buyout”? I envision this to be an option you give to your donors, stakeholders, community and anyone you are marketing this event to to purchase an “I’m not attending” ticket.

I recommend somewhere in your marketing you impress upon your audience that the reason you have this event is to raise funds for your nonprofit organization. Restate your mission so they fully understand where money you raise is going and how it may be spent. And ask them to contribute even if they can’t (or don’t want to) attend your event.

And make it fun! I’m a huge sucker for businesses that can make me laugh in their marketing. Aren’t you? Don’t we all just wanna have fun? Or maybe that’s just girls... (Sorry, couldn’t resist the Cyndi Lauper reference.)

Call it something like “Pay for your regrets” or “Buy the Bye”. Tell them that you’ll miss them at the event and only money will make the grief better.

What other ways can you think of to add elements to fundraisers to make them more fun and/or more lucrative? Add your ideas in the comments!