by Trinity Erickson, on Aug 21, 2024 8:15:00 AM
Getting new training equipment, like a basketball shooting machine, isn’t always a quick process. It requires budgeting, planning ahead, School Board and Booster Club communication, as well as several approvals. Luckily, there are several options out there like team fundraising that make getting new equipment in your gym faster and easier.
And to help you get started with your own fundraising initiatives, we put together the ultimate guide for easy, unique, and effective fundraiser ideas. So you can skip the hassles of budgeting for a new shooting machine while getting your players, parents, and community involved.
1. ask local businesses to sponsor
Ask businesses in the community to sponsor your team in return for ad placements on the school website or “activities” webpages. Businesses could also get physical signage in the gymnasium, sponsor the bench chairs, or even game live streams and broadcasting.
2. Autographed Basketball Sale
Allow fans in the community to purchase, or bid on, basketballs that have been signed by players or your entire team. The balls can be sold before or after home games or at other school events. Get creative with the colors/kinds of basketballs the team signs!
3. Bag Groceries
Players of all ages can participate in this fundraiser. Ask your local grocery store if your team can bag groceries during certain hours in exchange for donations. Your team will then also be able to interactive with a wide range of community members.
4. BBQ Cookout
A BBQ cookout can be a great way to raise funds and bring your community together. This can be hosted anywhere and you can have your team set up tables and serve food. There is even an opportunity it partner with a local restaurant to have beverages.
5. Beach or Park Cleanup
Help keep your community clean while gaining support for your team with a beach or park cleanup. Have your parents share online or spread posters throughout your city that the team will be hosting a cleanup day. Invite others to join and pledge/donate to support the players volunteering prior to the day of the event.
6. BINGO Night
Host a BINGO night for students or the community at the school. Collect money for either individual cards or a packet for 10 rounds at the door and have prizes for those who win. Players could play or call the numbers during the event. For additional funds, you could also have a concessions stand open.
7. Car Wash
A car wash is a classic and effective fundraiser idea and perfect for the warmer months leading up to back-to-school. Have parents help gather the supplies need and communicate the event and get players involved with washing the cars. Have the event at a central location like the school parking lot so it's easy for community members to stop by and support.
For an even bigger splash, team up with other sports programs and school clubs.
8. "Dunk the coach" Tank
This fundraiser will excite younger athletes, community members, and your players. If your community or school is hosting an event, simply rent a dunk tank and have a booth where participants can purchase “throws” to try and dunk the coach! This could also be an option during halftime of another sporting event or after one of your own games.
9. Halftime SHoot outs
This Another great option to raise a little extra money for your program is having shoot outs and lightening games during halftime of basketball games. Invite kids and students to come participate for $1, for example, and have a prize for winners. Your younger players can help organize participants and collect the funds.
To make it more exciting and competitive, only allow kids to shoot for X amount of seconds and only those who make a 3-point shot can get a prize. Or have a lightening game going on at each end of the court.
10. help run a meat raffle
While it may only be a Minnesota thing, schools and sports teams can help local bars and restaurants run meat raffles on the weekends. This is an easy fundraiser for parents to be involved in. They can volunteer to help organize raffle numbers, collect money, and hand out meat to winners and get a portion, sometimes even half, of the raffle’s proceeds for the program.
11. hold a 50/50 raffle
With the help of the school administration, your team could run a 50/50 raffle at other home sporting events. Have your basketball team sell the raffle tickets before other basketball games, wrestling matches, hockey games, etc. You can also coordinate with the PA to make announcements about the 50/50 throughout the event before the winning ticket is drawn.
Not sure if spectators still carry cash? Use a CashApp like Venmo to set up a team account to make contributing easy for anyone!
12. hold a silent auction
A silent auction is an easy way to get people involved, and could even be done online. Have a starting bid for school apparel/uniforms, gift cards, parking spots, or spectator seats in the gymnasium and whoever has the highest bid is the winner of that prize. A silent auction could be in conjunction to a tournament, community event, or community meal.
13. host a community meal
Work with your school’s kitchen staff or plan with the team's parents to host a community meal at the school. This could be anything from a Pancake Breakfast to a Spaghetti Dinner. Tickets can be sold in advance by players or purchased at the door of the event. Don’t forget to advertise in the community, at school, and on social media!
14. host a restaurant night
As an alternative to planning and preparing a meal, partner with local restaurants for a fundraiser night. Restaurants like Chipotle, Chick-fil-a, Buffalo Wild Wings, Applebee’s will have dedicated nights where you can send supporters for a meal and a portion of those meal sales will go towards your program.
Some businesses, like Pizza Ranch, also do Tip Nights, where your team can help with the dining room in return for the tips made that night.
15. Karaoke Night
Looking for an unconventional fundraiser? Try hosting a karaoke night! It could be for younger students or a open-to-the community event where those who donate can also participate if they want. IT also gives your players an opportunity to get out of their comfort zones.
16. laundry detergent fundraiser
Laundry detergent is something everyone uses, especially parents with children in sports. Sudz Fundraising helps teams set up their laundry detergent fundraiser and gives coaches a fundraising starter kit equipped with order forms, marketing materials, and instructions. Your players can easily raise money and supporters receive quality detergent.
17. March Madness Brackets
Another easy and basketball-related is having a March Madness bracket fundraiser! Have a "fee" for those who want to enter their bracket and even have a prize/portion go to the winner. Easily setup online and share out the link to get participants.
18. organize a basketball tournament
Your entire program could help put together a number of tournaments where you could raise money from entry fees and concessions. Host a Freshman tournament with surrounding schools. Or be a spot to host your youth traveling team’s annual tournament. You could also get alumni involved by hosting an Alumni Tournament. Another option would be hosting a Holiday Tournament where your team can play against surrounding teams over Winter Break.
19. organize a 5k or walk-a-thon
Looking for a fundraiser that helps to promote wellness and activity in your community? Plan, or even partner with your school’s Sports Boosters Club, to host a 5k or walk-a-thon. Be sure to contact city hall to help put together a safe race or walk route. Runners and walkers can get a custom shirt with their registration fee and your players could line up along the route with signs to motivate participants during the event.
20. run a youth clinic or camp
Get younger athletes interested and involved in the program early and give your players leadership opportunities by running a skills clinic or camp. This could be anything from an inexpensive, short clinic on Saturday mornings to a camp during the summer where you offer a t-shirt and lunch each day of camp with registration. Your school’s Community Education office could also assist in planning for gym space and promoting to parents.
21. School Dance
To engage with younger students and get your players involved in student activities, a school dance is a great fundraising option. Ask parents and other teachers to chaperone or help with a concession stand. You could also team up with other student clubs!
22. sell candy bars
One easy, popular fundraiser is selling candy bars. Each player can get a box or two of candy bars to sell during the fundraiser. You could also give prizes to the players who sold the most candy. Companies like World's Finest Chocolate, See's Candies, and Old Fashioned Candy help you create a turnkey, successful fundraiser.
23. sell team apparel online
Partner with a print shop or school apparel store to have team gear available for purchase during the season. Online stores like BSN Sports or SquadLocker help create a custom store for your team including school logos and colors. Your school could also set up an apparel store on the main website. Who doesn’t want more team apparel?!
24. sponsor a school hat or pajama day
Students can have a little fun for the day by wearing their favorite hat or comfy pajamas to school as long as they bring $1 (as an example) to participate. Announcements could be from players or sponsored by the team and players could visit classrooms to collect the money raised that day.
25. utilize fundrazr
FundRazr helps teams raise money for equipment, tournament fees, and even travel expenses in minutes. Teams can easily set up custom fundraising pages to collect funds and promote those on social media with FundRazr’s secure online process.
We know that the $5,000+ price tag of a shooting machine can be a little daunting. But with a little teamwork, creativity, and commitment, it's very possible to get a machine in your gym no matter what your budget and extra fundraising looks like!
Learn more about Dr. Dish's variety of basketball shooting machines all at unique price points with different feature sets, click here.
