Did you know that, according to a recent survey, only 64% of parents and staff members believe their schools are well-funded? From classroom supplies to sports equipment to travel for competitions, schools have a lot of costs to cover. Fortunately, that’s where PTOs and booster clubs can help.
Your booster club raises money to support essential school programs and activities, and you’re likely always on the lookout for new fundraising ideas. In this post, we’ll share:
- Our Favorite Booster Club Fundraiser
- Easy Booster Club Fundraising Ideas
- Fun Booster Club Fundraiser Ideas
- Community-Building Booster Club Fundraisers
- Year-Round Fundraising Ideas for Clubs
These ideas were handpicked based on their speed. If you want to raise more money on a faster timeline, read on (or click to jump to your favorite section)!
What are Booster Club Fundraisers?
Booster club fundraisers are events and campaigns that raise money for specific school programs, sports clubs, or other activities.
Booster clubs are typically led by parents, though teachers and other community members often get involved, too. These organizations raise money through membership dues and additional fundraising activities, like events and sales.
Our Favorite Booster Club Fundraiser
Let’s start with our #1 recommendation for fast, easy, fun, and profitable booster club fundraisers: online product sales.
1. Online Product Fundraisers
Selling products in exchange for donations is a tried-and-true fundraising method for schools and sports teams. These fundraisers are a win-win for everyone involved: supporters get a fun item or delicious snack, and your booster club earns money for your school.
Historically, fundraisers would sell items in person, either going door-to-door or setting up booths at sports games. Nowadays, there’s far less hassle. Product fundraising platforms enable you to run your entire sale virtually, making this idea a much better option for busy booster club parents.
Here’s a snapshot of the benefits your club will see when you take your product fundraisers online:
- Easier to run: There’s no going door-to-door, no confusing order sheets, no money handling, and no need for delivery. All you have to do is create an account and share your online store with the community!
- Easier to buy products: Supporters can buy your products at any time, from anywhere. They get to browse items and place orders from the comfort of their own homes.
- Faster timeline: Because you don’t have to use order sheets or deliver products to hundreds of buyers, your fundraisers don’t have to last long. You can run the entire campaign in a week!
- Wider reach: Taking your sales online naturally opens the door for more fundraising opportunities. Students’ extended family members, alumni who moved away, and other long-distance supporters can easily support your booster club.
- Safer for participants: If young students participate in your fundraiser, going door to door to collect orders and deliver items can pose safety risks. When everything’s handled online, you won’t have to worry.
With Team Butter, you can launch an online product fundraiser in as little as five minutes! Our app enables you to quickly create personalized fundraising pages and sell products like popcorn, cookie dough, and discount cards 100% virtually.
We offer a variety of flavors and ship items directly to buyers’ homes. And there’s never a minimum order—no matter how much you sell, your booster club gets 50% profit from all sales deposited in your bank account. Take a look at the video below to learn more about how our easy-to-use product fundraising app works.
Easy Booster Club Fundraising Ideas
Low on time or only have a few volunteers to plan a fundraiser? Check out these easy ideas you can plan and launch in no time.
2. Popcorn Fundraising
Popcorn is our favorite product to sell, and for good reason. After all, who doesn’t love buttery, salty snacks that support a good cause?
To run a popcorn fundraiser, you’ll need a popcorn supplier and volunteers to sell it. With the right partner, you can run the entire fundraiser from the palm of your hand, with just a few clicks. For instance, if you launch a popcorn fundraiser with Team Butter, the process only takes four simple steps:
- Set up your virtual fundraiser by signing up on the app.
- Share your fundraiser with your club or participants so each person can customize their own page.
- Participants share their pages with supporters via email, text, or social media.
- Supporters buy popcorn, and your booster club gets paid!
Anyone can launch this fundraiser in minutes, and it’s easy for students to get involved if they want to. Once the popcorn is delivered (straight to supporters’ doors!), you can even have a party or movie night to celebrate.
3. Shoe Drive
Young students are always growing out of their shoes, but did you know you can turn that into a fundraiser? Some companies will grant money to your booster club if you send them boxes of new and gently used shoes. It’s extremely easy to run this fundraiser—just set up collection boxes, spread the word, and mail in the shoes once you have enough.
This fundraiser is a win-win: families get an easy way to recycle their shoes, and your booster club gets an easy way to raise money!
4. Crowdfunding
You may have already run a crowdfunding campaign without realizing it (that’s how easy they are!). Crowdfunding just means sourcing a large number of small donations from a wide audience, typically online. If you’ve ever started a GoFundMe for your booster club or created a donation page to reach a short-term fundraising goal, that’s crowdfunding!
The key to raising a lot of money online is spreading the word. Once you’ve created your crowdfunding page, share it widely on social media and throughout the community. The more people click the link to your page, the more money you’ll raise for your school.
5. Raffles
If you’re looking for an easy event to host or a fundraiser you can add to any sports game, consider raffles. They’re extremely straightforward and don’t require much planning. All you need is one exciting prize and a roll of tickets. Ask for a small fee in exchange for a ticket, then draw your winner at the end.
6. Gift Wrapping Fundraiser
Around the holidays, you can ask volunteers (or students!) to wrap presents at a gift wrapping station or event. Supporters only have to give a small donation, and they’ll be able to check gift wrapping off their busy holiday to-do list!
You’ll need supplies for this fundraiser, including wrapping paper, tape, and scissors. To save money and increase revenue for your school, ask parents to donate these items.
7. Car Wash
Having volunteers wash supporters’ cars is easy to do if you have the right supplies on hand. To host a successful car wash, you’ll need:
- Volunteers
- Enough cleaning supplies to wash multiple cars at once
- Hoses and water hookups
- Ways to advertise the car wash, like posters and signs
Your students may love participating, too! This fundraiser is an opportunity to raise money, do something for the community, and have fun all at once.
Fun Booster Club Fundraiser Ideas
Are you interested in involving students in your fundraiser? Try these fun ideas, which are sure to engage community members of all ages.
8. Cookie Dough Fundraisers
What’s more fun than cookies? Selling cookie dough is a classic way to raise money for your school while making kids of all ages happy. Plus, it’s easier than ever to host a fun, modern cookie dough fundraiser with online tools.
Pro tip: To boost cookie dough sales and add an extra element of fun, create a personalized online store like the one below.
With Team Butter, you get a free online store and personalized fundraising pages for every participant. When supporters follow a participant’s link, they can browse cookie dough flavors, order their favorites, see a leaderboard, and add comments to the chat. When the fundraiser ends, we’ll ship the cookie dough straight to their doors!
9. Sports Competition
If your booster club is raising money for a sports team, hosting a sports competition fundraiser is a no-brainer. You might host your competition as a one-time event where students compete in a basketball game and supporters buy tickets. Or, run a peer-to-peer fundraiser where students join teams and the teams compete to collect the most donations.
Whichever direction you choose, make sure to involve some students in the planning process to get their opinions on what they’d enjoy most.
10. Coaches vs. Players Challenge
This fundraiser is similar to a sports competition, but it involves the entire team—coaches included. Sell tickets to a high-stakes, fun sports game where players compete against their coaches. If you need more people to fill out a team, invite some teachers to join in! Students and families alike will love watching players go head-to-head with their mentors.
11. Read-a-Thon
Want students to have fun while raising money for your booster club and learning? Try hosting a read-a-thon! These fundraisers are perfect for middle and elementary schools since they encourage a love of reading.
The typical read-a-thon process works like this:
- Students sign up to participate in the fundraiser, committing to track their reading for a certain period of time.
- Each student sets a reading goal, either in number of pages read or time spent reading.
- While students read and track their progress, community members donate to cheer them on!
To make this booster club fundraiser even more fun, offer prizes to students who reach their goals or certain reading milestones. Then, when the fundraiser ends, host a party to celebrate every student’s success!
12. Talent Show
No matter how old your school’s students are, they have plenty of talents to share. Give them the chance to show off their skills, whether they want to sing a song, play the trombone, or recite the alphabet backwards for all to see!
Talent shows come with multiple fundraising opportunities, too. You can sell tickets, concessions, and school- or club-branded merchandise.
13. Game Night
Another fun option is to host a game night or gaming competition. This might involve open tables with board games, team trivia challenges, or a livestreamed video game tournament. Ask students what they’d be most interested in, then choose a prize to give to the winners. Charge an entry fee, and enjoy the fun!
Community-Building Booster Club Fundraisers
Fundraisers are often great opportunities for community members to connect and rally around your school programming. Try these ideas to boost feelings of community.
14. T-Shirt Sales
Any kind of product fundraiser will engage your supporters, but selling custom t-shirts can really increase feelings of belonging and school pride. Have a volunteer or student create a t-shirt design that represents the sport, club, or program your booster club supports. Then, partner with a local printing shop or an online t-shirt company to bring the design to life.
You’ll have to order a large number of t-shirts ahead of time, so make sure you have the budget to do so. Once you have the shirts on hand, you can sell them online and at meetings, sports games, and events.
15. Restaurant Proceeds Night
Nothing brings the community together like a well-cooked meal and a common cause to support. Offer your supporters both with a restaurant proceeds night at a local establishment.
During these fundraisers, your booster club partners with a restaurant and chooses a date for your event. You encourage all your supporters to come and dine in at the restaurant, and the business donates a certain percentage of the night’s proceeds to your school.
Pro tip: Pair this event with a discount card fundraiser to double your revenue opportunities!
16. Walk-a-Thon
Host a walk-a-thon or 5K race to bring community members together while promoting healthy habits. You can charge a set entry fee for all participants and/or encourage participants to raise money on your booster club’s behalf. They might collect pledges for donations based on how far they walk or just look for general support.
At the event itself, you can raise more money by selling:
- Concessions
- Your branded t-shirts
- Other merchandise, like hats or water bottles
- Event stickers
- And more!
You’ll need a lot of volunteers to run a successful walk-a-thon, so start recruiting early!
17. Pancake Breakfast
A pancake breakfast is similar to a restaurant proceeds night since it invites community members to eat together while supporting your school. However, this booster club fundraiser is entirely run by volunteers—student and parent volunteers make the pancakes and serve them to friends and family.
While it involves plenty of work and volunteers, pancake breakfasts are fun for everyone. You can raise a lot of money through ticket sales, and students can enjoy testing out their skills in the kitchen.
18. Chili Cook-Off
If you want to host a food-based fundraiser but raise the stakes a little bit, try hosting a chili cook-off. At these events, community members prepare their best chili recipes and enter them in a friendly competition. You might have teachers, principals, or local chefs judge the entries and award a prize for the best dish.
19. Community Yard Sale
Everyone has items they don’t want anymore, from clothes that don’t fit to home decor they no longer enjoy. Give community members the chance to get rid of unwanted items and support your school at the same time with a yard sale. Anyone can sign up to sell items in exchange for donations to your booster club, and other community members can enjoy shopping.
Year-Round Fundraising Ideas for Clubs
If you’re looking for a long-term fundraiser rather than a one-time push or event, explore these ideas.
20. Discount Cards
Discount card fundraisers have long been a staple for school groups like booster clubs. Traditionally, your group would reach out to several local businesses to see if they offer discounts, then partner with a discount card provider to create custom, physical cards to sell. The result is a card with 10-15 deals and coupons that donors can use to save money throughout the community.
This process might work for your booster club, but we’re here to offer a faster, easier way to run discount card fundraisers.
Instead of spending time and money creating physical cards, make your supporters’ lives easier with Team Butter’s discount card app. All you have to do is create an account and spread the word about your discount cards. When a supporter “buys” one, we’ll send them a unique code to get access to the app. Once they’re in, they can access thousands of discounts for businesses nationwide. They’re even geolocated so users can easily find the deals closest to them!
Each code gives the donor access for a year, so it’s easy to turn this booster club fundraiser into an ongoing opportunity. Let supporters purchase discount cards throughout the year and remind them to buy another one when their subscription expires.
21. Online Donation Page
If your booster club has found success with crowdfunding in the past, try creating a permanent donation page for your club.
Unlike a crowdfunding campaign, you don’t need to include a specific fundraising goal or progress bar. Just keep the page up-to-date and link to it throughout your marketing materials. Supporters can donate any time they like, even if you’re not running a dedicated fundraiser!
22. Matching Gifts
Did you know many companies match their employees’ donations to nonprofit groups dollar for dollar? Matching gift programs can double or even triple supporters’ original donations if your booster club meets the company’s eligibility standards.
Here’s how it works:
- A supporter makes a donation to your booster club and checks if their gift is match-eligible by the company’s standards.
- They submit proof of the donation to their employer to request a matching gift.
- If the gift is eligible for matching, the company sends your club an additional donation!
Pro tip: Add brief information about matching gifts to your online donation page. Encourage every donor to check their eligibility, and provide your contact details in case they have questions.
23. Corporate Sponsorships
You can also earn donations from businesses through corporate sponsorships. Many companies offer monetary grants to nonprofits and other community groups that align with their values. They might send a one-time donation to your booster club or sponsor an event you’re hosting in exchange for advertising. Ask local businesses if they’re interested in sponsoring your upcoming events, or search online for additional, year-round sponsorship opportunities.
24. Coin Drive
Coin drives aren’t the most lucrative booster club fundraisers, but they are a great way to collect small donations year-round. Just set up coin collection jars at your school, particularly in places parents will see them, like the front desk or student pickup area. Or, reach out to local businesses and ask if they’d be willing to collect coins for your booster club.
Those coins can quickly add up. At the end of the school year, you might end up with more than you think!
25. Shopping Fundraiser
Remember Amazon Smile, the program that let Amazon shoppers donate small amounts of money to a nonprofit whenever they ordered something? While that particular program is gone, there are plenty of other shopping fundraisers your booster club can tap into for ongoing fundraising.
These programs essentially ask your supporters to use an app while they shop at certain retailers for everyday purchases. Then, the app automatically donates a small percentage of each purchase to your booster club!
Launch Your Next Booster Club Fundraiser Today
With all the great fundraising ideas out there, your booster club is bound to find the perfect fit. Don’t be afraid to experiment with new strategies and note which ones work best. Every fundraiser is a learning opportunity—and an impactful way to support underfunded school activities.
Looking for more ideas or fundraising insight? Check out these additional resources:
- 45+ Game-Changing Fundraising Ideas for Sports Teams. If your booster club is raising money for a sports team, these ideas are sure to be a hit!
- Best Team Fundraising Platforms & Apps for Sports Teams. The right technology can skyrocket your booster club’s fundraising potential. Check out our top recommendations here.
- Popcorn Fundraising Made Easy: 100% Virtual, 50% Profit. Learn more about our top booster club fundraising idea and how to get started today.
