Did you know that in 2023, December giving made up 26% of all nonprofit online revenue, and the last week of the year alone accounted for 13% of total nonprofit online revenue? Year-end is a powerful opportunity to encourage your community to tap into the holiday spirit and show their generosity toward your cause.
If you need a perfect year-end fundraiser for your organization, school, or church, look no further than product fundraising. Product fundraisers are staples for community organizations and schools because they provide tangible takeaways in exchange for donations.
While there are many product fundraising ideas to choose from, food is the ultimate motivator! Especially around the holidays, your supporters will love the chance to give to your organization through year-end fundraising opportunities—and enjoy some delicious food in return. Check out this list of our favorite food fundraisers to get started.
Our Favorite Food Fundraisers
Food is universal. No matter which type of organization you run, your supporters are sure to love the opportunity to purchase their favorite foods and snacks in support of your cause.
Plus, a food product fundraiser is also a great way to attract new community members and promote your mission. Let’s dive into some options for food products your nonprofit could sell.
1. Popcorn
A popcorn fundraiser is a tried and true food fundraiser that will work for any organization. Your supporters can choose from classic, salty, sweet, and spicy options.
When you think of popcorn, you probably think of watching a movie. To get your students or community members excited about your fundraiser, host a movie night event. Start by selecting a few movies for your supporters to vote on. Remember to choose family-friendly options if kids will be in attendance, and consider choosing holiday options to get into the wintry spirit.
Then, sell popcorn at the event for everyone to enjoy! If your supporters particularly enjoy this experience, you can make it an annual event so they can look forward to it each year-end season.
2. Cookie Dough
Cookie dough is a classic food fundraising product, and it’s perfect for the holiday season. At the end of a successful cookie dough fundraiser, you can raise even more money by hosting a cookie-making or -decorating event. This is a great idea for young kids or anyone who loves sweets!
To ensure the cookie dough stays fresh for your supporters, ABC Fundraising recommends planning ahead and making sure you have a proper place to store it—whether that’s a fridge in your organization’s facility or a volunteer’s home. You should also include baking instructions and an invitation to your cookie-making event when you distribute the cookie dough to increase turnout.
3. Chocolate Bars
Who doesn’t love chocolate? Selling chocolate bars is an engaging fundraising idea for schools and sports teams, especially because kids can get involved by selling their favorite bars to classmates and neighbors.
For added motivation, encourage friendly competition among students by offering prizes for top sellers. Have them track how many bars they sell using a spreadsheet or specialized fundraising software. Once the fundraiser wraps up, give away prizes like branded merchandise or gift cards to local businesses.
4. Gourmet Coffee
If your target audience includes parents, teachers, or other hard-working adults, they’ll love a gourmet coffee fundraiser. Especially with the holidays coming up, they’ll need that extra energy!
For schools that run holiday gift shops, coffee is a great gift that kids can buy for their parents. You may also sell branded coffee cups or insulated travel mugs for a well-rounded coffee lover’s gift!
5. Candy
Everyone loves a sweet treat! Consider pairing your next fundraising event with a candy fundraiser to give your supporters a little something extra sweet to look forward to.
For instance, you may sell candy during an upcoming read-a-thon, auction, or gala. Additionally, you can host a holiday candy gram fundraiser where students or community members can send each other treats and share holiday season well wishes.
6. Pretzels
Soft pretzels are a crowd-pleasing snack, especially when they’re served hot and fresh in the winter! Schools can sell them in the morning or after school for students to snack on.
A pretzel fundraiser is also great for sports teams because they can sell them at games and use the funds to offset participation costs or host end-of-the-season team events.
While food is the star of your food fundraiser, it isn’t all you need to get started. Now that you have some options of what you can sell in mind, let’s discuss some strategies you’ll need to run your fundraiser effectively.
How to Host a Year-End Food Fundraiser
In this section, we’ll explain exactly how your organization can host a year-end food fundraiser and provide some helpful tips and tricks.
1. Determine the sales format of your fundraiser.
First, you’ll need to decide which sales or fundraising format will best align with your goals and supporter base. Different format options include:
- Door-to-door sales
- Online sales
- Event-based sales
- Hybrid format
Let’s say your organization is an elementary school. You may decide to use a mix of online sales and door-to-door sales that allow students to sell to parents and neighbors.
While you want students to get involved and have fun through door-to-door sales, you also know that the right tech can elevate year-end giving. For example, you may use a fundraising web store to power your online fundraising efforts and meet your supporters where they are.
2. Select a product fundraising partner.
A product fundraising partner streamlines the product fundraising process by sourcing products for you and offering additional fundraising tools like personalized web stores and order forms. Since they have experience helping other nonprofits host similar fundraisers, they can help you maximize profit and fuel your mission.
When selecting a product fundraising partner, browse their product options, and look through online reviews to get a sense of their reputation. Specifically, keep an eye out for reviews from similar organizations or from nonprofits who sold the product you’re hoping to sell.
3. Pick the right food products for your audience.
It’s always important to personalize the fundraising process to your supporters, but it’s especially important for a food fundraiser. To help you decide which food product your audience will get most excited about, remember to consider:
- Your audience’s age range
- The time of year
- Any known dietary restrictions
- Events you’re hosting
- Food you’ve sold in the past
For example, your school may decide on a cookie dough fundraiser because of the upcoming holiday season, the variety of available flavors, and the lack of gluten allergies at your school. Additionally, cookies are easy and fun for students to make with their parents over winter break.
4. Promote your campaign.
Once you’ve nailed down the details of your product fundraiser, it’s time to create a marketing plan. Since the holiday season can be such a busy time for your organization and supporters alike, remember to plan and promote your campaign as early as possible.
In your campaign plan, determine the marketing strategies you’ll use to get the word out about your fundraiser. For well-rounded promotion, use a variety of methods, such as an online campaign page, flyers, and social media.
To tie your strategy together, NXUnite’s year-end giving season guide recommends:
- Sticking to your brand guidelines.
- Developing a social media posting calendar.
- Refreshing your website design and content.
- Personalizing your communications.
Keep the energy up throughout your campaign by sharing your progress. Feature a fundraising thermometer on your campaign page or social media where supporters can check back each week to see how much you’ve raised and how much more they need to sell to help reach your organization’s goal.
5. Follow up with your donors.
There are two main elements of the follow-up process. The first is distributing the items donors have purchased.
Item distribution is a great opportunity to get students or community volunteers involved. If students lead door-to-door sales, they can deliver items door-to-door as well. Alternatively, host a pickup event where volunteers verify sales and distribute items.
The second component of product fundraiser follow-up is thanking your donors. Start by sending your donors more general thank-you messages immediately following the campaign. Then, take the time to create more elaborate, personalized appreciation messages using eCards or, for major donors, handwritten letters.
At the end of the year when supporters are feeling extra generous, food fundraisers can help you raise money in a fun and delicious way. With these ideas and tips, you can run a successful year-end fundraiser and bring a lot of joy to your community in the process.