Running a fundraising raffle: the definitive guide

A fundraising raffle can be one of the most effective ways to raise money for your cause. You can usually get the prizes donated for free. Tickets are cheap and easy to print. The whole thing requires a lot less work and organisation than an auction or feeding a hundred people at a charity supper.

If you sell $10-worth of tickets to one hundred people, that's $1,000 right off the bat.

This definitive guide will give you all the tips and advice you need to run a successful, professional fundraising raffle.

The guide is divided into six sections:

1. How to get great prizes donated for your raffle
2. How much to charge for each raffle ticket
3. How to get raffle tickets printed cheaply and quickly 
4. Make sure your raffle is legal!
5. How to promote your raffle
6. Contact the winners and announce on social media: best practice

Do you want to do the best job you can of running your raffle? If so, read on.






1. How to get great prizes donated for your raffle



People buy raffle tickets for two reasons: to support your cause, and to have a chance of winning a nice prize. If you put effort into getting some really awesome prizes, you'll hugely increase your chances of selling more tickets. Remember local business want promotion. Offering you a prize worth $50 is a lot cheaper than an advert in the local paper. Here are some of the best ways to secure valuable prizes for your raffle.



Or, don't have prizes at all and use half of the money raised as a prize. This is known as a 50:50 raffle:











2. How much to charge for each raffle ticket




Here you'll learn how to set the best price. Don't just roll the dice and pick a random price - if your price is too high you won't sell enough tickets. But if your price is too low, you might not raise as much money as you could. Remember some jurisdictions require all tickets to be sold at the same price (so you can’t sell one ticket for $1 and 10 tickets for $8). Check the legal section of this guide for details of the rules in you area.











3. How to get raffle tickets printed cheaply and quickly




There are three types of raffle tickets you can use.

Standard books of raffle tickets (often known as "cloakroom tickets")

You can buy these from a stationary store like Staples. These are cheap and easy, but are just a bit of paper with a number on it, so don't look very professional. You'll find them online here:

Print tickets at home

This is even cheaper, and you can include whatever information you need on the tickets. Be prepared for a lot of cutting and stapling, though. Here are the best resources to help you:



Use a print shop (local or online)

If you have your tickets custom-printed, expect to pay about $50 for 1,000 tickets and allow at least 3 days to get your tickets. Here are some great online services who print custom raffle tickets:










4. Make sure your raffle is legal!



Different states have different rules about running raffles, and some are quite onerous (you might have to register the raffle, and report about it afterwards, for example). Here are the links to the rules in every US State, Canadian Province, plus the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.


US States where raffles are illegal:

Alabama

5. How to promote your raffle




Thinking you just need to hand out tickets to other group members and ask them to sell some? Think again. A professional sales plan could dramatically increase your sales. Here are some tips from the very best raffle promotors to help you maximise sales and raise as much money as possible for your cause:











6. Contact the winners and announce on social media: best practice





Often the winner will be in the room when you make the drawing, but if they are not, be ready to contact them so they can collect their prize. Your state might have specific rules about this, be sure to check the legal links above to check if there is a statutory time limit or other rule you have to comply with. Here are some great simple examples of how to congratulate the winner.

Don't forget to announce the winners on social media too, and mention the prizes. Remember that you want your prize donors to get maximum publicity so they donate another prize next year!














Thanks for reading this guide, which was produced by Raffle Ticket Creator who have helped thousands of fundraisers all over the world prepare professional-looking raffle tickets for their fundraising raffle.

Best of luck with your raffle!