Fundraising Events: What You Need to Know

We know many tax-exempt organizations rely on fundraising to accomplish their mission, but how many utilize fundraising events?

We’re bringing you information about fundraising events for your nonprofit to consider.

What Is a Fundraising Event?

A fundraising event is one of the most popular forms of fundraising. While these events can make plenty of money for an organization, they are also time consuming and can be expensive. With careful planning, you can have a very successful fundraising event.

How Can I Balance Income and Expenses of a Fundraiser?

Well, for starters, all proceeds and costs related to hosting fundraising events are included as fundraising in your records.

Donors want to know how much of their contribution is being used and what it is going towards. They do not want to find that their contribution is just being used for more fundraising.

So it is important for an organization to monitor how much is being spent on fundraising compared to what it brings in and what it spends on programs.

A general guideline to follow is for 75% of collected revenue to be used towards the cost of programs.

Can I Fundraise Without Feeling Pushy?

It’s better to let donors realize they care than it is to force them to care.

Know your donors, read their minds. Practice, communicate, and don’t surprise them!

Also, asking for a specific amount can simplify the process. Leaving it open might overwhelm your donors.

Are There Professional Fundraising Services?

There are professional fundraising services you can seek out, but they do collect fees, often from the money collected.

Professional fundraising services are not the same as an employee or partner in charge of fundraising within the organization.

What Schedule Needs to Be Attached for Fundraising?

Schedule G is used to report fundraising services, events, and gaming.

An organization that answered “Yes” to Form 990, Part IV, Checklist of Required Schedules, line 17, 18, or 19, or meets the criteria for Form 990-EZ filers described below, must complete the appropriate parts of Schedule G (Form 990 or 990-EZ) and attach Schedule G to Form 990 or Form 990-EZ.

As always, ExpressTaxExempt will be here to offer you any assistance. Shoot us an email at [email protected] if you need any questions answered.