One of the best ways you can increase the support your cause receives is by tapping into corporate philanthropy. Did you know that many companies will match donations from their employees to eligible nonprofits?
To support the veterans in your life, educate your donors about matching gift eligibility and ask them to submit their matches for your organization.
Make it easy for them to learn more by including a matching gift database wherever they make their donations.
All-in-one software solutions can streamline your fundraising efforts by keeping all of your data in one convenient place.
Use your software to gain a comprehensive picture of each individual supporter. Then, appeal to their unique needs and motivations to earn donations for your veteran and military fundraising campaign.
Send fundraising letters, host events, engage in peer-to-peer fundraising, and use other tools included in your all-in-one software solution to connect with each support on their donor journey. Then, once they’ve donated, reach back out to say thank you and start collecting data to create donor profiles and build relationships. Doing so will provide donors encouragement to give again the next time you raise funds for veterans.
Spread the word for your military-related cause by creating custom t-shirts for your supporters.
For this fundraising idea, you’ll first need to find an online t-shirt fundraising service. Search for one that lets you create professional-quality products no matter your design skills.
You can even create multiple products and styles so that everyone in your community receives a shirt they love. Consider using red, white, and blue as a starting point for your color scheme and go from there. The options are limitless when your fundraising team starts brainstorming!
Raise money for the veterans in your community by partnering with a company like Fund2Orgs to host a shoe drive fundraiser!
A shoe drive fundraiser is simple: you simply collect new and gently worn shoes of all styles and sizes and receive a check in the mail for your efforts!
Encourage your friends and family to clean out their closets as a way to raise funds for your worthy cause. Your supporters will get to feel good about their contribution and get a jump on spring cleaning—it’s a win-win!
A flag subscription fundraiser is a longer-term military and veterans fundraiser, but it can also help your community show some patriotism.
All you have to do is sign people up for the service, charge a small monthly or yearly fee, and hang holiday-appropriate flags on their front porches.
For instance, you could hang the American flag during November for Veterans’ Day, but you could change it to a holiday-themed flag during December.
There are many ways for your community to show their support through volunteering. Whether they’re driving veterans to doctors’ appointments or training therapy animals, they are donating their time to these individuals.
However, there are corporate philanthropy programs that allow your supporters to translate their volunteer hours into financial donations for your nonprofit.
Introduce your volunteers to the idea of volunteer grants and find out if any of them are eligible!
Hosting a patriotic concert can be an excellent military and veterans fundraising idea that brings your community together to support your cause.
You can enlist the help of local artists and bands to determine the line-up. Alternatively, you could make your concert have more of a karaoke vibe.
Sell tickets at the door and offer concessions for a small price. Don’t forget to set up a general donation table to accept other contributions throughout the night.
If the men in your community are willing to participate, you can host a “Beard Challenge” to raise money for military or veteran-related causes.
People can donate $5 to challenge someone in the community to grow a beard for a week. $10 would be two weeks; $15 would be three weeks, and so on.
With enough participants, you’ll end up raising a ton of money and nearly everyone in town will be sporting a beard. Don’t forget to let people know why you’re raising money!
If you have a star-spangled recipe or know someone that cooks with patriotic flair, consider compiling a military-themed cookbook to raise money for a military or veteran-related cause.
Ask for submissions well in advance and categorize them according to food type. You can even include pictures if you want!
Then, advertise your cookbooks online and with physical promotions. Military and civilian families will be lining up to purchase your patriotic recipe books.
Everyone loves a good old-fashioned barbecue. Whether you’re making ribs, chicken, or veggie burgers, a barbecue is a great way to bring your community together for a common cause.
You can use your summer barbecue as a way to raise money for military or veteran-related causes. All you have to do is advertise!
You can either charge a fee for your barbecue or simply set up a donation table with a jar for change. Make sure you explain the cause you’re raising money for, though.
T-shirts, hoodies, sunglasses, and more! These are all items that you can customize, personalize, and sell as a way to bring in a few extra bucks for your military or veteran-related cause.
Whether you know someone in the Marine Corps, the Air Force, or another branch, you can use personalized merchandise to boost your fundraising efforts.
You can use a wholesaler or work with a local manufacturer. Whichever route you take, just make sure that you advertise your merchandise and the cause you’re raising money for.
Safety is important, and you can help your community be more prepared by selling first aid kits. This is an item that families and other supporters will find useful. Plus, knowing that the money is going to a good cause will motivate them to purchase a kit even more.
If you want to start selling first aid kits, you’re going to need to find a wholesale provider that can provide them to you at a reasonable price.
Let people in your community know that you’re selling first aid kits. You can sell your kits online or through traditional door to door sales.
Quilts have character and usually tell a story. If you know how to operate a sewing machine and have an eye for design, you can create quilts to sell as a way to raise money for military- and veteran-related causes.
To run a quilt fundraiser, you’ll need quilting materials (like fabric, thread, and pins), a few volunteers, and a place to sell your quilts.
The great thing about having a quilt fundraiser is that you can create as many designs as you’d like, and you can raffle your blankets or use them in charity auctions.
A potluck is an excellent way to enjoy food and conversation with your friends, family, and community members. Plus, it’s one of the easier fundraising ideas for military and veterans.
People can bring delicious dishes and donations to help you reach your goal.
You can charge people a small fee to come and enjoy the food, or ask those who bring their dishes to make a donation to your cause. Either way, you can raise a lot of money with this fundraiser!
A hug-a-gram is similar to a candy or appreciation gram, but instead of sending a note you send hugs. People can buy hugs to send to their friends and family members for a small fee ($1).
Your hug-a-grams can come with a personalized message from the person who purchased the gram.
Don’t forget to tell people why you’re raising funds, and encourage those who receive a hug to buy one for someone else as a way to raise even more funds.
You and a couple of volunteers can partner with a local gas station to serve as gas station attendants who pump customers’ gas and clean windshields for donations.
You can do this for a day or multiples days to really raise money for military- and veteran-related causes.
Create signs letting drivers know that you’re pumping gas in return for donations and have a few volunteers stand by the side of the road to promote your fundraiser.
A great way to get together with friends and family and raise money for military and veterans is to have a wine and cheese tasting party.
You can charge an entrance fee or add a unique twist to this event by asking everyone to bring a cheap bottle of wine. Everyone can sample each wine and vote on their favorite using their dollars.
Everyone will have a good laugh when the winner is revealed, and you’ll be closer to reaching your goal!
Peer-to-peer fundraising is a great fundraising idea for military causes of all kinds. Not only does it enable you to raise more money, it also helps you expand your existing supporter base!
In a nutshell, peer-to-peer fundraising enlists the fundraising help of your current network and empowers them to ask for donations on your behalf.
Each supporter builds his or her own donation page from a template that is tied back to your main fundraising page. Then, your supporters reach out to their friends and family members and ask for donations for your cause or project!
Charity auctions can be a fast-paced and energetic way to raise more money and interact with your community members face-to-face. You also have the opportunity to form some solid business connections!
Ask for charity auction items from local businesses; try to get as many items donated for close to nothing. That way, you can put your budget into creating a great atmosphere for your attendees.
Hire an auctioneer, send out invites, and cater in food and drinks. Make sure that everyone is aware of the rules of your charity auction beforehand. People will walk away with some unique items and experiences, and you can raise more money!
Writing letters is a great way to raise money for your cause, project, or event. You can send out letters asking for general donations, sponsorships, charity auction items, volunteer time, and more!
Your letters should be genuine and personal. Always start with your donor’s preferred name and try to reference any past relationship or donations.
You can use letters to direct people to your online giving pages or crowdfunding campaign, but you should also include a self-addressed envelope within your letter to encourage people to send in checks (make sure you tell donors not to send cash!).
Silent auctions are a fun way to get a little more face time with your supporters while they bid on unique and appealing items up for grabs. Plus, if you find the right auction items, you have the potential to raise a lot of money!
Ask local businesses and individuals if they would like to donate items to your silent auction. Common items include gift cards to restaurants, signed memorabilia, lessons from a professional of some kind, gift baskets, and more!
You can enlist the help of a mobile bidding tool to create a tech-enhanced bidding experience for your attendees. Mobile bidding software also makes checking in, checking out, and item monitoring easier on your auction volunteers and staff.
Walkathons are perfect for active supporters who like to show their passion for a military cause. Walkathons are well-suited for healthcare-related issues and causes, but they can technically be used for any type of fundraising effort!
You’ll need to determine a location and time for your walkathon. Choose a season that is a good temperature with minimal risk of rain. Make sure you have a backup location just in case!
Then, send out invitations and design some merchandise like t-shirts and water bottles. You can sell these for an extra fee to raise money above any entrance costs you charge. Make sure you have medical and first-aid supplies nearby in the case of an accident.
Create a fundraiser for a military- or veteran-related cause for FREE. Pay nothing until you receive your first donation.
When you create a Fundly campaign, there’s no need to raise a minimum amount, meet a deadline, or pay penalties if you don’t reach your fundraising goal. You get to keep whatever money you raise, minus any fees.
With Fundly, you can reach your social networks via Facebook, Twitter, and email. With our deep social integrations, you can get in touch with your friends, their friends, and beyond!
Create your military crowdfunding campaign in just a few minutes and start raising money quickly and easily.
At only a few cents for every dollar you raise, Fundly is one of the most affordable ways to raise money. You won’t have to worry about paying exorbitant fees to raise money for your military- or veteran-related cause.
Get set up quickly and easily, whether you’re tech-savvy or not. Plus, our team is always here to help! If you run into any issues with your crowdfunding campaign, we’re here to lend a hand.
This mother and daughter team started a crowdfunding campaign to pay for travel expenses to see their son and brother graduate from boot camp at Parris Island in South Carolina.
They set a goal of $1,000 to cover the costs associated with making their way down to the graduation ceremony. With only 14 supporters, they were able to meet their goal!
One of the best components of this crowdfunding campaign is the personalized touches. The mother uploaded photos of her son and posted updates about their plans for the graduation ceremony. This helped to connect more people to her campaign.
This crowdfunding campaign was started to help an Army veteran cover the remaining cost of his medical care after he came home. Because of delays, he was unable to pay his healthcare bills.
His friends and family members all rallied around him and helped him raise nearly $1,500 to pay for various medical expenses.
Even though the campaign didn’t meet its goal of $2,000, the Sergeant was able to receive all of the funds raised due to Fundly’s “Keep it All” fundraising model. If you’re fundraising for a military or veteran-related cause, you get to keep whatever funds you raise, regardless of whether you hit your financial goal!
Upload multiple photos and videos of your veteran, serviceperson, or military family to show donors exactly where their contributions are going. Adding photos and videos to a crowdfunding campaign greatly increases its chances of meeting its fundraising goal.
Learn more about shooting and posting great crowdfunding photos.
You want to make your military or veteran-related campaign stand out from the crowd. The best way to accomplish this is to tell your family or loved one’s story on your crowdfunding page! Explain your specific need and tell supporters how their contributions will help your cause.
Check out these examples of great crowdfunding descriptions.
The best way to raise money and awareness for your crowdfunding campaign is to get the word out via social media and email. Share your campaign page’s URL on Facebook and Twitter and shoot your friends and family members an email to ask them for their support.
Learn more about sharing your crowdfunding campaign with your network.
As you reach fundraising milestones, let your supporters know! They are invested in your crowdfunding campaign and want to see you succeed and meet your goal. Post regular updates and even consider posting more photos and videos to connect with supporters even further.
After my husband came home, we had to find a way to pay for the medical bills that kept coming in. We turned to our friends and family members (and Fundly!) and managed to raise enough money to get my husband back to health!
When I came home from overseas, I wasn’t sure where I was going to stay for a few months. Thankfully, one of my friends set up a crowdfunding page and raised enough money for me to find an apartment.
My brother was graduating from basic training, and my dad and I desperately wanted to attend the ceremony. We set up a crowdfunding campaign with Fundly to see if we could raise enough to fly out to the graduation. Thanks to our friends and family, we got to cheer him on as he graduated from basic.
Every crowdfunding campaign can use a little help every now and then!
Whether you need advice about shooting and uploading crowdfunding photos, writing descriptions and updates, or sharing your fundraiser with your friends and family members, we’ve got your back.
Click below to learn more about the top seven crowdfunding tips that can be used for all types of fundraising efforts and campaigns!
You’ve heard the stories about fundraisers surpassing their goal, but how often does that really happen?
The answer? More frequently than you might think! In fact, individuals and organizations often meet and exceed their goals when they use Fundly to set up a fundraiser and share it with their friends and family members.
Check out these ten crowdfunding campaigns that all exceeded their fundraising goals by sizable margins in just a matter of weeks!
Crowdfunding has been used to raise money for everything from creative projects to medical costs and more!
Why is it so popular? Well, it might have something to do with the fact that a crowdfunding campaign is insanely easy to set up and share with your friends, family members, coworkers, and other peers.
See for yourself! Take a look at our Ultimate Guide to Crowdfunding and learn how you can make the most of this fundraising craze!
Fundly is dedicated to providing you with the tools you need to raise money for whatever your cause may be.