It’s difficult to truly engage people with fundraising. Often, individuals don’t see how their contributions add value to themselves or to the organizations they support. But what if your fundraiser benefited both the participants and their charitable cause?
I created a concept called Gold for Good, which is a charitable fundraising event where I appraise and buy unwanted valuables like gold and silver jewelry, sterling silverware, coins, dental old, and more. Once the valuables are appraised, I then write a check to the charitable cause based on a percentage of what I spend with all the members.
I recently ran two Gold for Good events.
In August, I raised hundreds of dollars in donations for a North Shore Garden Club for their scholarship fund. The process was simple. I gave a short presentation at their August meeting. Afterward, several of the members sold their gold and silver items to me. I also set appointments with a few members to meet separately in the comfort of their own homes.
The program was a huge success because the ladies walked away with cash for their items, plus I wrote a check to the scholarship fund for 10% of what I spent with the participants. In addition, the ladies could choose to donate a portion of what I gave them to the scholarship fund as well.
One of the members, Suzie, said, “Every step of the way I thought David was a guy you want to do business with. We like him and were appreciative of his time and effort.”
The second event was conducted in early October with Spay & Stay, a great organization that works to protect feral cats. We scheduled an evening where I could meet with members and buy some of their unwanted gold and silver items. I bought several thousands of dollars worth of gold and silver, then gave 10% of what I spent to the cause. The program was so successful that we have already scheduled a second Gold for Good event in December. For the December event, I will match member donations up to 10% from those selling items to me. Of course, the members could donate even more than 10% of the thousands of dollars I give them if they choose to.
A representative of Spay & Stay said, “This is serious money, and everything worked out just fine. David was very accommodating, was a delight to work with, and seemed like a man of integrity.”