Does your Greek life organization need some inspiration for a new and creative way to fundraise for your philanthropy? There are plenty of ways you can get creative and have fun while raising money for a good cause. We have rounded up a handful of our favorite sorority, philanthropy, and fraternity fundraising ideas so you…
Does your Greek life organization need some inspiration for a new and creative way to fundraise for your philanthropy? There are plenty of ways you can get creative and have fun while raising money for a good cause. We have rounded up a handful of our favorite sorority, philanthropy, and fraternity fundraising ideas so you can get fundraising! Check them out!
Host a dance marathon! Have participants get sponsors to donate for every hour danced. Create a website and add a Donorbox donation button (like the one pictured below!) to collect your donations securely and easily.
Bake cookies and deliver them to your campus community. Presell cookies through a Google Form to take orders as well as to collect delivery addresses. Consider offering a bulk deal so people can go in on orders together. 
Host a volleyball, soccer, or any sports tournament! Have Greek and non-Greek organizations sign up a team at a set price per team. Create brackets to determine who will win the tournament, and see if local vendors will donate items to use as a prize!
Example: More Than Conquerors has set up a fundraising page with Donorbox for their volleyball battle event. They help students and families during their struggling times. With this fundraiser, the team is raising funds for the van that transports school students all year long. As you can see in the image below, they are transparent about their impact and have used a simple donation form for collecting fees for the game.
Ask local pizza places to donate pizza to your event. You’d be surprised at how many places are willing to donate for a philanthropy event, so don’t be shy in asking small and big businesses for a pizza donation. Sell tickets to the event- which include entry and pizza of course!
Have members of your Greek organization be the targets and charge a small fee to throw a pie at said targets. Consider choosing a location that gets lots of traffic so passersby can join in.
For this fundraising idea, take into account the expected weather, sunset times, other events taking place at the campus or in the local community. Obtain any necessary permits. The recommended time to start an outdoor movie is 15-30 minutes after sunset.
In terms of your location, choose something large and at least semi-enclosed with access to toilets. Pay attention to the noise concerns and the lighting after dark. Source a screen and a movie.
When charging for tickets, make sure all your costs are covered and that you have some money left over. Consider having food and drink stalls, a VIP area, and some pre-movie entertainment, all to raise more funds.
Example: Build Love is a nonprofit helping needy families with free home renovation. To raise funds for their cause, the team has created a fundraising page on Donorbox. Along with a 3 km walk/run, they have also arranged for a movie night for those who want to partake and help. The registration form is simple and suggestive. But if you notice, it’s also recurring, allowing people to become monthly donors at complete ease.
Who doesn’t love dogs? Side effects of this creative fundraising idea include laughs, giggles, happy people and kids, and an occasional bark.
Call your local animal shelter and see if they would be willing to get involved. Promote the event on campus and charge people for 15-30 minutes of petting and playing.
Bonus tip: You can advertise the event as the perfect de-stressing activity before the final exams.
Date auctions are a fun way to raise money for your sorority or fraternity. Rally willing participants and have them come up with a variety of dates (e.g. going to the movies, an amusement park, for dancing, or dinner).
Members of your audience can then bid on the dates they want the most. Make sure that the tone of the event is light-hearted, and that it’s evident the event is for a good cause.
Let’s face it, students are always hungry! Especially during those late-night studying sessions… Consider hosting a late-night waffle delivery. All you need is a large enough kitchen to cook the waffles, lots of waffle batter, and volunteers.
You can host the event during the exam season as a way for students to power through, or at the start of the year for students to mix and mingle.
If waffles aren’t your thing, try organizing a “snack box delivery” or a “boxed lunch delivery”.
Adult spelling bees are often team competitions, so start off by having your participants form teams. Team members should consult with one another before submitting the spelling they think is correct. This allows a greater sense of fun and community.
Charge an entry fee per team, which can be a great way to involve students. Many are happy to engage in some friendly competition for a good cause.
This is a quick and easy fundraiser that doesn’t require a lot of preparation. However, you will need to purchase enough watermelon! Even better, contact a local business and have watermelons donated to your fundraiser.
Charge a fee to all participants. Have tables and plates with watermelons set out. Have a set time for participants to eat the watermelon (e.g. 4 minutes). Award the winner!
Bonus tip: Unlike a hot dog eating contest, this one is healthy (and easier to digest)!
Encourage individuals and teams to register. One team can consist of four players.
There is only one person in charge of spinning the spinner for the entire tournament. Every player will be vying for the same spot on his or her mat. Each team will listen for the call, and as fast as they can, place a hand (or foot) down on the mat’s colored circles.
The object of the game is to put hands and feet at different places on the mat without falling over.
Charge for registrations and raise money for your fraternity or sorority!
If Twister is not your thing, think of Monopoly, Uno or Scrabble tournaments.
Raise money for your sorority or fraternity by charging an entry fee to the battle of the bands. Ask your college bands to pay a nominal registration fee to perform as well. You need a big enough space and a good audio system. Find judges for the night and think of prizes for the winning bands. You can also organize different performances during the breaks (e.g. spoken poetry, singing, dancing). When held on special days like Christmas, Thanksgiving, and new year, these events are likely to receive more participation and do better in terms of fundraising.
This sorority and fraternity fundraiser has the potential to raise a lot for your society. Essentially, you are raising money by offering the skills and services of your brothers and sisters to the highest bidder.
These skills can be professional (e.g. photography, tutoring, web design), but also everyday activities (e.g. running errands, driving, babysitting, pet sitting).
Protect your volunteers by having a staff member standing by with a discrete “Buy-In” bid that will prevent your volunteer from public humiliation if no one bids.
Organize a talent contest where the contestants purposefully perform badly (e.g.: singing out of tune for an entire song, failed magic tricks, out-of-sync dancing, etc). Advertise as a fundraising event. Charge a couple of dollars for admission, but more for exiting the room. For example, place signs at the entry point that state the entry fee is $1 and the exit fee $5.
This is a unique twist on the traditional talent show and a fun fundraising idea.
At the end of the day, it is about keeping the spirits high. Choose the fundraising idea that your members & nonmembers will get excited about. The more enthusiastic they are, the more successful your organization will be.
Hopefully, these philanthropic fundraising ideas helped get your creative juices flowing. Now it’s time for you to start fundraising!
Follow us on Twitter @Donorbox for more fundraising tips or check out our nonprofit blog for more ideas.
Ilma Ibrisevic is a content creator and nonprofit writer. She’s passionate about meaningful work, sustainability, and social movements. If she’s not working, she’s obsessing over coffee or cooking. You can connect with her on Linkedin.
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Ilma Ibrisevic
