You may recall, some weeks back, a post about a prize draw where raffle tickets could not be purchased, but rather were rewarded for each instance of an online activity benefiting the sponsoring organisation. Recently, I participated in such a raffle, earning four virtual raffle tickets.

The prize? A free professional massage!

Yes, I wanted to win this very badly.

One of the nice things about this sort of draw is that the odds are very, very good. I was able to increase my odds by taking action to receive the maximum number of raffle tickets. And my efforts paid off. For the second time since I became your fabulous ticket girl, I won!

If only I had scheduled my massage a few days earlier. Little did I know that the therapist would cancel on me at the last minute, having contracted a disease that left him unable to stand for any period of time

However, the sponsoring organisation made a complete success of their raffle, garnering a great deal of free publicity. In this case, every raffle ticket represented, essentially, a free advertisement, written by customers, extolling their virtues! This type of prize draw is a winning situation for everyone!

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Of course, you expect your prize draw to earn money for your organisation, but you need not limit yourself to the money you earn selling Raffle Tickets. Consider these facts. Your supporters:

• Use social media platforms to connect with like-minded individual and learn about their world
• Are more trusting of their peers’ opinions than of paid advertisement
• Prefer to purchase goods and services after reading positive consumer reviews

It’s clear, then, that great modern business require great modern feedback. If your supporters or customers can’t be bothered to write a few lines about you on a website that appraises your sort of organisation, you’re far less likely to attract new customers. Instead of selling Raffle Tickets, why not use the promise of a coveted prize from your business to drum up those positive reviews. Chances are, you can circumvent some our those pesky gaming laws while you’re at it.

Simply select those websites where you feel you should make an impression (e.g. Google Places or FourSquare) and then let customers know that they will receive a free virtual Raffle Ticket for each site on which they write a positive review. With very little expense, you’ve created the best possible sales pitch. And, unlike traditional advertising, this feedback has staying power. Most sites will reveal how many reviews you’ve received and what your average rating is. That makes it simple for potential customers to judge whether or not they wish to do business with you!

Another bonus: social media feedback is a two-edged sword. If you’ve received negative reviews in the past, an influx of positive reviews can hide the bad ones and raise your overall ranking.

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You can turn your prize draw into a complicated and multi-layered affair, or you can keep it simple. If you fancy an easy, breezy fundraiser that fills your coffers without filling your time, it’s time to get back to the basics. What do you need to hold a successful prize draw? Interesting prizes, effective Raffle Tickets, supporters to buy them, and a distribution method to sell them.

• Prizes: You know your supporters best. They may be willing to take a 50 p chance on a small prize: a new football, for instance, or a skein of yarn, or a gift certificate to a popular independent book shop. Perhaps they will pay money to gamble on the possibility of a free lunch with someone in your organisation, or a lesson on something your administration may teach.
• Raffle Tickets: So easy to print online! You choose the perfect design, enter your event details into a ticket template, and click on a few buttons. Your Raffle Tickets are professionally printed, with perforated stubs, lines to collect customer information, individual numbering, and other security features.
• Supporters: Get the word out, in your print or email newsletter, on websites and web forums, at local meetings and other brick-and-mortar events, through local media, and with printed Posters or Fliers. Don’t forget phone trees, word of mouth, and door to door sales.
• Distribution: Take advantage of one of many online sites that sell Raffle Tickets for you. If you already have a sales team, offer them extra prizes and let them do their job. Or, incentivise small children with appropriate rewards and let them sell. Sell Raffle Tickets on your own website, at meetings, or at summer festivals. Wherever people are, that’s where you should be selling Raffle Tickets.

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I can’t believe I missed this one! I’m going to resist the urge to weigh in and simply report the news. Apparently, in March, a group raffled off a human egg. This was an enormously controversial move, not only because trafficking in human genetic material is a moral grey area at best, but also because the very terms of the raffle violate UK gaming laws. To circumvent this quandary, the treatment will be provided in America.

I’m not certain how much they were selling individual Raffle Tickets for, but the value of the prize is placed at £13,000. This covers not only the egg from a healthy female donor (the winner can choose a donor who looks like her, or choose based on the donor’s racial background, upbringing, and education) but also the cost of the IVF treatment needed to fertilise the egg with the male genetic material of ones choose and the implantation of the embryo into the uterus.

The company’s idea was to sell Raffle Tickets in order to promote their new service: Baby Profiling. It was a joint venture between a London fertility clinic called Bridge Centre, and and American group, the Genetics and IVF Institute (GIVF) in Fairfax, Virginia.

No matter how you break it down, this prize draw helped the group reach its goals. Not only did they earn money selling Raffle Tickets, they garnered a remarkable amount of publicity, a great deal of it free. Yes, much of the publicity was controversial, but I would argue that those who decry this prize draw are not potential clients to begin with. Their outrage, however, has allowed a greater number of potential clients to become aware of the clinic, as well as the technology.

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Have you had much success selling Raffle Tickets to support your school, business, or charitable organisation? If so, you know it’s a smart way to add some extra cash to your annual budget. If you’ve never tried holding your own prize draw, or you’ve been disappointed with past results, now is the time to start preparing for a successful charity fundraiser.

Your success depends on a few factors:

• Your organisation’s reputation
• The value of your prizes
• The cost of your tickets
• The skills of your sales team
• Publicity and exposure

If your reputation is already stellar, you can build on that, but if people are skeptical of your group, use your prize draw as a means of getting your message out and creating better buzz around your name.

Regarding prizes and ticket prices, do put some good thought into these choices. You may have to make many phone calls, use your networking skills, and perhaps even call in some favors to find prizes that people can get excited about. Then, price accordingly. For big ticket items, you can certainly ask for two pounds per ticket (the legal limit), but remember, you can make the same amount of money even if you charge less, by selling more tickets.

Let your sales team speak for you and show you in your best light. Your team should be able to talk coherently about your mission, and they should be willing to follow the crowds! Sporting events and street fairs are wonderful places to send your team. The more exposure they give you, the more money you’ll make. Make sure to write about your upcoming prize draw on your own website, but also on blogs and forums. Send press releases to the newspaper. Let people know when and where tickets will be available.

Start planning now and reap the rewards throughout the year!

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Once again fate has failed to favor me.

I should be satisfied with that time my boyfriend and I each won raffle prizes, but having won one raffle, once in my life, I want to win some more!

On Saturday, we went out to our favourite club, where a proper Halloween celebration was underway. The club were offering chances at a single big prize: free passes for an entire year. We attend this club quite often, so that would have been a brilliant prize for either of us. At fifteen pounds a head, it’s not exactly an inexpensive habit. (It truly is an absolutely fabulous club, though.)

Well, we each shelled out two pounds for ten Raffle Tickets at the door. Four hours later, on our way out, I asked the girl at the door when they would be drawing the winner.

“Oh, we did that already,” she said.

They had done it with no one looking, and then just told the winner. No big announcement or anything. What a disappointment.

You and I know better. If you’re going to the trouble of selling Raffle Tickets, you ought to play it up, generate some excitement, create theatre! Let everyone feel the anticipation. Let everyone envy the winner.

So, I didn’t win. Maybe next year!

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Yes, it’s true that we have some restrictive laws regarding prize draws in the UK, but small businesses can legally use raffles to draw customers into the shop, generate interest in the business, and reward those who have made them successful. While, in most cases, you will not be allowed to directly profit from your business raffle, there are still benefits for your organisation to such a game.

Running a prize draw out of a business carries its own rules and restrictions. If you already have a solicitor, it’s best to consult him or her before you print your Raffle Tickets, just to play safe, but here are some things to keep in mind:

• You must run your raffle directly out of your place of business
• You may only sell tickets to your customers
• Ticket sales can take place over no more than 7 days
• You may not offer prizes worth over 50 pounds
• You may not make a profit from your prize draw

Under the Gambling Act of 2005, your business raffle falls under System B. As such you are required to print certain information on the body of your Raffle Ticket: your name and address, the price of the ticket, the category of people who may purchase the ticket, and some verbiage stating that the rights conferred by the ticket are non-transferable.

Fortunately, most ticket templates for sale in the UK make it simple to comply by these rules. Often you will find a space on the template for specific information, or even suggested text.

While your business raffle may not, legally, allow you to do all you wish to do, it’s certainly a brilliant way to inspire your customers! If you choose your own popular merchandise for prizes, basing your sales on the 50 pound retail price of the item still allows you to come out ahead, and it allows your customers to take a chance on something they probably already want. Everyone wins!

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Risk-takers. Penny-pinchers. Big spender. Small change.

Your upcoming fundraising drive is imminent, and you don’t want any dodgy schemes fouling up your big plans for financial security. Everything needs to come together to ensure that your organisation continue achieving the mission for another year. You have big plans for the world, but you don’t need a maths expert to tell you you’ll need money to carry through on those plans.

That’s why you’ve considering adding a raffle to your other activities. You can kick off the fundraising drive weeks earlier than planned, and start minding the pounds well in advance. But times are tight, and some of your top donors may not be able to offer such large donations as they have in the past.

Some organisers report new success in offering two levels of Raffle Tickets, which requires only minimal extra work, but can result in additional funding from a new source: those who are interested in your cause but have very little money. Surely, your group is in need of pounds and pounds, but when the economy is restricted, the pence can add up as well.

Divide your prizes into two categories. In the top category, you place the new cars, the exotic holidays, and other big-ticket items. These are your two-pound Raffle Tickets. When you start selling these tickets, word-of-mouth will generate new customers excited to purchase a chance at this expensive prizes. In the second category, you offer the gift certificates, the small novelty items, and other inexpensive prizes. You can sell these Raffle Tickets for twenty-five or fifty p. It may not sound like much, but imagine selling a thousand of these tickets. Your supporters pocket change can make a big difference.

When you’ve divvied up your prizes, print your own Raffle Tickets, two sets. You’ll have twice the earning power, and the ability to reach a new audience and spread your message even further.

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Bands and Theatres

Yes, you, ardent performers who put your hearts and souls in your craft. Are you prepared to harness the awesome power of your art for the sake of greater publicity and an increased fan base?

I thought perhaps you might be.

Why not couple your performance with the remarkable reach of a prize draw? Consider this: as entertainers, you need not even search for prize donations. You have everything your fans want, and it will cost you little to nothing to offer proper prizes.

• Tickets to concerts or shows
• Passes to restricted rehearsals
• Live or studio CDs or DVDs
• Lunch with the band or actors

Once you’ve chosen the items or experiences best suited to your budget and audience, you can select the design best suited to your image, print your own Raffle Tickets, and begin to sell them. Where?

• At live performances
• On your web site
• On your social networking sites
• In print newsletters
• To your mailing list
• At festivals and public venues

Now, how does this benefit you? You are growing your fan base! Word of mouth advertising will generate a buzz around your raffle as well as around your group. Without additional effort, hits on your website will increase, and so will your downloads and ticket sales. Your name will be on more peoples’ lips. You will draw a crowd when you draw the winner, and those who came simply for the possibility of winning will potentially becomes your new fans.

So consider your options. You could stick with business as usual, or you could make a small investment in money and time, and translate that into a huge return in money and popularity!

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I talk a lot

about charity raffles. Surely, who can resist the opportunity to win fabulous prizes while helping out a worthy cause? Not I! But not everyone is a charitable organization. That doesn’t mean that they can’t earn money when they print their own raffle tickets.

In today’s economy, business raffles may suffer, as people keep a tighter knot on their purse strings and cannot be compelled by the argument that their contribution goes to a good cause. On the other hand, a raffle for a professional or business organization has some definite benefits.

For one thing, you don’t have to go about begging for prizes. Most likely, you already manufacture or distribute the prizes. Do you sell any of the following:

• Cars
• Art
• Designer Clothes
• Sporting Goods
• Jewelry

While many customers may not be able to afford your goods right now, they may be willing to take a chance at winning them for far less than the actual value.

Another consideration is creating your own publicity as you sell raffle tickets. Advertisements can be pricey, but sending your sales team out gets you more face time with potential customers. They are more likely to recognize and remember your business after talking to your staff about raffle prizes than they are after seeing a 30-second spot on the telly!

Raffles generate excitement in the community. Who’s to say that’s not a wonderful service to provide? You can provide it while helping your own bottom line.

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