Some organizations are being affected by an aging or older donor base that excludes younger donors. The key to staying relevant is to raise awareness throughout your entire target demographic by offering new fundraisers that appeal to a wide audience.
While charity golf tournaments remain the number one fundraising vehicle in North America, it makes sense to complement your golf tournament with other types of events. Galas, live auctions, Texas Hold ‘Em events, bike rides, and mini golf are just some of the options available.
However, if you will be holding a golf tournament, there are 6 keys to making it stand apart from all the others.
1. Keep your event fresh with new content. Shake it up a bit. Don't let your event get "stale" by repeating exactly the same format year after year. Even the best formats get old after a while.
2. If your choice is a golf tournament fundraiser start the planning process as far ahead as possible. Six to nine months is a good guideline. Some larger events start the planning as soon as the event has been completed for a given year.
3. There are a number of excellent planning guides available to help you plan your event. The one from the GTAA is a particularly detailed version for golf tournaments. Use it for suggestions on what others have done and pick those that make the most sense for your event.
4. There are lots of ways to help make your event stand out from the competition. Pick the approaches that work for you. Consider celebrity participation, prizes for as many participants as possible, a noteworthy prize for the winners, added recognition for corporate sponsors, high powered auctions and raffles at the event, special side competitions that everyone can enter, an orchestrated PR build-up to the event so it is a "campaign" and not a one-day event.
5. Recognize that running a golf tournament is one alternative in a highly competitive marketplace. In just Eastern MA alone there are over 3,000 charity golf events every year from late April through October. To attract a full field of golfers and a strong base of corporate sponsors you need to elevate your event to "Can't Miss" status. The challenge is even greater in economic downturns when both golfers and sponsors are cutting back on their participation. The message is, "Don't give up on your golf tournament in hard times. Find a way to make your event stand out and be successful."
6. Charity golf at the amateur level is a $3-1/2 BILLION dollar industry. It can be a powerful fundraiser for your organization.
