Fundraising Ideas - Understanding Frozen Cookie Dough Fundraisers

Here's the low down.  The last few days have been a discovery and summary of the most successful elementary school fundraisers. 

By that, I mean a school or group can feel accomplished in a few main ways.  First off, customers are happy.  Secondly, there is lots of profit and goals were met.  Lastly, the fundraiser was easy to manage.

The first exploration was into Fall Catalog Fundraisers and specifically gift & wrap catalog fundraisers. These fit all 3 categories best in my opinion.  The fundraiser is easy to run without volunteers, offers very substantial profits and customers are left happy if a reputable company with quality products is chosen.

Next, we took a look at school auction fundraisers.  These offer substantial profits and parents love it.  Unfortunately, it takes a lot of work to organize the event.  There really is no nationwide component so the fundraiser auction is aimed at parents and usually not the community at large.  Inviting community members that are not parents of the children at the school may be a good way to extend the sale a bit.

Today, I want to explore frozen cookie dough fundraisers.  What folks don't know about frozen cookie dough is that elementary schools can raise a tremendous amount of money selling a product that is in demand.  As a commodity, food is something we do acquire and consume on a regular basis.  Then, add to that the fact that a good sweet is hard to resist.  This makes selling cookie dough profitable. 

The quality of product these days is top notch. 

There are quality ingredients and the dough is not made in someones kitchen.  This is pretty big business, all things considered, so cookie dough is made in large production facilities - the same facilities that handle making the dough for retail, restaurants and food service. This means the product is safe and held to the highest standards in food preparation.  The reason to point this out is that our first rule above is now met and customers are happy to cook up some delicious cookie dough. 

The cookie dough is delivered frozen which means that distribution is a bit more challenging than a gift catalog.  The product cannot sit out for an extended amount of time.  So, the day of delivery can be stressful on the PTA, PTO or volunteers helping with distribution.  In the end, deliveries happen smoothly but I do think schools have a bit of apprehension thinking that parents will not come and pickup the frozen product in time. 

Notifying them ahead of time when the delivery is becomes very important.

The pros - very substantial profits selling something that has a high customer satisfaction.

The cons - delivery day can be a bit of a challenge for the fundraising chair as they wonder if parents will be showing up.

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Until tomorrow!

Cookie dough fundraising in a bad economy.

There are a few things that still sell well in a bad economy.  Food is at the top of that list.  So, if you are a school or large group considering a school fundraiser, a frozen cookie dough fundraiser may just be for you.

Food sells.

There are certainly some folks out there that would tell you that product fundraisers are not working.  Don't believe them.  Event fundraising is suffering along with any other fundraiser out there.  There is no magic and there is a formula.  In my opinion it looks like this:

• Pick a reputable thing to sell or a quality event to host
• Have an average sale or donation amount high as you can (or reach a lot more people)
• Extend the sale beyond just the school's parents
• Offer a product or service the public understands and will get behind

Selling something such as frozen cookie dough fits these criteria because the average sale is high, people are accustomed to the product and the community will purchase it without reservation.


Sick of hearing about the economy?

Me too.  Anyone can put the fears of the economy behind them when they realize others are succeeding and taking their fundraising revenue over the top!  Gone are the days where you just receive a fundraising packet and it is what it is.  If you really want to succeed, you need a plan and will have to put time and effort into it in some way. 

Pick a reputable fundraising company, put promotions into place, market effectively and reward students and sellers and you will reverse the effects of the economy with your next frozen cookie dough fundraiser.

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There are some frozen cookie dough fundraiser ideas posted here.

Easy Fundraising Ideas for Elementary Schools

There are several easy fundraising ideas that elementary schools can use to raise significant funds within a short period of time.  Here is one fundraising idea for larger groups:

Frozen cookie dough is an easy fundraising idea for larger groups with some history of fundraising sales.  This is not a fundraiser for a small group because there are shipping minimums to reach.

Why it works? 

Frozen cookie dough fundraisers are easy because the product sells!  Parents are quite used to how these sales work and they trust they will receive value and a quality product.


A few things to consider...

Get expert help.  It's best to get some expert advice.  Free fundraising advice is available by calling your fundraising company.  If you've no company leave a comment for me here below or hit me up on twitter for some honest advice.

You will need some help on delivery day.  If you are considering flying solo on a school-wide fundraiser such as a Cookie Dough Fundraising program get help. Boxes are heavy and there may just be a lot of them.

Teamwork is the key.  As with any school-wide fundraiser, you will get out more if you work together.  Simply put, the PTA or PTO along with principals, administrators and teachers have more to do with the success of your fundraiser than the fundraiser itself. 

Having said that, a high average sale helps!  Fortunately, Cookie Dough Fundraising has high averages.  Look for $13-$15 per item and then put a solid team of experts and faculty that will work together and you've got a winning combination!