8 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Product Fundraiser
Posted by Jim Berigan on 02 Sep 2009 in: Best Practices, Fundraising Ideas, Products
One of the most reliable types of school fundraisers is the product sale. A product sale is an event in which a school hooks up with a company that provides an item that students try to sell to friends, families, and others in their social networks. Each company has their own formula to split the revenue between themselves and the school.
Some common examples of items used in product sales are: cookie dough, chocolate, wrapping paper, magazines, and popcorn, although virtually anything, as long as it’s sellable, can be used to make a profit for the school.
Product sales are popular for four main reasons:
- They are simple to plan and execute. The companies have really made these things fool-proof for both the school administration and the parents.
- Over the years, people have grown to develop an expectation that they will have to sell something to raise money for their kid’s school, so they are already pre-disposed to participate.
- School administrators generally don’t like to spend too much time thinking about creative fundraising ideas, so product sales have become “no-brainers”.
- Product sales are very reliable financially. You can take the number of students participating in the sale and get a fairly accurate estimate of what you can expect to bring in.
Even though the actual planning and executing of a product sale are relatively easy to navigate, there are still a number of questions that you should ask either yourself, your product sale representative, or the people in your community before making a commitment to one particular product or company. Failure to ask these questions or questions like these put you at risk of having a substandard fundraising event. continue reading


You can use the cards as prizes for students who bring in the most fundraising results. On the other hand, you could sell the cards to raise extra funds (based on a $20 suggested retail price).
Your school group can “keep the flame going” with a
No time to cook? Just pop in a frozen pizza! 
