School PTAs are finding themselves having to come up with virtual and online fundraising ideas in a time where face to face events have become hard, if not impossible, for most people.
And as if fundraising for your PTA wasn't hard enough right now, the obstacles keep mounting up! How will you get payments made to you when you can no longer rely on cash brought to school with kids or coins chucked in a bucket?
Just turn to online fundraising!
The answer seems simple, but you may find implementing online payments for fundraising are anything but.
Some PTAs have turned to charity donation websites which offer convenience but a fairly standard format, but transaction fees and annual fees can vary massively between platforms.
In some cases, parents may be happy to transfer money through a bank transfer to your PTA account, but this can be a nightmare for your treasurer who has to track each payment- what it's for and who it's from, and create a robust audit trail!
And there's still the matter of the wider school community – grandparents or friends of friends who have mastered doing their shopping online but may still be reluctant to use internet banking.
Change from loose change
Although there has been a massive shift in people happy to make online purchases, smaller scale charity events have traditionally been heavily reliant on cash transactions – from the summer fair to the tuck shop at the disco!
But as our fundraising events have changed, we need to make sure parents and carers can still contribute to the school in a way they find easy and can trust to be safe.
What are you selling?
Here are just a few things PTAs have sold online:
- Shopping bags/coasters/keyrings/magnets
- Raffle tickets
- Tickets for Halloween or Christmas treasure hunts and trails
- Craft packs
- Letters from Santa
- Second-hand uniform
About PlanSocial
PlanSocial curates resources and educational materials for school parents and their families, focusing on everything from educational support for your children, self-development and career re-entry, to home improvement, family well-being and even where to find the best family holidays.
