How to make raffle gift baskets

4 MINUTE READ

For non-profit groups like churches, public schools, and charity organizations, fundraising is an essential activity. These funds are necessary to carry out their purpose and serve the community’s needs.

If you are looking for a fundraising activity with high revenue potential, raffles are a great way to raise money. Not only are they easy and affordable to produce, but they are also quite popular and tend to garner lots of attention and participation.

Are you looking for advice on how to make the best raffle gift baskets for an upcoming fundraiser? Follow these tips to learn how to put together exciting raffles that bring in the most donations for your cause.

Appeal to your audience

For a successful raffle event, it is important to think about your audience. Who will be in attendance and what do you know about them? If you can, recall past fundraising events for clues as to what would be most popular. Then, brainstorm specific themes that will have wide appeal among your audience.

Each basket should have a theme. Avoid grouping a random assortment of items together as it will not be as appealing as a more focused collection. Tell a story, create an experience, or evoke an emotion that will entice participants to bid. Create baskets that are special, exciting, and valuable and give participants a chance to win amazing prizes.

Partner with local businesses

Since the goal of a fundraiser is to raise money to support an organization, it makes sense to keep expenses low.

To cost-effectively procure items to fill baskets, start by soliciting sponsors. Reach out to supporters and local businesses to inquire about donations. Many businesses will happily contribute products or funds for a good cause in exchange for exposure to their brand at your event. Without incurring expenses upfront to purchase gift items, all the proceeds from your fundraiser will go directly to your cause.

This is a great way to get your community involved and help you to create a variety of interesting gift baskets. In addition, locally made items are often highly regarded and can increase the attractiveness of your raffles.

Raffle gift basket ideas

There are many general themes you may want to consider when putting together raffle baskets. Here are a few ideas you can adapt to appeal to your audience.

Wine, beer, spirits

Is your city or state home to any wineries, breweries, or distilleries? A great gift basket idea for a raffle is to put together a selection of wine, craft beer, and spirits. Work with one establishment to arrange a selection of their most popular varieties or mix it up. Add in extras like tasting glasses, bar accessories, and coordinating snacks to make it even more special. These are bound to be popular!

Gourmet food

Another popular theme revolves around food, particularly anything fancy. Chocolate, fruit, and pasta gift baskets are all great choices with wide appeal. Or go with a gourmet snack theme and include all the fixings to make a classy charcuterie board. Choose a variety of cheeses, cured meats, nuts, crackers, and dipping sauces. A high-quality wooden board and cheese knife set will complete this yummy basket.

This collection is pictured in a 18 in x 12 in x 6 ¼ in custom wooden crate by Carpenter Core.

Experiences

There are so many local experiences you can offer in raffle gift baskets, from gift certificates to local restaurants or spas, to private dancing or cooking lessons, or tickets to sporting events or concerts. Memberships are also very appealing. Include a basket for the local zoo, museums, or even fitness centers. Or, combine a few of these to craft special date nights or local travel packages. Add coordinating accessories to make the experience come alive.

Hobbies

When you think about your audience, do any popular hobbies come to mind? Hobby gift baskets make great raffle prizes because there is a strong personal connection to something you love doing or even something you have always wanted to try. Choose a variety of coordinating items one would use while participating in that activity. Specific ideas include golf, knitting, board games, or BBQ, but the possibilities are endless.

Make it look good

The final step to making a raffle gift basket that will raise big funds for your organization is the presentation, so make it look good. You can achieve this by choosing high-quality materials like your container, filler, wrapping, and decorations. Be sure to arrange your items in an impressive fashion, in a way that allows participants to see all of the contents, so they know exactly what they are getting.

Conclusion

Arranging raffle gift baskets for your fundraising event takes some thought and effort, but the rewards can be great. If you carefully choose your themes to appeal to your audience, partner with local businesses to procure items and focus on an impressive presentation, you will be on your way to success.

This article was made possible by support from Carpenter Core. We make small customizable wooden crates and boxes used for gift baskets and product packaging.