Virtual Fundraisers for Schools and Academic Institutions: 5 Event Ideas
For higher educational institutions, fundraising is one of the main sources of funding for colleges and universities outside of student tuition. And in today's socially distanced climate, virtual fundraisers for schools has never been more important as it is today. Fundraising is also a valuable part of a student's education school. Charity work helps students to learn new experiences and put their time to use for the greater good. It’s also a great way for students to build up their CV and great ready for the working world. Fundraising helps students practice many skills such as:
- Financial management
- Communication
- Planning and forecasting
- Teamwork
During the lockdown, many schools have moved online. Since schools have moved online many extracurricular skills have stopped. But what does this mean for charities? We have seen so many trends on social media of people doing charity work from home. For example, shave or die or charity runs. Without further ado, let’s start organizing online charity work for your students. Of course, we’re here with some great virtual fundraiser ideas for schools.
A Virtual Yard Sale
During the lockdown, everybody wants to make changes to their houses and gardens. So a virtual yard sale is a great virtual fundraiser for your school. There are a few ways you could do this:
- A virtual auction where people bid on different items.
- Make a website with pictures showing a set price.
- A live auction/ sale on social media.
You can ask members of the public to donate different items that they want to throw out. It’s also great for the environment. You know what they say- reduce, reuse recycle!
A Virtual Run
During the lockdown, a lot of people have started walking and running. Exercise is great for your mental and physical wellbeing but can also be used to fundraise money. You can easily use your run as a virtual fundraiser for your school. You just need to organize a couple of things:
- Pick a charity that you’d like to donate to.
- Advertise the run on social media.
- Create a GoFundMe page so people can donate.
- Record snippets of the run so people can see you’ve completed it.
There’s no better way of raising money while you get fit!
Virtual Movie Night
Just like a normal movie night but it happens online! It’s a great fundraising idea for schools and will also give your classmates something to talk about. Just select a movie and everyone pays a fee to watch it. The money you collect then goes to a charity. You could even make the movie night public so everyone can watch and you’ll sell more tickets. There’s some great streaming sites you could use to watch your movie:
- Amazon Prime
- Netflix
- Hulu
- Disney +
Make sure you don't forget to stop by your local grocery store and stock up on your favorite candy, drinks, and popcorn for the flick!
A Virtual Quiz
Virtual quizzes are great virtual fundraisers for schools. Depending on the mood of your event, you can make a theme for each round and organize it on a virtual events platform. People can compete in teams with their family or social bubbles. Try to pick questions with pictures or songs so people can’t google the answer. You need to have prizes for the winners, of course. You could ask local businesses to sponsor prizes in exchange for free advertising. Some nice prize ideas include:
- Vouchers
- Food and drink
- Trophies
- Online subscriptions
Virtual quizzes provide a fun and energetic atmosphere to an event, without making things feel overly competitive and professional. A great way to get your audience engaged by gamifying a classic game of "who's smarter?"
Virtual Celebrity Talk
Many celebrities like to use their influence for the greater good. So it’s a good fundraising idea for your school to ask someone to do a talk. You could make the talk public and everyone who attends pays a fee. As your event will be happening online anyone can go! Make sure you spend time advertising the event so everyone knows it is happening. The more tickets you sell, the more you will earn for the charity. With a virtual event, the world’s your oyster! You can invite a celebrity from anywhere in the world. So be ambitious and think outside of the box. If your celebrity has some connection with this charity they will be more open to your event. If the celebrity has a special talent like singing or writing you could ask them to make a performance.
Are you ready for your school’s next virtual fundraiser?
Those are our top virtual fundraisers for schools and acedemic institutions! Go and start organizing your next virtual fundraiser!
The first thing you will need is a virtual events platform. Why not check out Remo? We offer a 14-day free trial so your school can try out our product. If you’ve any questions we also have a lot of info in our FAQ section.
