Maximizing School Fundraising: A Better Alternative to High Fees 

The Basha High School Air Force JROTC program in Chandler, AZ, like many other school organizations across the country, depends on fundraisers to cover the costs of their program’s equipment, supplies, and experiences. In years prior, the JROTC program worked with Snap-Raise to help them raise funds. However, after evaluating the costs and fees they incurred each year, they decided they needed a better solution. They found a school fundraising platform with all the necessary tools, ultimately allowing them to keep an additional $4,000 that would have otherwise been lost to Snap-Raise fees. 

The change stemmed from a critical question: Is the “convenience” of Snap-Raise worth its cost? After losing a significant portion of their raised funds to Snap-Raise’s fees, the JROTC program decided it was time for a change. 

The Cost of Using Snap-Raise 

Snap-Raise charges a hefty fee starting at 20% of the funds raised, plus payment processing fees and any student prizes. Some reports indicate fees can reach up to 50%. These fees cover the cost and commission of an independent Snap-Raise representative who collects and sends emails to parents and community members requesting donations. The high percentage fees are a common complaint among those who use Snap-Raise. Additionally, fees can vary based on the program’s participation level, requiring most, if not all, students to provide a minimum number of email addresses. Some representatives may charge higher percentages to increase their commission, leaving many parents and community members unhappy with the fees. 

The Need for an Effective Fundraising Solution 

When school programs are short on funds or want to provide additional experiences for students, every dollar counts. The Basha JROTC program conducts an annual fundraiser to raise funds for program equipment, critical supplies, and educational field trips. They needed a fundraising platform with the efficiency of Snap-Raise but with lower fees to maximize the funds raised. 

Features Needed in a Fundraising Platform 

The Basha JROTC program sought a platform with: 

• Contact Management: To easily upload donor contact information and grow a donor base year after year. 

• Email Communication Tools: To promote fundraisers to donor contacts and provide updates. 

• Easy-to-Use Creation Tools: For quick campaign creation and savable templates for annual use. 

• Effective Promotional Tools: For internal fundraising competition, social media sharing, and features that drive donations. 

Fundraising with Destiny Fundraising Manager 

Fortunately, their school district had recently implemented a new platform, Destiny Fundraising Manager, which checked all their boxes and allowed them to fundraise in a scalable and cost-effective way. Upon launching the campaign, the Basha JROTC set an initial goal of raising $10,000, which they quickly surpassed. They extended their goal to $15,000 and, by the end of the month-long campaign, had raised just shy of $18,000! 

Keys to Success 

How did they do it? The JROTC program split their students into three groups, plus a fourth group for staff, and incorporated a “Leaderboard” feature to drive competition among the students. This feature tracked donations by group and displayed the leaders as the campaign progressed. Additionally, they followed the “Guide: Campaign Promotion Best Practices,” using the platform’s contact manager to collect email addresses from students’ families and friends and send timely emails to drive donations. 

By taking control of their campaign and using the effective tools within Destiny Fundraising Manager, the Basha JROTC program managed to keep around $4,000 more than they would have using Snap-Raise. 

About Destiny Fundraising Manager 

Destiny Fundraising Manager provides a comprehensive fundraising platform for K-12 districts, incorporating the best tools for teachers, coaches, and students to maximize their fundraising abilities. With unique campaign web pages, built-in contact and donor management, email campaign creation, online leaderboards, automatic reconciliation, detailed reporting, and various fundraising options, Destiny Fundraising Manager’s “do-it-yourself” model allows K-12 members to efficiently manage their campaigns with low transaction fees.

If you are a parent organization, club, team, or school organization looking for a better way to fundraise, you can sign up for a free Destiny Fundraising Manager account below.