Raffle Ideas: Fundraising Raffle Prize Ideas Under $50
Need Help With Raffle Ideas for Prizes Under $50?
It's not surprising that a majority of visitors (almost half) selected "Electronics" as their prize of choice. I've also added a new poll asking visitors which type of electronics prize they prefer.
Feel free to suggest new ideas! I'm always looking for feedback, so leave a comment if you have something to add.
Have a different budget in mind? Check out Raffle Prizes for $25 or Raffle Prizes for $100.
Tickets picture by arlo j on Flickr.
Prize Idea #5 Raffling Jewelry - A Luxurious and Tempting Raffle Fundraising Prize Idea
Jewelry is a good raffle prize when the fundraiser attracts a lot of women, or if there are several different prizes to choose from. But hey - what guy wouldn't want to come home with a beautiful necklace or earrings for his main squeeze?
Jewelry is a great prize because it's something people don't always buy for themselves. Try to avoid rings and bracelets, as size can be an issue. Also, stick to non-allergenic materials. Classics such as pearls are a good choice.
True, different people have different tastes in jewelry, but a raffle prize that's sparkly and expensive-looking will always be a hit! Having a jewelry item as your prize instantly increases the desirability of winning. Just make sure that you find a secure way to display your prize to its best advantage.
Which Would You Choose?
Prize Idea #4: 50-50 Raffle
Some people just want to get cash! 50-50 raffles are simple and effective because you don't have to worry about matching a prize to the interests of your audience. Just about anyone would be happy to walk away with a fist full of dollars.
Keep your raffle money safe! Have a cash box on hand to guarantee your winner - and your organization - gets paid.
Prize Idea #3: Raffling Gift Cards - Easy, Portable, Fun
Although some might consider gift cards boring, you can't argue with the fact that they are the #3 most desired gift in our poll!
Gift cards are a good choice for several reasons. You don't have to spend a lot of time deciding on the best prize. You can choose exactly the amount you want to spend. You can pick up several cards in multiple denominations for a multi-leveled prizing system. And you don't have to worry that people will "already have one!"
Prize Idea #2: Gift Baskets
Turns out, according to our voters, that a gift basket makes an even better prize than cash or gift cards! There's just something intriguing about winning a basket full of of food, bath products, or toys.
What Is Your Favorite Gift Basket? - Vote Here!
I'd most like to receive...
And the #1 Most Popular Raffle Prize Is...
Electronics!
Prize Idea #1: Raffling Electronics
A Sleek and Sophisticated Raffle Fundraising Prize Idea
Here's a category for the technophiles! Electronics always generate interest, and people always like to get the newest toy. The trick is to pick something that doesn't require a lot of know-how to set up. And the flashier, the better. A wireless hub might be appreciated by some people, but others will have no idea what to do with one.
If you are going to raffle a toy that need batteries, it would be extra nice to include the right size batteries in the prize!
Apple(TM) brand prizes are always popular. Offer a music player as-is, or preloaded with specially themed music for a great raffle prize.
Puppyprints says:
"I used to be an Activities Director and would approach local restaurants and ask them to donate gift certificates in exchange for mentioning their business during the drawing. The places were very eager to give a gift certificate. I encourage you to give it a try."
Looking For Something Fancier? - Consider These Options
If you're looking to spice up your raffle, consider getting one of the following electronics prizes.
Netbooks are an inexpensive option for mobile computing.
Which Type of Electronics Prize Do You Prefer? - Vote Here!
Anyone can vote, you don't have to be logged in.
I'd most like to receive...
"I want to raffle electronics, but they're all so expensive! What do I do?"
If you only have $50 to spend, consider asking local businesses to donate either funds towards a prize, or the prize itself. Many businesses will love the exposure they get when you put up a sign that says "Donated by (Company Name Here)"
Raffle Tickets - Don't Forget Them!
If you're going to hold a raffle, you'll need some raffle tickets. Make sure to get the ones where you give the ticket-holder one ticket, and keep the other ticket, so you can later hold a drawing for the winner!
How to Choose a Good Raffle Prize
Make It Desirable, Focused, Portable, and Simple
Here are some ideas about good raffle prizes, and some things to keep in mind:
1.) The most important aspect of a prize is that it must be desirable. Anything that's new, in style, or rare fits this category.
2.) A raffle prize must also be focused on your audience or the specific cause. Will parents be the main group attending the raffle? A toy could be a good idea. Are you fundraising to fight diabetes? Perhaps chocolate isn't the best choice. Choose a prize geared towards the people who will be there to buy the tickets, and keep your purpose in mind.
3.) An often overlooked characteristic of a good prize is that it's portable. Who knows who will be at the raffle? Maybe the middle school principal's cousins from Alaska decide to swing by. They need something they can take with them on their long trek home. In addition, they might not have a Best Buy in their town, so a gift certificate would go to waste.
4.) The more simple a raffle prize, the better. Gift cards can be a great prize, but how often have you lost one, or tried to use it after it expired? Choose a prize that doesn't require a lot of effort to set up or use.
Hopefully, the categories below will help you to find a prize that's desirable, focused, portable, and simple.
Image by alykat on Flickr.
"I'm a high-schooler holding a raffle with a budget of $25-$50. What do you suggest?"
If you can go up to the $50 point, I'd suggest getting an iPod Shuffle. However, this will only work if everyone doesn't already have an iPod or iPhone. Towards the lower end of the price range, you can get really creative, get a basket from a thrift store, and fill it with candy and inexpensive toys. When you do come up with some ideas, I would suggest polling your friends to find out what they'd like.
More Information about Fundraising - Check Out These Sites!
In my research, I've come across some websites that provide great information about raffles and other ways of raising funds for nonprofit organizations. Click on the links to learn more.
- How to Organize a Raffle Fundraiser
Why not stop by Sandra Sims' excellent website, which describes in detail all of the important things to remember when organizing a raffle fundraiser?
I hope you found some great ideas for a prize for your next raffle. Choosing prizes or gifts is rarely an easy task. If you have any ideas of your own, please feel free to share them in the space below. Thanks for stopping by!
Hope You've Found a Great Raffle Prize Idea! - And Let Me Know If I Missed Anything!
These are great ideas for either an Online Raffle or to raffle off at an event. You can even put something together in a basket to get some bigger cash prizes. Raffles are one of the best, and fun ways to go if you are trying to raise money or charities, or other organizations. Even schools can use some sort of raffle to raise money for things like new books, or new equipment.
Great ideas, great lens! Maybe include something you can make yourself? :)
Great ideas, great lens! Maybe include something you can make yourself? :)
- Author
Glad you liked the lens! I love the idea of making a book-themed gift basket for a prize - or any gift basket, for that matter!
You gave some great ideas, great presentation, too!! :)
- Author
@dahlia369: Glad you liked it! Hope people will find it useful!
Great ideas here.
I would chose the TV boxed set for a prize.
You have some great ideas here, I would choose electronics prizes, but for women definitely jewelry.
Great advice here. I'm in a non-profit and we just had a banquet and auction but it was not attended well. I guess this year that's pretty much on the mark for all non-profits. But perhaps we could do a Christmas raffle, hmmm. Got me thinking.
Yes, the prizes definitely need to be enticing. It is illegal in some states for non profits to hold raffles so it is also wise for each non profit to be aware of this.
- Author
@OhMe: Wow, I didn't know that! Thanks for sharing! Each non-profit organization should definitely know whether or not they are allowed to hold raffles.
- Author
@jolou: Me too :)
You sure have every point covered here! I loved you "drool worthy" in particular. My Mom won a beautiful hand made quilt in a raffle and was thrilled with it. Very well done and a nice service to others.
Great list. It really give some great ideas for possible prizes.
great ideas...
I didn't realize an iPod shuffle had gotten so cheap. Terrific.
This is a great resource for anyone who is trying to organize a raffle!
- Author
Glad everyone likes the list! Let me know if I missed anything!
Love the ideas. I'm always stuck when trying to find the right prize this is a HUGE help.
- Author
@careermom: Hope your raffle is super successful :)
Thanks for the ideas.
Books are great for business-setting gifts and raffles - they're gender neutral, appeal to a large demographic and a book is easy to re-gift if the new owner doesn't want it.
Great tips and ideas for raffle prizes.
Raffles can certainly be good fund-raisers for a group. It's important to get prizes that people really want. One raffle that someone tried to sell me had a shotgun as a prize. Maybe there were lots of hunters in the area who bought tickets, but I certainly didn't.
- Author
@Virginia Allain: Yikes! Yes, it's important to appeal to your demographic. Before you choose a raffle prize, get some feedback from the kinds of people who you expect to attend your event.
Very helpful, thanks!
I loved several of the suggestions for great raffle items. It would be hard to choose. Loved your lens.
- Author
@nightbear lm: Thanks!
I won a hand painted ceramic pumpkin a few years ago. I really wanted the quilt!
Great ideas that I will share with my fundraising friends!
good
Excellent post. I talk a little about some modern ways to raise funds (using internet real estate, and advertising) for high schools in one of my lenses, I think we could help each other out by featuring each other's lens using a featured lens module. What do you think?
Great lens and these are really great ideas. Choosing prizes gets very tiresome over the years, you get tired of the same old thing. Gotta keep it updated!
- Author
@LissaKlar LM: You're definitely right. Many people go to the same events year after year, and they like seeing new things!
This is just the lens I was looking for. One of my projects is currently looking for some new ways to earn money. I am eager to share these ideas with them. Thanks for sharing!
- Author
@julescorriere: Glad I could help!
Nice collection of ideas... We all like prizes (and little monsters), right?
Another idea, I saw this one come up recently in a raffle, and I thought it was pretty cool: rounds of golf. Sure, you may not be able to get the nicest places for under $50, but there are a lot of nice golf course that can easily go under your mark.
Have you heard of the North Face,it is a very great goods. Especially when you want to go climbing,skiing or skating.
- Author
@AvidArchie: Sounds like a great local prize, especially if there are a lot of golfers in the crowd! Also sounds like something you might be able to get donated, or perhaps have a "matching" donation where you pay $50 and the course matches you for $50. It never hurts to ask!
I think the electronics idea is the best so far.
- Author
@abercrombiefitchmens: Yeah, I'm a big fan of North Face. I love my winter jacket!
- Author
@poutine: I know I'd love to win some of these prizes!
Brilliant idea and great lens...........
got some ideas for my students' raffle prizes. thanks for sharing, it was a big help 'cause i'm almost running out of ideas. we do it yearly. :)
Good point about the prize being portable. that makes having it as a display at ticket selling events so much easier!
- Author
@anonymous: Well, if you have some generous local businesses or a lot of money to spend on a prize, there are always new electronics to buy! Gift cards, while sometimes boring, can be very popular. You might also want to consider finding a theme - like a school mascot - to make thinking up prizes every year easier!
- Author
@RebeccaRaffles: True! Lugging around a television, even a flat screen, is a pain in the butt!
I think Gift baskets are a great idea, you can make them yourself, or get one premade, and you can always use what is in them. If its wine and cheese, its easy to get a shop to donate just one bottle of wine, or one block of cheese, then make up a whole basket that way. The advantage is, most people like wine or cheese, but if they don't they can still bring them to friends' dinner parties etc and so they are never wasted. Good Lens!
Raffles are ok, but if groups want to make the most amount of profit possible with the least amount of headaches and hassles, fundraiser community discount cards are the best solution. There's no need to deal with any inventory, multiple trips to deliver products, catalog orders, or having to sell overpriced items like popcorn, cookie dough, candles, etc.
Plus, groups can easily make 80%-90% profit on each campaign. generating $10,000 to $20,000 in 30 days is not hard to do. Get more info on this here: Discount card fundraising for nonprofits
Hope that helps!
This is neat...A lot of groups in my community do raffles and silent auctions for fund-raisers, so I see a lot of those gift baskets at varying price levels. It's a fun thing to do.
i've been to a few functions where they had a balloon filled with $100 dollars worth of lottery tickets, huge success!
I won a raffle once as a child, I got a horse doll.
Great ideas for fundrasing raffles! Gift baskets and gift cards are my favorite prizes :) I also like handmade items.
Great ideas, it was a fun read =)
Very Useful Lens.
Im thinking of raffeling a 19 in tv at my sons 1st birthday party for 10$ a raffel is this a good idea ?i just thought it be fun for the adults
- Author
@anonymous: Interesting idea! Here are my thoughts:
- Definitely let people know the details beforehand. This isn't the kind of thing people like to be surprised by.
- $10 is a lot if your guests are on a budget, but of course you want to recoup the cost of the TV. You might want to consider having people buy tickets instead of (not in addition to) presents for your son.
- People love a good cause! It might be a good idea to use the proceeds from the raffle to create a savings account or college fund for your child.
- Make sure that no one feels pressured to buy a ticket; some people are really into raffles, and others aren't.
- Consider a sliding scale, if it isn't too complicated. For example, they can get 3 tickets for $25.
Great lens, thanks for the ideas. I added this to my favorites & bookmarked it. God Bless
This past summer Sandra Sims and Jim Berigan published a comprehensive guide to raffles called "Raffle Secrets." It's available as an ebook.
Thanks for stopping by my board games lens. Great Ideas here. It can be hard to plan a good raffle on a budget, but you make it seem simple.
I do a lot of photography work, people will often give away a free photo shoot or other service knowing they can make good money afterwards
I"m doing a post on my Lyme Disease Blog to help people who are trying to put together fundraisers and posting this on there. I hope that's okay.
I used to be an Activities Director and would approach local restaurants and ask them to donate gift certificates in exchange for mentioning their business during the drawing. The places were very eager to give a gift certificate. I encourage you to give it a try,
- Author
@puppyprints: This is a terrific suggestion! Businesses love it because it serves as inexpensive advertising, and they get known as do-gooders in the community. And if someone eats at their restaurant using the certificate, there's a good chance they'll become repeat customers! And of course, it's great for the charity, because all it takes is a bit of time and friendliness.
Nice suggestion ! Great lens !
Nice idea ! Thanks for sharing.
Such good ideas, here. Good job!
Good Lense Indeed....
Great lens and ideas, thanks
Great ideas, thanks.
Great idea's but say you are doing a raffle/fundraising for a no-kill animal shelter, what should you use as a theme? I am doing that for my nearby Roice-Hurst Humane society but don't know a good theme. Any suggestions??
great lens and fantastic ideas thank you!
I think the "cheap but unique and interesting" angle is best for things like this. Money/gift cards is the worst I think... how boring!
Good ideas here! Thanks
Excellent and informative, very!
Candy!
These are some excellent ideas, I would also recommend headphones, Skull Candy carries some cheap and durable ones
I love baby baskets. I have 2 kids with one on the way so baby stuff is nice. and cute too!
I love baby baskets. I have 2 kids with one on the way so baby stuff is nice. and cute too!
this is a great one.
Great suggestions, love how versatile baskets can be.
81