Indulge Your Sweet Tooth With a Chocolate Fundraiser

Fall is a great time to hold either a candy bar or chocolate fundraiser. Halloween is coming up, and everyone has candy on the brain. Also, the weather is starting to cool off, so there's less worry about the chocolate you sell melting before it even reaches your customers. People are gearing up for the holidays, too. Take advantage of this time of year, and the fact that most people love chocolate, to put on a sweet fundraiser for your organization.

A candy bar fundraiser is fairly easy to organize the execute. There are plenty of companies out there that help groups put on these types of fundraising events, and provide the candy bars. When choosing a company to work with, your decision will probably be based largely on one factor—what kind of candy bars they provide. Some companies carry brand names that everyone's familiar with, while others offer their own brand of candy bars that people may not recognize. The in-house brands may be less expensive, but you may not sell as much because people don't know the brand's reputation. Consider this when making your selection.

With candy bar fundraising, your group will usually have to buy the candy bars first, then sell them. Some companies will allow you to order the products first, then pay for them after you've sold them. Which option you choose depends on a few things. Find out if buying the candy up front is less expensive than buying it on credit. The company may charge a fee to extend credit to your group. Also, make sure you understand what the shipping costs will be to avoid having it affect your profit margin. Either way, you'll need to make sure you have enough space to store all the candy until it's sold, preferably a cool, dry place to keep the candy bars intact.

To encourage your fundraising group to make more sales, create a contest for your sellers. Give each member of the group a goal to reach, whether it be number of candy bars sold, or a specific dollar amount in sales. Offer a small prize to the person or people who meet their goals. Be sure to give everyone a deadline by which to complete their sales.

If you want to go a little more upscale, you can hold a chocolate fundraiser instead. Rather than candy bars, this would involve selling boxes of gourmet chocolates or truffles. These are great because they can also be given as gifts. Be sure to mention the upcoming holidays when giving your sales pitch. Gourmet chocolate is most likely going to be more expensive than candy bars, so you may not need to sell as much to meet your fundraising goals. But it may require a bit more convincing, so be ready to explain to your potential customers what their purchase will be supporting.

Unlike a candy bar fundraiser, chocolate fundraising entails passing out brochures or catalogs, and allowing customers to choose the products they want to buy. The catalogs list prices, so donors will know up front how much they're spending. This also lets you know how much you're earning as you go. Donors will place their orders with you, paying at that time, and you will in turn send the orders and payments to the fundraising company you've chosen to work with. The company will ship the chocolate to you for distribution to your customers.

If, in either case, you end up with extra chocolate left over, don't worry. Valentine's Day is just around the corner.