Direct-sale Products vs. Order Taker Fundraisers
Katherine, Editor - The JustFundraising Insider

Should you use direct-sale fundraising products or pre-sale brochures for your next fundraiser?

1. Fundraising with Direct Sale Products:
How it works - Your group orders an inventory of products; these products are distributed to your group members who sell the products directly to their supporters; and funds are collected at the point of sale.

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Pros
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*Requires only one contact with individual consumers.
*Program is shorter in length than Pre-Sale because there is no product to deliver and no returned goods to deal with.
*Usually a very low retail price per item results in an easy sale.

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Cons
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*Slight risk if you over-purchase.
*Less variety of products to offer.

Vs.

2. Fundraising with Pre-Sale (order taker) Brochures:
How It Works - Your group requests 1 brochure per fundraising participant. The participants show the brochure to potential supporters. The supporter selects a product from the brochure, which the participant records on the brochure order form. These order forms are then returned to your fundraising company, who fulfills the order and ships the products to your group. Your group members and volunteers deliver the products to their supporters. Funds can either be collected at the time of the selection or upon delivery.

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Pros
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*No guess work on how much to order, therefore no risk!
*Brochures offer a wide variety of products and range of prices.
*With this type of fundraiser, it's easy to include parents and adults in the fundraising efforts.

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Cons
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*More work and time since you must deliver products and often deal with a few returned goods.

About the Author

The JustFundraising team has 12 years experience in fundraising and has been providing fundraisers through the Internet for 6 years. To request your free Spring 2005 fundraising kit go to Free Spring 2005 Fundraising Kit or call toll free at 1-888-440-4114. Visit www.JustFundraising.com.