Most schools, whether they are public or private, need to raise funds at times. It might be to send a club on the trip of a lifetime or it could be to raise funds for school improvements that aren’t otherwise funded. Whatever the need, there are a number of ways to raise money for your school.
Selling school fundraising products is a tried and true way to raise funds for your school. You might sell candy, popcorn, magazines or custom apparel. Such products usually sell well, with 71% of parents saying they sold fundraising products to friends family and co-workers. School sports apparel has, in recent years, stood out as perhaps the best way for parents and students alike to raise money for school. This is in part because most school fundraisers sell clothes that can be categorized as school spirit clothing; and school spirit clothing is much easier to sell to students and parents alike than things that they could buy elsewhere. Of course, selling school spirit clothing benefits schools in the long term in ways that aren’t just directly monetary. Below, we’ll explore some of the reasons why spirit wear fundraisers are so successful, standing out in sea of fundraising options.
1. Everyone Wears T-Shirts
While it’s true that not everyone goes out of their way to buy spirit wear shirts on a regular basis, everyone needs t-shirts at some point or another. Conversely, the audience for things like candy and magazines isn’t as broad. For that matter, people can, as we mentioned above, buy candy and magazines almost anywhere — custom school spirit clothing often can’t be bought from any vendor outside of the school. If a buyer really cares about owning school spirit wear, they’ll jump at the chance to buy clothes while at the same time helping the school they support. Conversely, many people buy school spirit wear because they’re not only donating to their school, but getting something that they’ll actually use and need. It’s estimated that 62% of Americans own over 10 t-shirts — that equals roughly 1.5 billion t-shirts across the nation. People may not end up treating their spirit wear care; they could just use the shirts to sleep in or work out in. But that doesn’t really matter. What matters is that they buy them in the first place, and it’s much easier to sell people on a product they’ll actually use than one they don’t really need and could buy elsewhere at a later time.
2. It Really Does Raise School Spirit
As cheesy as it may sound, school spirit wear does tend to boost the morale of students. According to surveys, 89% of principals believe that it’s important to build spirit at their schools, and that spirit is tied to student achievement. Students are more likely to feel motivated and work for good grades if they feel like they’re a part of something special. School spirit can give kids who otherwise would feel left out a sense of unity. A great way of making them feel that spirit is by promoting school spirit through clothing. While not as restrictive as a uniform, spirit wear does tend to bring students together in a visual way. For that matter, if students can actually wear the clothes that they’re selling, it will be easier for them to get the word out about their fundraiser and sell to others. School spirit wear is, in a way, its own best advertisement — and it clearly has positive benefits that don’t just relate to money.
3. Spirit Wear Provides Options
The great thing about spirit wear is that it can be customized depending on the needs of the fundraising school. Whereas candy bars and popcorn can only vary in so many ways, schools can decide whether to order sweatshirts or t-shirts, shorts or sweatpants, and so on. They can choose from different colors, and ensure that they have a size range available to satisfy a wider base. It’s another way in which spirit wear broadens a fundraiser’s audience, and therefore raises more money.
