You gotta love the people in charge of fundraising for breast cancer research. They’ve been coming up with some great ideas to get people talking about the cause and wanting to raise money for it.

Just think about all the sports teams you’ve seen in the past couple of years wearing pink versions of their uniforms. This has been at all levels- high school, college, and in the professional leagues. It’s almost not a big deal to see this anymore. Their drive to increase awareness and revenue through donations has been incredibly successful and culturally penetrating. Everyone knows pink is the color of breast cancer research now.

This, in and of itself, is a remarkable story that other non-profits can learn from. No matter the size of the organization, an effort to apply a “brand awareness” campaign to an overall fundraising effort is a marketing necessity. And, if you can challenge some social norm, like “jocks don’t wear pink” and add a little shock value, all the better, right?

But, now, I really have to say that I’m impressed. The Keep a Breast Foundation has been raising money by selling bracelets that say “I love boobies” on it. This follows the “Save the Tatas” campaign by the foundation of the same name. Of course, the message is a little taboo and it gets people talking about the cause. The irreverence of the slogan makes the organization seem edgy and an attractive place to donate money. Who wouldn’t want to proclaim to the world that he or she loves the boobies?

But, the latest twist to this story is true genius. I don’t want to imply that the Keep a Breast Foundation meant for this to happen, but it’s surely good news for them. According to a report in the Time & Transcript online, parents at a New Brunswick (Canada) school

“…received an automated phone call from the principal Janet Miller saying students were not to wear the plastic fundraising bracelets sold by the U.S.-based Keep A Breast foundation emblazoned with the slogan “I Love Boobies” because they were a “distraction.”

As a result, people started choosing sides in this debate and passions have been inflamed. Everybody in town is talking about the bracelets. And the media is providing free advertising and promotion about the uproar.

As they say, there’s no such thing as bad publicity, and in this case, that’s right on. As long as people are talking about the bracelets, people are buying the bracelets, and money is being raised for research.

And, when you tell people, especially young people, that they can’t do something, like wear the “I love boobies” bracelets to school, that’s all they want to do. Brilliant.

Non-profits are always trying to find creative and inexpensive ways to market their organizations more effectively. Sometimes, you are aiming to promote a specific event, like a fundraiser or a membership drive, while in other situations, you are aiming a bit broader, and just hope to get your organization’s name out there in a positive fashion.

After all, you never know who may see your banner somewhere and be hit with the sudden urge to make an impromptu donation. It’s happened to me more than once.

While there are many traditional means to advertise, such as print, radio, and TV spots, these can really impact the bottom line in a negative way. So, it makes sense, then, to look for outlets that will really catch people’s attention, but do so without breaking the bank.

One avenue that I liked to explore in my days of non-profit managing was the “large community event”. First of all, these events were great because they came with a built-in audience. I didn’t have to spend any money or do any work in order to get these people together.

Second, with large community events, people are already in a good mood. They are pre-disposed to being open to what they see and hear. Not many people go to a parade or concert if they are in a lousy mood to begin with.

Third, by being a presence at these kinds of events, you start to develop a good reputation in your city/town for being “involved”. Even though you are technically helping your organization, you still are perceived as being a “team player”.

Fourth, the cost to participate in these large community events is usually pretty cheap. I’m sure there are exceptions to this, however, in my small town, the sponsoring organizations of the events usually wanted to encourage other non-profits to be involved, if only because it made the event look “fuller” and more vital. In some ways, we were doing them a favor by being there. So, I never found myself spending too much of the company money at these events.

Last, I always found that large community events were great opportunities for me to network with other non-profits in the area. In a small town, you’re bound to bump into your peers over and over again. I often deepened my connections with other non-profit leaders and gained valuable information, such as dates of their upcoming fundraisers, which helped me plan my own fundraising calendar.

Here Are a Few Great Ideas I’ve Seen Used Effectively by Nonprofits:

1.Goodie Bags

Provide the actual bags that are used for people to collect things like brochures, free-bee gifts, or even something like eggs at an Easter Egg hunt. These kind of events always draws huge crowds of young families- a highly desirable demographic. There is a very informative article in the Step by Step archives that talks about cloth grocery bags, which are even more permanent than the plastic bags, and they are much better environmentally, as well. With your logo and website information printed on the bags, this makes a long-lasting impression.

2. Bottled Water

Pass out free bottled waters with personalized labels during community events like parades or carnivals. Yes, there’s a little cost up front, but on a hot day, you’ll get all sorts of parade-goers loving you!

3. End of School Year Party

There is a local theater group in my community that has turned the last day of school, which is usually a half-day, into a huge party under our town pavilion. A local pizzeria and ice cream shop donate pizza and ice cream for the day and the non-profit sells both scoops and slices for 50 cents each. This has become an excellent tradition with hundreds of kids and adults in attendance.

4. Concerts/Festivals

For the past four years, there has been a large Christian music festival in my community. The concerts draw thousands of people each summer. Since so many of the attendees were from out of town, this wasn’t exactly the event where I would push student enrollment at the Christian School I was in charge of. However, I still saw the value in making our name and presence known. So the concert organizers allowed us to be the only sponsor of the children’s play area at the festival. We got to put up a huge sign right at the entrance, and we were very successful in raising our profile.

5. Service Projects

Get heavily involved in a city-wide clean-up day to help reclaim a park or an abandoned lot. If there isn’t such an event, create one and the exposure will be terrific. The local newspaper will give you all sorts of free publicity.

6. Red Cross Blood Drive

Offer to host a Red Cross blood drive at your facility, if feasible. It will get people into your building and asking questions about you, as well as doing something good.

7. Own a Holiday

Take a holiday that isn’t being celebrated widely in your community and create a huge celebration. When I was running a Christian elementary school, our town’s National Day of Prayer had a poor turn-out. As a school, we offered to take the day over and really turned it into a special event with hundreds of people aware of what we were doing.

Conclusion

As you can see, none of these ideas is targeted for a specific event like a fundraiser or for registration. Rather, these events are designed to just make people aware that your organization is out there in the community- doing good and being good.

If you are able to make a good impression with people who are not involved directly with your group, it is possible that they may respond favorably to you in a future fundraising activity. You never know how or when good will toward your group will occur. You just have to do all you can to make people aware of who you are and what your mission is.