Easy to play with straightforward rules and exciting in a social setting, bingo is one of the best fundraising ideas for charity events on a larger scale. Here’s how to host a successful bingo night that the community will love.
Planning the event
The secret to a successful event is proper planning so don’t overlook this step! Start as far in advance as possible of your intended date for the best chance of getting your perfect venue at the best price and gathering a good crowd.
As part of your planning process, you must investigate the rules you need to follow to hold a charity fundraising event in the UK and obtain the necessary licences. Equally, look at the health and safety requirements of your venue such as maximum capacity limits and accessibility requirements.
Promoting the night
There’s no point in hosting a charity event if no one knows about it! Raising a significant amount of awareness and funds relies on having a decent crowd, and that only comes from promoting the night.
Utilise organic marketing strategies which are an effective way to spread the message about local activities such as word-of-mouth recommendations and flyers in shop windows. Support this with social media pages where you can share event information and updates, answer questions and generate excitement with teasers.
Setting up the game
Ensure the event itself goes without a hitch by practising setting up and running the bingo game ahead of time. Gen up on the rules of traditional bingo and, if you want to up the fun factor, the classic Cockney rhyming slang names of the numbers. You could also integrate contemporary variations such as Deal or No Deal bingo for extra interest between standard rounds.
Whichever versions of the game you opt for, create cards in a matching format and theme and ensure you have a set of working daubers ready for people to mark off their numbers! You’ll also need a rotatable ball cage, microphone and a selection of prizes.
Managing the finances
As with any event, you must correctly track your costs and earnings before and during the night to ensure you not only stay in the black but make a profit which can be donated to your chosen charity.
Create a budget before you start with how much you have to spend set against your essential costs such as the venue, marketing materials, bingo equipment and refreshments. Any money left over can go towards decorations and prizes or straight into the donations pot. Local businesses are often happy to support you with funds or prizes at no charge, so utilise this lucrative avenue.
Decide in advance how donations will be taken and appoint one person to champion the collections. You should put another person in charge of ticket sales and so on. With everyone having just one focus, you will be able to keep better track of your earnings and ensure no funds disappear in the hectic atmosphere of the event.
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