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There are numerous ways that you and your sport club can fundraise to keep your club dues low. If you check with your recreational sports director, they should have a list of possible fundraising ideas that you can try from a simple carwash to alumni donations. Some of these will be better than others. Below are several of the most successful fundraising ideas that require minimal time and effort, yet yield the most money for your club.
• Free Money: Check with your rec-sports director, check with your USTA contacts, and with NIRSA. There are grants out there waiting to be given to you and your club!
• Sell T-Shirts or Water Bottles: Make a T-shirt or water bottle with your school’s emblem (check with university trademark rights before using) and club name on it. Have these for sale on your team’s website, at all matches, and at all practices. Parents and friends of players will buy them, along with local fans of tennis. To generate funds at the beginning of the year, raise the first month’s club dues slightly and give every member a T-shirt or water bottle. This also advertises for your club!
• Sponsorships: Draft a letter and hand deliver them to the owners/managers of local businesses. If you form a partnership with a business, you can promote them on your website, on the back of your T-shirt, on your water bottles, or on a team banner in your tennis. Click here for a sample letter asking for sponsorship.
• Alumni Donations: Find tennis-playing alumni to help fund your sport club. A nicely drafted letter with an invitation to watch a match or hit with your club would be nice. You could have space on your website to recognize them, too. Also, make sure to form contact lists for people who graduate from your club. In the future, they will be able to give back to the sport club that gave them so much!
• Other Donations: There are many people who would like to give you and your sport club tennis team money, you just have to find them. Parents of players, grandparents of players, friends of players, and other tennis players in the community are just a few examples. Be creative in how you ask for the donations. One idea is to recognize them on your website; have different levels of donations (under $25, $25-$50, $50 or more) and list people under their category of donation.
• Run a Tournament: You can run a tournament for those players on your campus that are not in your club, but still want to play under that format. This can raise money for your sport club, and will expose your club to other tennis players on your campus.
• Run a Tennis Marathon: Set up a mini-tennis court in a high traffic area on your campus. Have members of your sport club sign up for shifts to cover a 24-hour period. Make posters to advertise who you are, what you’re doing, and ask for donations for a specific cause (“Help send us to our Sectional/National tournament!”). This also exposes your sport club to other students on campus.
For even more tips on how to fundraise for your club tennis team check out our Fundraising Resource Guide.
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