Engaging Parents in Camp Fundraising: 6 Tips
Camp communities are made up of your staff, campers, and their parents alike. While your camp is a fun and enriching environment for campers, we can’t forget about the parents who make it possible. Remind parents they’re a large part of making your camp great by involving them in the fundraising process.
This guide will highlight six tips to engage parents in your camp fundraising:
Emphasize new camp opportunities
Make fundraising accessible
Host family events
Reach out during offseasons
Offer peer-to-peer discounts
Create practical merchandise
Still curious as to how parents can get involved in camp beyond filling out their child’s registration? Let’s dive in!
1. Emphasize new camp opportunities
Camp fundraisers can fall flat if your camper’s parents aren't interested in or engaged with your organization. Spark more interest in your camp by informing parents about the new learning opportunities at your camp.
Be sure you’re advertising your camp’s plans for a new facility you aim to create, whether it be a new ropes course or a pool. New facilities that provide new learning experiences for their campers can excite parents.
Specify how donations will contribute to the new programs when suggesting giving options to parents. Parents and campers will want to return year after year if you’re offering new, engaging experiences, so it’s important to demonstrate your camp’s growth in fundraising campaigns.
2. Make fundraising accessible
Parents may not always be the ones picking up or dropping off campers, so word-of-mouth could result in news about your fundraisers getting lost in translation.
Online fundraising can be just as lucrative, especially when parents are busy or don’t have the time or energy for an event. Try creating online event pages for parents to access in their own time, and send email or text message reminders to motivate them to view the page and donate.
If you open multiple channels of communication with parents, you’ll be more likely to reach them and stay at the top of their mind. Here are a few ways to stay in touch with parents:
Email newsletters are a great way to showcase what your campers are doing at camp and how your fundraiser could enhance facilities to improve their experience even more.
Text messages can remind busy parents to donate to your campaign.
Social media digital campaigns can motivate parent involvement with tactful prompts and exciting photos of their campers having fun.
Be sure that your fundraising requests are clear about goals and deadlines so people are motivated to donate. If you’re explicit about what you’re fundraising for, like a new facility, more counselors, or a larger space, this can excite and inspire parents to give for their children’s sake. Staying in touch with your campers’ parents is the best way to make them feel like a part of your camp family and initiate long-lasting donor relationships.
3. Host family events
Invite the whole family for a family day to showcase the incredible experiences you curate for their children. Frame these events as opportunities for them to spend time with their kids and learn something new.
You can charge a small fee for entrance or any extra activities they want to participate in. Have your counsellors teach families some new skills like rock climbing or kayaking to create a bonding atmosphere. This is sure to have campers begging their parents to return to camp, and parents will be excited to make lasting memories with their children.
Parents will be thrilled to spend time with their children, and participating in these family activities will show them how the fundraising events have benefits beyond raising money for the camp. Parents will have insight into their campers’ perspectives during the day and understand why the camp brings them so much joy, inspiring them to give for their children’s sake.
4. Reach out during the offseason
Be sure to reach out to your camp parents during the offseason to remind them of the year-round work you do to make your camp a special place for their campers. Send newsletters about how you're improving the facilities or the intensive hiring cycle.
Think of holidays when students and parents have breaks from school and work. These holidays could be the perfect time to partner with your local PTA for a fundraising day to meet new families and make connections with the local schools in your community. Parents who still have to work will be happy to have a safe place to send their children, and your relationship with the school can help direct parents toward your programs in the summer.
Don’t overthink the activities for these off-season days. Consider sending some of your counselors to work with the PTA to host an indoor camp day at the school or the reverse. If you’re looking for educational fundraisers, Read-A-Thon’s elementary school fundraiser guide has a few educational options, such as:
Field days or sports tournaments
Read-a-thons
Board game tournaments
Craft days
Partnering with a local school to host events during the school year allows you to reach new parents and families by building new connections in your community. Put on engaging events to intrigue families with a small taste of your camp’s experiences and get them excited for the summer camp season.
5. Offer peer-to-peer Discounts
Many parents are naturally inclined to share the products and services they love with their network of friends and family, especially when it comes to experiences that bring their children joy. To incentivize word-of-mouth marketing and reward the parents who spread the word about your camp, consider offering a registration discount for parents who recommend your camps to other families.
Registration fees are a tried-and true-method of camp fundraising, but a small discount can motivate your camp community to get out there and invite fresh faces. This can help expand your camp community and give parents the opportunity to support your camp through personal recommendations.
6. Sell practical merchandise
Adding branded, functional merchandise to your camp shop is a lucrative way to encourage parents to contribute. Making merchandise that campers and their parents will want to wear or use can encourage weekly sales throughout the summer.
You’ll want to sell items simple enough for everyday use, like:
Water bottles for campers to use at outdoor or adventure camps are a practical way to demonstrate camp spirit.
Stickers for water bottles, lunch boxes, and laptops are a trendy way to get your brand out there.
T-shirts show camp spirit and can become a collectible item if you have a unique theme every year.
Carabiner keychains are great for adventure camps that have a lot of rock climbing.
Framed group photos are an incredible memento that families can hang on the fridge or place on the mantel for years to come.
Although camp merchandise comes with some upfront costs, your camp will benefit from the parent and camper enthusiasm for your practical merchandise. To spark even more interest, try aligning your merchandise with activities in your camp program like hiking to drive home your brand identity and enthusiasm for the experiences your camp provides.
It can be difficult to cultivate long-lasting relationships with your camp community (and especially parents), but the effort will always be worth it in the end. Maintain open communication with tools like parent portals to stoke parent interest in your camp. Reaching out to parents and offering new activities to engage the entire family will help you form deeper connections and inspire more meaningful camp contributions.
