If your members, parents or donors wear clothes, watch t.v. or read books you have the beginning ingredients to a sweet recipe for a great year-round fundraiser.



How so?

By taking advantage of what's known as an affiliate program or in more common lingo - partnering.

How would you like to partner with the bohemoth Amazon.com? Blockbuster? Disney? or even the giant Wal-mart? Your organization would receive a commission or fee for every paying customer you sent their way. No products to deliver, cakes to bake or cars to wash.

It's easy to do, it's free, and is earning a lot of private individuals in the know a mountain of money.

Here's how it might work for you: You partner with Amazon.com by filling out a simple form and setting up an account where your checks will be sent. And then let's put a link up on your website to Amazon.com that is linked to your affiliate account.

Now what if you told your donors, church members or other friends of your cause that they could get great books, gifts, cd's and videos through your site and help your organization with your funding needs at the same time? Do you think you'd have any takers? I think you might have a lot!

Now Amazon.com may or may not be a match for you. But...the good news is there are literally thousands of affiliate programs, many of which are bound to fit your organization like a glove.

Maybe you would like to get involved with something to do with pets...you could partner with PetSmart or PetMeds. Would you like to do something related to kids?...lots of great programs, like Ident-A-Kid, to keep kids safe. Of course try to match your affiliate programs to interests that many of your donors share.

Here are a some places that will get your creative juices going. One of the biggest managers in the affiliate programs is Commission Junction, you can find them at www.cj.com, you will find hundreds of partnering opportunities from brand names you know and trust. Another great resource to checkout is www.clickbank.com, known as Clickbank, they specialize in electronic books and software with thousands of titles to choose from. Also many companies, such as Wal-mart manage their own affiliate program which means you can partner up directly from their site. It's great fun and can be highly profitable to look for the words "affiliate program" on a web page.

How much can you earn? Earnings vary widely with commission ranging from 2% to 75%. Some pay flat fees, for example some satellite companies pay up to $100 for giving away free installations of their system.

Now a word to the wise is play it safe. Stick with the companies you know. You will have better success at raising funds with well known and respected companies and you won't have to worry about your funds reaching your organization.

So the secret is out. Find a great partner, let your donors know they can get great products and services they were going to purchase anyway, and help a fantastic cause at the same time.


About the author:
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Article by Travis Sago a veteran fundraiser for several non-profits including The Special Olympics, Battered Women's Shelter and Arkansas Fraternal Order of Police. Contact Info: mailto:travis@myultimatefundraiser.com