Failure to plan is planning to fail. It’s an old saying, but it holds true for just about any major project, including school fundraising. Now that spring is unfolding and summer vacation looms on the horizon, it’s understandable that next year’s fundraisers are not at the top of your list of priorities right now. You may have already signed a contract with a professional fundraising company for next fall’s fundraiser. Hidden away in a file folder somewhere, you may even have a list of other fundraising ideas that you’ll revisit sometime in the future. This is a start, but unfortunately it’s not enough. Fundraising experts and experienced PTA leaders say spring is an ideal time to develop a solid game plan for the following year’s fundraisers – and helps eliminate headaches down the road.

The latest research on school fundraising shows parent groups try a lot of different things to raise money. Eight out of 10 parent groups are collecting box tops and selling popular consumer items, such as gift wrap and cookie dough, each school year, according to an online poll of more than 300 parent groups. The research, conducted by the Association of Fund-Raising Distributors and Suppliers (AFRDS), also found that nearly half of all parent groups are collecting soup labels, running school carnivals and aligning themselves with well-known retailers for a share in profits. Other school-wide fundraisers include direct donations, restaurant family nights, raffles, auctions and “thons” (i.e., Read-a-Thon).

With so many fundraisers overlapping each other, school groups should have no problem raising all the money they need, right? Research suggests it’s just the opposite. According to the AFRDS survey, parent groups that conduct fewer school-wide fundraisers raise more money. Among parent groups that raise more than $15,000 through school fundraising events, the majority (54%) limited the number of school-wide fundraisers to no more than four.

“The more fundraisers you do, the less participation you get on every one,” said Ryan Cady, a fundraising professional in Florida. “Schools and communities would be better off if parent groups ran fewer fundraisers with better participation.”

As you begin to plan for next year, it’s important to take steps to prevent your PTA/PTO from getting stuck in the fundraising traffic jam and channel your energies toward projects that yield real results.