Three Takeaways from Successful Band & Drum Corps Fundraising

We asked drum corp member, Kendall Drew, to share his secrets to band fundraising. Kendall was the top fundraiser for the Madison Scouts Drum Corps this year, raising $1,000 (check out his fundraising page). Here are his top three takeaways when it comes to band fundraising. Music to our ears!

Takeaway #1: Don’t be afraid to REACH OUT

The reason I did so well raising funds for Drum Corps this season is because PiggyBackr made it easy to reach out to many potential donors. From my family to friends, and co-workers to Drum Corps Alumni, the easy-to-use email list feature helped to me reach my very broad audience, which in turn helped me raise a thousand dollars. Also, Piggybackr offers suggestions about reaching out such as linking your fundraising page to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and how to encourage local businesses to support.

Takeaway #2: Stay persistent

Piggybackr makes is easy to keep in touch with those you have already reached out to. In any real life situation, being persistent (to a reasonable degree) pays off. If I wasn't persistent, we wouldn't have been able to pay for tuition, including the hefty marching band uniform cost. With just a few clicks, I could send email updates out to all the supporters I had collected. Many of my donations came in after I emailed potential donors the second time! But keep in mind to be professional, and don’t send too many updates. I think there is a fine line between being persistent and being annoying.

The Madison Scouts Team Fundraising Page

Takeaway #3: Be competitive with fundraising too!

I’m very competitive person, which made Piggybackr the perfect fundraising site for me. The site allowed all the Drum Corp members to be on the same “fundraising team.” Then Piggybackr ranks every member on a leaderboard based on the effort they put into the fundraiser. This served as a strong drive for me to garner as much money as I could. Before I knew it, I was at the top of the rankings. Piggybackr doesn’t just reward just by the money you raise, but also rewards you for the little things. You get effort points based on the quality of your fundraising page, the number of emails you send, and the business you reach out to. It was these little details that made my fundraiser great.

In Summary, Kendall says:

Overall, Piggybackr is a site that innovates reaching out, persistence, and competitiveness and thanks to this, I’ve raised a wonderful sum of cash that will not only benefit myself, but the entire organization I represent. Jimmy Dean once said, “I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination.” Piggybackr has acted as my sails, and without it I don’t think I would have come close to a thousand dollars of donations.

Wow, now you’ve got us blushing!

About Kendall Drew

Kendall is currently marching in his second year with the Madison Scouts Drum and Bugle Corps. He’s a 2012 graduate from Waxahachie High School, where he was an All-Area qualifying musician, as well as a member of the 2012 Texas Music Educators Association 4A Honor Band. Kendall is just finishing his freshman year at the University of Texas at Arlington, where he is studying under Ed Jones, the Principal Tubist of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. His professional affiliations include Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, and the Texas Music Educators Association. Kendall hopes to one day become a professional tuba player for either a wind band or symphony orchestra. When he’s not playing music, Kendall is drinking coffee, watching sitcoms, or spending time with friends.