5 IlliniThon Donation Tips

The overarching goal of IlliniThon is to raise money for the Children’s Miracle Networks and our incredible miracle children. IlliniThon specifically raises money for St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, Illinois and the children at that hospital. Each dancer and leadership team member of IlliniThon takes it upon themselves to raise as much money as possible by the time of the big event in April. While there are many ways to raise money, here are some tips on what has proven to be a successful way to fundraise.

1. Emails through donor drive

On donor drive, dancers have the opportunity to send emails asking for donations. A premade message is provided, however making your emails more personal tends to be more successful. Included in these emails is the direct link to donor drive, making it easy for relatives and friends to know exactly where to go to donate money.

2. Create a change jar for donations

Whenever you end up with loose change after a purchase, throw it in a jar to donate when it’s full or when it gets closer to the event. This is an easy way to effortlessly raise money. You can look for change also in your house, couch, or even on the ground throughout campus.

3. Canning

Canning is offered each Thursday from 11pm-1am on campus. This is a great way to help reach your fundraising goal as you and a partner get to split the money raised from canning and it will directly go onto your donor drive. This is also a great way to increase awareness about IlliniThon on campus.

4. Bake Goods in Exchange for Donations

One way that has shown to work to receive donations is to offer to baked goods for each donation made. This could be as simple as baking cookies for someone who donates. This would be not only fun but can raise a lot of money as people are often extremely interested in food.

5. Facebook Posts

Facebook posts are an easy way to raise money, as anyone who is friends with you can see your posts and will have direct access to the link to your donor drive. Another way to increase donations further is to directly message people on Facebook asking for donations. This is also a great way to encourage others to sign up for IlliniThon and get the word out on exactly what we do. You can also do fun challenges like “for every $5 donation I will post an embarrassing picture of myself” or something of that nature.