Popcorn
A popcorn fundraiser everybody says yes to.
Popcorn is the easy sell. Everyone eats it, nobody has to bake it, and it sits in the catalog next to cookie dough and sweet treats. Here is how a popcorn fundraiser runs with Brian and Giving Market.
A popcorn fundraiser is the one the teenagers will actually run. A band kid who will not knock on a door with cookie dough will text a popcorn link to twelve people. The office buys it. The grandparents buy it. It sells in September and it sells in February. With Brian running the sale and Giving Market behind the catalog, it costs nothing to start and takes two weeks.
Why popcorn works
Everyone wants it
No one has to be sold on popcorn. It is the snack supporters add to the order without thinking.
It sells in both catalogs
Popcorn is in the Giving Market fall catalog and the spring catalog, next to sweet treats, cookie dough and the gift items.
Teenagers will share it
Middle and high school programs do better with a product kids are not embarrassed to post. Popcorn is that product.
It goes anywhere
The online store ships gift items direct to supporters in any state. Program orders come to the school pre-sorted.
Who runs a popcorn fundraiser
Bands, choruses, cheer and dance squads, drama clubs and booster groups, because the kids will share the link. Whole schools and PTAs, because the catalog has something for every supporter. A 150-kid middle school band in Asheville sold $15,000 in an October sale this fall with the full catalog. A middle school in Reidsville with 830 students sold $26,000 in September. Both are on the case studies page.
How the two weeks run
- The call. Fifteen minutes with Brian. Your goal, your roster, your calendar.
- The catalog. Fall or spring. Popcorn, sweet treats, cookie dough and the gift items, all from Giving Market, a Booster company.
- The kickoff. Each family gets a store link and a paper form. Brian’s script, five minutes, VIP Duck collectibles on the table.
- The midpoint push. Day seven. Brian sends the message that gets the second half of the families to share.
- The finish. Day fourteen. Orders close, the prize program is tallied in the admin site, nobody counts by hand.
- Delivery. Program orders ship pre-sorted to the director, coach or office. Online gift orders ship straight to the supporter.
Popcorn next to cookie dough
Supporters who do not bake buy popcorn. Supporters who do bake buy both. The sale uses the whole catalog so every person who opens the link finds something. If a school wants no cookie dough at all, orders can be gift items only and the school never handles a box.
When to run it
Fall is the natural window, the first clean two weeks after Labor Day and before fall break. The popcorn arrives well ahead of the holidays. Spring works too, late January through March, ahead of testing and spring break, with the spring catalog. Brian steers programs away from December, when shipping is slow and families are busy. For band, chorus and cheer, the window goes between game weeks and competitions so the kickoff lands on a quiet Monday. Book the fall window before summer and the spring window by early January to get the two weeks you want.
Band, chorus and cheer programs can read their page at teams and groups. Whole schools and PTAs are on school fundraisers. The full step-by-step is on how it works, and programs in the Mountain West have their own page.
Questions people ask
Is popcorn in the current catalog?
Yes. Popcorn is in the Giving Market fall and spring catalogs alongside sweet treats, cookie dough, wrapping paper, candles, kitchen goods, tote bags and magazines. Brian sends the catalog the day you book a call.
Can we run a popcorn-only sale?
The sale uses the whole catalog, so supporters pick what they want. Popcorn is usually one of the first things they pick. If you want a sale with no cookie dough, orders can be gift items only.
How do supporters out of state order?
Through the online store. Each family gets a share link, the supporter orders from their phone and gift items ship direct to their door in any state.
What does it cost to start?
Nothing. Zero upfront cost and no minimum. Pick a two-week window and Brian builds the sale around it.
Ready to raise more this year?
Tell Brian about your school or team. He replies within one business day with a plan and a date.