If you’re organizing a non-profit or fundraising event, here’s a strategy that can significantly boost your fundraising: include a set number of raffle tickets with the ticket price. Here’s how it worked for a recent non-profit event I helped with and why it might work for you too.
This year, we decided to shake things up by including five raffle tickets with each entry ticket. With around 15 different raffle items on display, attendees were encouraged to look through each item and decide where to place their free tickets.
Strategy and Implementation Leveraging principles of neuromarketing and behavioral psychology, Lead Nerds proposed the following approach:
- Inclusion of Free Raffle Tickets
Each entry ticket included five complimentary raffle tickets. With 15 raffle items to choose from, this setup encouraged attendees to explore each item and consider where to place their tickets. - Social Proof and Strategic Raffle Placement
The raffle area was made highly visible and volunteers encouraged guests to browse and engage. This setup fostered a sense of social proof, where seeing others participate heightened each attendee’s likelihood of engaging in the raffle themselves. - Additional Ticket Sales to Boost Odds
By offering extra raffle tickets for sale, the strategy aimed to take advantage of the initial engagement, allowing attendees to increase their odds of winning by purchasing more tickets.
Results The impact of Lead Nerds’ strategy was significant:
- High Initial Engagement:
Attendees started participating in the raffle immediately upon receiving their entry tickets, creating a lively atmosphere around the raffle tables. This “raffle-first” approach increased attendee excitement and interest. - Boost in Additional Ticket Purchases:
With complimentary tickets already in hand, attendees were more inclined to purchase extra tickets to improve their odds for preferred items. This led to an average of two more ticket purchases per attendee compared to previous years, contributing to a 30% increase in raffle revenue. - Record Fundraising Totals:
This new strategy helped the non-profit achieve its highest fundraising total to date, with the raffle contributing a substantial portion of the increase. The event exceeded its fundraising target by 20%, setting a new benchmark for future events.
Behavioral Insights and Key Neuromarketing Triggers Lead Nerds’ strategy leveraged several key behavioral and neuromarketing principles:
- Loss Aversion:
Receiving free raffle tickets encouraged attendees to use them, triggering loss aversion. They felt they would “miss out” by not entering, which kept them engaged and led to additional ticket purchases. - Commitment Bias:
Once attendees placed initial tickets, they were more inclined to stay engaged and commit further to the raffle. - Social Proof and Herd Behavior:
By creating a visible and popular raffle area, Lead Nerds’ strategy amplified social proof, making it the norm for attendees to participate, which encouraged even more involvement. - The Zeigarnik Effect:
Limited free tickets combined with numerous raffle items created a sense of “incompletion.” This prompted attendees to buy extra tickets to enter more raffles, fulfilling their desire for completion. - Anchoring and Reciprocity:
Including free tickets set a perceived “baseline” value, making additional purchases feel more like small, incremental investments. This sense of goodwill fostered a desire to reciprocate by buying more tickets to support the cause.
