A cornhole fundraiser is a fun way to bring in more money for your mission. This timeless game consisting of two boards and bean bags is the perfect add-on to your fundraising event – but it also has great stand-alone appeal. In this article, we’ll walk you through how to run a successful cornhole fundraiser and raise more money.
Many people know the cornhole game – also known simply as ‘bags – from parties, bars, tailgates, or community events. Cornhole tournament fundraisers take these games to the next level and let individuals or teams compete in single-elimination, double-elimination, or round-robin formats. In this article, we’ll share how cornhole tournaments work, how to plan a tournament, and how to use this event to raise more funds for your nonprofit.
A cornhole tournament is a competition where individuals or teams play cornhole or bean bag toss. People sign up to play and, as they win individual games, they rise in the competition to win the tournament. Cornhole tournaments can be single-elimination, double-elimination, round-robin, or other competition types.
For other sporty fundraising ideas, check out our blogs on dodgeball and golf tournament fundraisers!
Cornhole tournament rules differ depending on which type you choose, but aspects like scoring, distance between platforms, foul lines, and how to play the game will stay the same. The game itself is simple. Players or teams take turns tossing the bean bags to the platforms. Scoring is typically as follows –
American Cornhole Association (ACA) has the official game rules.
If you’re looking for a way to educate donors about volunteer opportunities or introduce a new volunteer program, a cornhole fundraiser can be an excellent option.
A cornhole tournament is a unique fundraising event because it doesn’t limit your organization to specific ages, interests, or abilities to give. Nonprofits can hold a cornhole fundraiser as its own fundraiser or as part of a larger event. This means nonprofits can cater to a specific group of individuals or use the competition to encourage more event participation. Depending on your organization, either option can help you raise more money.
Iron Leg does this with their Car Show. They’ve found a way to excite children and adults with activities like:
And more!
They also used Donorbox Events to sell tickets to their tournament. Donorbox Events helps you streamline the ticket process with automated ticket delivery. Plus, create unlimited ticket tiers and set ticket limits and deadlines so you know exactly how many people will attend your cornhole tournament fundraiser.
Competitions are an excellent way to encourage interaction. Cornhole fundraisers can be fun for all ages. By encouraging people to have fun and connect with each other on various levels, you build a community that excites people to join and learn more. Your nonprofit can turn your cornhole fundraiser into an initial event to start volunteer or membership groups.
Pro tip: Entice players and attendees at your event to learn more about volunteer opportunities at your nonprofit by including the following –
A cornhole fundraiser can be a larger event or a way for individual supporters to raise funds and spread the word about your organization. The popularity of cornhole games means many people have the supplies in their garages. Supporters can invite their friends to play, make or purchase food and drinks, and share a video from your nonprofit.
Planning a cornhole fundraiser will include several steps from finding your team to deciding the details of your event.
Every event needs an event committee. Before you start planning this fundraiser, you should find a few passionate volunteers to help run this event. Assign people tasks and responsibilities from the start.
Pro tip: A cornhole fundraiser can be an excellent fundraiser for young professional volunteer groups. Give each group member a role and let them take charge of the outcomes. You can use this event to see which member stands out and determine who shows leadership abilities and can be trained to become board members.
Cornhole fundraisers can help your nonprofit raise funds, so it’s important to create and follow a budget to ensure you come out ahead.
Cornhole fundraisers are competitions. Nonprofits can raise money in a few different ways with this event, but a significant part of your revenue will be registration or event tickets. Your nonprofit can charge those who want to play with individual registration and group registration costs. The average fee for a cornhole fundraiser is $20 for an individual or $40 for a two-person team.
Donorbox Events has powerful features to help you make the most revenue possible with your cornhole fundraiser. Give ticket purchasers the option of adding an additional donation on top of ticket sales to boost the success of your event. Also, showcase the tax-deductible amount for each ticket tier to encourage purchasing higher tier tickets. Plus, collect vital donor information through your event form to build relationships after your fundraiser.
Other revenue options for your cornhole fundraiser include audience tickets, raffles, silent auctions, and selling refreshments.
Your event expenses will vary depending on how extensive an event you hope to create.
Your largest expenses for your cornhole fundraiser will be renting space and cornhole sets and paying for refreshments. This is where event sponsorships can significantly help you cut your costs, meaning more money for your organization! More on this later.
Typically, a cornhole tournament fundraiser works best during the summer and fall. Depending on your location, weather can be an appeal or deterrent on when to hold this type of event. Another thing you must keep in mind is where it fits in your nonprofit fundraising calendar. A cornhole fundraiser is an excellent event to hold during a slow time in your calendar.
Pro tip: A cornhole tournament is a great add-on event to a fall festival. Check out this article for more fall festival ideas.
The best part of running a cornhole fundraiser is that you can host it anywhere. If your organization wants to save money, you can hold your event outside at a park, beach, parking lot, your school’s campus, or in a supporter’s backyard.
If you want to ensure that weather is not an issue, you can rent space in any of the following venues:
Before you promote your event, you must choose which tournament type you’ll hold and what winners will receive. As we mentioned before, you can choose single-elimination, double-elimination, or round-robin.
Prizes for the winners of your cornhole tournament should be attractive and related to your mission. For example, the first-place team could win dinner with your Executive Director at a nice restaurant, while the third-place team wins a bundle of swag from your organization.
A great way to cut down your event budget is to find corporate sponsors to fund significant parts of your cornhole fundraiser. Sponsors can provide food, drinks, supplies, funds, and more in exchange for name/brand recognition during your event.
Pro tip: Cornhole fundraisers give corporations two unique sponsorship opportunities. If this is your nonprofit’s first cornhole fundraiser, and you expect to continue to hold it, you’ll need equipment to play the game. Nonprofits can encourage potential sponsors to purchase the boards and add their names and logos or purchase them yourself and let companies sponsor a hole. Your nonprofit can repaint the boards with different sponsors’ names and logos every year.
Now on to the most important part: selling tickets to your cornhole fundraiser.
You can create and customize an online registration form for your cornhole fundraiser with Donorbox Events. Create an event ticketing form and sell tournament registration and audience tickets.
Donorbox Events has several features to help nonprofits raise funds and form stronger donor relationships, including:
It’s easy to create an attractive, branded events page with all the necessary information about your cornhole fundraiser. Check out how Less Leg More Heart built a simple event page that gives supporters more information and lets them sign up for its Cornhole Concert Event.
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Advertisements and marketing are essential for any event. You can promote your cornhole fundraiser in several ways, including –
Pro tip: Use QR codes to quickly connect people with your events page. A free QR code is automatically generated for each event you launch on Donorbox Events, so all you have to do is download and add the code to your materials!
On the morning of your event, set up the field or floor with enough space for players, referees, audience members, and sponsor booths. You should already know how many teams will be playing before your event to make things easier. You’ll also want to set up your brackets so players and audience members can track who is playing and when.
Once players start arriving, you’ll want to share the following details:
Now that the games have begun, you’ll want to keep them moving to keep your audience interested. Make sure someone is playing at all times. You can let people walk around to watch the games and regularly announce team standings. You may also want to move the platforms out of the way once a winner is chosen to add an extra level of excitement for the crowd.
Don’t forget to show your appreciation to all your event players, attendees, and donors. Send acknowledgments within 48 hours and make sure to invite them to other upcoming events or send more information about volunteer opportunities.
Looking for more event planning tips? Check out these nine simple event planning steps with a free, downloadable checklist!
Cornhole tournament fundraisers can be a lot of fun, but there are also a few things you can do to boost your fundraising.
Players and audience members will spend a lot of time wandering your event. It’s crucial to give them something to do while they wait for games to begin. One of the easiest things to include is a donation kiosk. The Donorbox Live™ Kiosk app lets nonprofits turn any tablet into a kiosk where event attendees can donate with a card, smartphone, or smartwatch!
You can choose to either set up a stationary kiosk or have staff and volunteers roving with the crowd to collect donations.
Cornhole fundraising is an excellent opportunity to raise money with peer-to-peer fundraising. Players can set up a fundraising page after they register and contact friends and family to pledge on their behalf. During the event, players can update their donors on how they’re doing. Sponsors of your event can encourage their employees to participate by sponsoring a company team and creating team fundraising challenges.
Donorbox Peer-to-Peer allows you to quickly and easily invite your cornhole fundraiser players to your campaign via email. Then they create their own fundraising pages with their personalized fundraising story and share it with their network. Any donations they collect automatically flow to your Donorbox account. To learn more, check out this guide to peer-to-peer.
Raffles are another excellent way to raise more money during your cornhole fundraiser. Your nonprofit can sell 50/50 raffle tickets and give the winner half the pot or solicit in-kind gifts from event sponsors and other companies that appeal to event attendees.
Pro tip: Be sure to reach out to your local government to learn more about municipality raffle fees and restrictions.
Invite vendors to sell food and beverages to players and their guests. You can collect a vendor fee and allow them to set up a table or invite only a few to partner with your organization. Vendors should be willing to contribute a portion of their sales to your nonprofit fundraising.
Cornhole fundraisers can be family-friendly events, but if you want parents to play in the tournament, you’ll need to keep their children busy. A Kid’s Corner lets parents drop their children in a safe and fun location while they play. Your organization can offer this service for free or charge a small entrance fee.
Cornhole tournament fundraisers offer an inclusive, affordable, and versatile way to raise funds for your nonprofit. You can maximize your cornhole fundraiser’s success with meticulous planning and creative fundraising ideas. Gather your bean bags, set up your boards, and let the cornhole tournament begin!
Donorbox has you covered with the tools and features you need to raise more money during your cornhole fundraiser. Sell event tickets, collect more online and in-person donations, and utilize peer-to-peer to expand your network and bring in more funds to support your important work. Sign up today and launch your first campaign in under fifteen minutes!
For more unique fundraising ideas, check out the rest of our Nonprofit Blog. Subscribe to our newsletter for a curated selection of blogs delivered straight to your inbox every month.
Kristine Ensor is a freelance writer with over a decade of experience working with local and international nonprofits. As a nonprofit professional she has specialized in fundraising, marketing, event planning, volunteer management, and board development.
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Kristine Ensor