It’s that time of year again – where winter blows in and leaves drifts behind that block driveways and cover cars If you live in an area where snow is frequent and deep enough to be a pain, you can set up an ongoing fundraiser.
The first step is to get a local home improvement store to donate shovels and ice scrapers. If they can also donate buttons, visors, or caps with their logo, these can be worn to bump up visibility and serve as advertising.
The second step is to assign someone the role of appointment setter. This person should either be willing to take calls at their home or to carry a cell phone and schedule appointments.
Start spreading the word that your group is offering snow removal services and post flyers or hand out brochures with the designated phone number. Let people know to watch the local weather, and when a storm is expected to call early and reserve a slot.
Each caller should let you know when they have to leave the house so you can schedule everyone in time to get them off to work or school. They can request just their drive to be cleared so they can get out, or for the front walk to be shoveled as well and even their car windshield scraped clear.
Make sure your team is ready to go and assign homes near their own if possible. Make sure each has a kit – shovel, identifying button or cap, and scraper. For large jobs, they can work in teams. This service is greatly in demand and can bring in a hefty fee for each house – a few good snowfals, and a considerable amount of money can be raised!
Pricing can range from $15-30 for driveways, plus $10 to $20 for walkways and $10 for scraping the car. An all inclusive package for $30-50 is not unreasonable, depending on the depth of the snow and square footage to be cleared.
If you manage to get everything done in time for everyone to get out of their drive on time, the word will spread – and you’ll have to get a few more people on the team to help for next time! This is a great winter fundraiser that helps out the community and brings in a nice sum for your next event or chosen cause. Just remember that everyone should gather for cocoa with marshmallows after every successfully cleared snowfall! (This is a nice fundraiser that even kids can pitch in on.)
