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Casino Fundraisers

The purpose of these notes is to serve as a guide to anyone planning a casino party fundraiser event. There are certain points listed that might not be applicable to your event. However, we have attempted to address the typical scenarios an organizer will likely encounter.

Here are 7 EASY STEPS for the success of your fundraiser / charity event

Our print team can provide customized printed flyers for your event.

Generally when asked the question, “How much money would you like to raise at this event?” most hosts realize that they haven’t given it enough thought. Having a realistic goal of how much money you would like to raise for the casino party fundraiser is the key starting point. It should determine the price of your entrance fee and the limit of your expenses.

 

Decide how much money you would like to make from this event.
Draft a statement of your proposed Revenue and Expenses.

Obviously the key is to maximize your revenue and minimize your expenses. As fundamental as this concept is, most organizations disregard it when running one of these events.

Revenue for a casino fundraiser will typically take the form of one, some, or all of the following:

–   Ticket sales
–   Table sponsorship
–   Drink sales
–   Food
–   Auctions
–   Additional script purchases

 

Ticket Sales:
Delegate the task of ticket sales to more than one person. It is far easier for 20 people to each sell 10 tickets than it is for 1 person to sell 200 tickets. Hold each of these 20 people responsible for the sale of their allotment of tickets.
Bottom Line: This is usually your primary source of revenue and the financial success of your event depends on meeting your goal of tickets sold.

 

Table Sponsorship:
Find at least one table sponsor for each casino table being used and the sponsored amount should generally at least cover the table cost. Encourage your sponsors to provide “gag” gifts that promote their business to be distributed at “their” table. For example – a blackjack table sponsored by a dentist could give away a free toothbrush (with the sponsor’s name imprinted) for each blackjack that is dealt. Or, the dealer could be dressed in the sponsor uniform. Make your sponsors feel as though they are getting value for their donation and not only are they more likely to attend the event, getting a similar sponsorship the next year
will be much easier.

Bottom Line: Table sponsorship should cover at least the entire rental cost of the casino equipment and staff.

 

Drink Sales:
This will vary depending on the “upscaleness” of your casino party fundraiser. Ticket prices and what people are getting for their money will generally determine whether guest’s drinks are included in the ticket price or if they need to pay for them. Typically, the more expensive the entrance fees the less likely you are to charge additional for drinks. On “drink inclusive” events a limited bar (beer, wine, soda) is suggested to curb costs. On other events entrance fee usually includes two “drinks tickets” which are typically redeemed at a rate of one ticket
for a soft drink and two tickets for wine or beer. Additional drinks require the purchase of more drink tickets.
Bottom Line: Drinks can vary between being a good source of revenue to being a very large expense. Manage your bar wisely.

 

Food:
This follows a similar format to your drinks.
Bottom Line: Don’t leave people feeling “short changed” because of poor quality or insufficient food. However, don’t spend all your money on providing a spectacular meal because that is not the focus of this type of evening.

 

Silent Auction:
These are often incorporated into a casino evening and I offer the following advantage/disadvantage thoughts on the inclusion of a silent auction:
Advantages:
Opportunity to raise more money

Disadvantages:
Requires additional sponsors to donate auction items
Interrupts flow of casino evening and takes people away from tables
Much more organization and coordinating involved
Guest often feel “hit-up” two or three times in one evening
Bottom Line: Silent auctions are often the backbone of revenues generated at fundraising parties. However, they do require a lot of time and effort to coordinate successfully. Delegate at least one person whose sole responsibility is to manage the silent auction of the event.

 

Live Auction:
Live auctions can generate a tremendous amount of revenue for the event, if done correctly. There are several key ingredients to a successful live auction. Maintain a captive audience – shut down all other activity during this time Shorter is better – your live auction should run no more than 30-40 minutes
Less is more – have only a few; generally less than 10 – high ticket items for auction. Use a dynamic auctioneer.

Bottom Line: Keep the live auction short and it can be very, very sweet.

 

Additional Script:
As part of their entrance fee guests are usually given an initial “stake” of script or funny money. If they lose this initial stake they should have the option of acquiring more money for a token “donation.” This is an additional source of revenue though generally not to the extent that hosts expect it to be. Primarily because guests, for the most part, gamble conservatively. You want to give your guests a sense of having received value for their entrance ticket so be sure to include enough script money in their package. We suggest a  $100 script. Anything less and guest might feel a little “short changed”, anything more and you will reduce your chances of having additional script purchases.  Make the additional “donation” an amount that is a round number and covered by a single bill ($5, $10, $20,$50 etc.).
Bottom Line: Keep the “donation” to an amount that encourages people to get more script rather than setting it too high and not having anyone buy in again.

Again, the fundamental rule regarding expenses is to keep them to a minimum without compromising your event.

Typical expenses incurred hosting a casino event:
–    Facility costs

–    Advertising
–    Decorations and props
–    Casino equipment rental and dealers
–    Beverage costs
–    Food costs
–    Insurance
–    Security
–    Clean Up

 

Facility Costs:
Invariably, free is the key word here. Attempt to secure a facility at no cost to your event. There are generally several organizations that are open to making their facility available at little or no charge.

 

Advertising:

Today social media is a common way in advertising an event.   A more effective way is to communicate directly with people. And when you can hand them a physical print out of the event and information, this will make it easier for people to remember.   Our print team can provide customized printed flyers for your event.

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR CUSTOMIZED FLYERS

 

Decorations and Props:
Often balloons and streamers or ribbon will suffice when decorating the event facility. Always weigh up the cost of any props you are considering using. People are typically not at your event for the decorations. Solicit donations if possible however, prioritize a table sponsorship donation ahead of a prop donation almost every time.

Casino Equipment Rental:
Try to provide as accurate a head count as possible so the appropriate amount of equipment is supplied. Too much equipment on hand results in a bigger expense and having too few tables to accommodate your guests is one of the surest ways to spoil your event.

 

Beverage Costs:
Arrange with your beverage supplier to be able to return all unopened bottles. This way
you only have to pay for the beverages you have sold.

 

Insurance:
Some facilities might require a one-night insurance coverage policy for your event,
especially if you are not being charged for the venue.

 

Security:
The same applies to security and parking. This will vary with different locations and
organizations. Be aware of this possible cost when selecting a location.

 

Clean Up:
Designate a team of volunteers to take care of the facility cleaning.

 

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Admission

 

Ask the following questions:

How much money do you want to make? = NET PROFIT
How many tickets can you sell for this event? = TICKETS
What is the total of all expenses? = EXPENSES
What is the total of my net profit plus all my expenses? = GROSS

NET PROFIT + EXPENSES = GROSS
GROSS / TICKETS = TICKET PRICE

 

Example:
We wish to raise $3500 from our event
Our intention is to sell 200 tickets
Our total expenses are $1500
$3500 + $1500 = $5000 (Gross)
$5000 / 200 tickets = $ 25 per ticket

 

What then needs to be determined is if this price is appropriate for what you intend to provide your guests and will your market support the sale of your proposed quantity of tickets at this price. Remember that you might even be under charging your guests!

By selling the proposed number of tickets and following the guidelines above you will always realize at-least your intended net profit and in most cases a higher amount. However, if you don’t sell your intended number of tickets or if your expenses are higher than budgeted; your net profit is adversely effected in both cases.

Call us today and one of our representatives will help assist you setting up your casino fundraiser with no cost sponsorship.

 

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When organizing an event, you are confronted by many decisions. However, choosing a venue is the one decision that will have the largest impact on your event. Critical planning information, such as the date for the event, is dependent on the venue you select. Understandably, making this choice can be a bit intimidating as it can be hard to know what to look for when selecting a venue.

 

Before you begin your search, there are a few things you’ll want to have a strong understanding of:

–   Budget

–   Number of attendees

–   Type of event (formal, high-tech, etc.)

 

Once you have an idea of these three things, you can begin your search for a venue. Having the venue booked at least six months in advance will ensure that you have the date of your event set in stone. This date will inform the timeline and milestones you’ll need to work with until your event happens. Additionally, this will give you ample time to market your event. And make sure to contact the area’s local Convention & Visitor’s Bureau to inquire about venues that best suit your needs.

 

When you’re ready to search for the perfect venue, consider the following 10 important factors:

 

1. Cost

As a cost-conscious organizer, you may want to keep the venue cost down to allow more room in your budget for food and beverages and entertainment. Being flexible on the date can be a great negotiating tool, as certain days of the week tend to cost less.

 

2. Ambiance

Pay special attention to the existing decor inside the venue. What style is the architecture and what does the building’s interior convey? If you’re holding a gala, you’ll likely need different venue accommodations than you would for an expo. The less the ambiance matches the desired feeling of your event (upscale, high tech, etc.) the more decorating you’ll need to do to make up for it.

 

3. Services and Amenities

In addition to the appearance of the site, it is also important to take into consideration the services and amenities that the venue offers. Consider the following:

• Does the venue have a kitchen and can it provide catering to your event? If so, often a venue will waive the facility fee and only charge a down payment along with the cost of food for each attendee. Other venues may not have kitchens. Those venues without kitchen facilities may have a partnership with a food provider that you’re required to use, or you may be free to bring in your own vendors. Many venues have an exclusive relationship with certain vendors, typically food vendors. This can be great if the venue has partnered with a fantastic vendor. If not, it can create a huge headache, and negatively impact the experience of your attendees. If you can’t book a venue that serves food your attendees will enjoy, it would be better to select a venue that allows you to bring in outside food vendors.
• Does it have tables, chairs and linens you can use? If a venue has these items, you can save a great deal of money and effort by using what they have, assuming it matches your theme and ambiance.
• Does it have a setup/clean up crew? If you’ve found a venue which provides a setup and clean up crew, rejoice! This isn’t always the case. If these services aren’t available you’ll need to build your event team.
• Does it have AV capabilities? Some venues have a built in audio-visual equipment for you to use, and others will require you to bring that in yourself.

 

4. Location

A convenient location means different things for different events. For an event with attendees within a limited geographic range, a venue within a reasonable distance from most attendees’ homes or places of work may make sense. However, if many attendees will be traveling from out of town, hosting the event at a venue near the airport or their hotels will be beneficial. Better still, if attendees are being housed at a single location, hosting the event at that hotel mitigates the need for valet parking and the chance that attendees will be late due to getting lost.

 

5. Capacity and Minimums

• What’s the capacity? If you’ve followed our advice, you already know how many attendees to expect. You’ll need to know the room capacity of the venues for a few reasons. First, for general and practical reasons, 500 people can’t comfortably fit into a room with a 250-person capacity. And second, there are fire and safety codes that the venue has to abide by.
• What are the F&B Minimums? If your venue offers food and/or beverages, find out what the food and beverage minimums, also known as F&B minimums, are and get this information in writing. If you have past attendance records for this event, ensure that those records are in line with the minimums. You may have plans to attract an even larger audience this year, but you also want to make sure that your bases are covered in case attendance expectations are not met.

 

6. Parking

Does the venue have a parking lot or valet parking? A venue with a parking lot is what dreams are made of. If that’s not the case, are there parking lots nearby which attendees can access and use? If there is no parking available, you’re not completely out of luck as you have a few alternatives:

• You can rent out or reserve nearby parking lots for your attendees and either include the cost in the ticket prices, or have attendees pay when they park.
• You could offer valet parking for the event, even if the venue doesn’t. Providing a valet may be essential if the event is an upscale event such as a gala.

 

7. Layout

Even though you’ll be finding your venue early in the event planning process, you’ll still want to have a rough idea of what types of activities you’ll be including, the amenities you’ll require, and the needs of your team and the attendees.

While narrowing down your selection, get an illustrated floor plan of each venue, and walk through your favorites at least once, making note of important things such as where the outlets are and where AV equipment is or can be located.

The layout and floor plan will greatly affect a few different aspects of your event:

• Flow of traffic. Think about the flow of traffic through your event. The kind of flow you’ll want will be different for each event. What areas will be high traffic at the event? Registration? The auditorium doors? Keep this in mind when choosing your venue, realizing that how you setup the tables and decor will greatly affect this as well.
• Event activities. If you want to have keynote speakers at your event, you’ll either need a stage, or a spot to place a rented stage. Will you need a demo area? Will there be a bar?

 

8. Accessibility

Accessibility refers to the possibility that everyone, especially those with special needs, can access the building and its amenities. Before you can answer this question, you’ll need to understand who your attendees are and what their needs are. You’ll probably know whether there will be children at your venue, but you may not know if there will be individuals with other special needs. In this situation, reviewing recent events hosted by your organization may give you a sense of this.

 

9. Insurance

Some venues won’t do business with you if you don’t have insurance.

 

10. Acoustics

Have you ever attended an event at a venue that was so loud, it was hard to hear others, causing you to strain your hearing and lose your voice, all in one night? That’s caused by poor acoustics. Acoustics is just a fancy word for how sound travels through the venue. A low ceiling will make the venue seem cozy, but it will make it louder if it’s packed. Alternatively, a large warehouse-style venue will result in echoes, or what architects refer to as “reverberation”.

A Chinese auction is a great way to get extra profits out of donated goods and services. Obviously, the more items you have up for grabs, the more tickets you’ll sell and the more funds you’ll raise. Try one at your next fundraising event and you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

Planning your casino fundraiser around a central theme is the best way to add interest and create excitement about your casino fundraiser. An event theme also helps tie everything together.

 

Other entertainment we can provide for your Casino Fundraiser:

–   Professional Show Girls

–   Cigar girls

–   DJ’s

–   Impersonators

–   Photo Booths

–   And More