A popcorn fundraiser for bands, choirs and music programs

Fund the music, not the busywork

Music programs are expensive in ways that are easy to miss: instrument repairs and replacements, sheet music and licensing, uniforms and concert attire, festival and contest fees, buses for marching season, and the occasional trip that becomes the highlight of the year. Directors spend their evenings at rehearsals and concerts, and the music boosters who help them are volunteers with full-time jobs of their own. A fundraiser has to fit around the concert calendar, not add another evening to it.

Stevie G's gives the director or booster treasurer a fundraiser that takes minutes to set up. Start it free in the app, set a goal and a last day, and share the invite code with the volunteers and supporters who want to help. Each one gets a personal link to send to friends, relatives and the audience that fills your concerts. Supporters order online, every bag ships to their door, and the program receives its share through Stripe after the fundraiser ends.

How to run a successful band or choir popcorn fundraiser

1. Announce it from the stage. Say a sentence about the fundraiser at your next concert, and print the link in the program so the audience can order on the way home.

2. Name the purchase. "New sousaphone" or "festival bus" is more persuasive than "music fund," and it gives every update something concrete to report.

3. Invite your alumni. Former members remember what the program gave them. A note to the alumni page or email list brings in orders from far away.

4. Use the boosters' newsletter. The music boosters' email is already in your supporters' inboxes. Put the link at the top, with one line about the goal.

5. Time it before a big date. End the fundraiser well before festival fees or trip deposits are due, so it is finished before the bill arrives.

6. Thank the audience. After it ends, share what you raised and what it will buy, at the next concert and online.

7. Write next year's date into the season calendar. The day this fundraiser ends, add next year's dates to the concert calendar so they are there when the next season is planned.

Make it a yearly program tradition

Music programs live by a calendar of concerts and contests, and the fundraiser can live there too. Choose the weeks before your concert or competition season and run it at that same point every year. Once a year is plenty: audiences and alumni look forward to an annual event, and they grow weary of a request that comes back every few months. Each year after the first is easier, because supporters already know how ordering works and the boosters have a plan they can repeat.