We really need money!!

[UKteam]

Hi all well as some may have gather we are the British Team. and we are running into a bit of a problem with sponsor ship we think that £10000 would be enough to get us to the New York regional the only problem is getting that money! unfortunatly most companies dont seem to be willing to give us it. if anyone has tips on how to aproach a company/individual or if anyone knows of a very generous company then please let us know
Thanks Team 759

[AJ Quick]

Hey check out this section of the white papers that has info about fundrasing forms and ideas:

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/pa... SC&sort=date

You should be able to find some company that will sponsor you, or many small companies if you just keep at it.

[Jacqui Sutton]

We've tried everything.. our team has no corporate sponsor and a lot of opposition within the community because they seem to be afraid of change...

we've done...
bake sales, yard sales, we've written grants, we're going to be selling dinners to all the staff of all the businesses around here - have some of the teams parents cook and the team members go out and deliver, we've thought about car washes and even considered a dinner theater until we decided we just dont have time to do it..we went to the board of supervisors and asked them for a donation, - when it comes down to it, we've just gone around the community from business to business, told them what we are doing and how much it means to us, how hard it is for us to keep afloat, and just asked for any donation they can spare..some give us $10, some might give $100. every little bit helps.. and then we're always working on trying to find a corporate sponsor for next years team to make it a little easier on them. good luck guys..

[HolyMasamune]

There's a lot of stuff on the FIRST website that also helps you with getting sponsors, such as http://www.usfirst.org/robotics/volbook/
Also keep an eye out for sites that have large listings of businesses that are doing "community service" by making donations to schools for these types of activities.

[Rickertsen2]

Don't feel alone we don't have any corporate sponsoring either. We have gotten some companies to donate material but no money.

[HolyMasamune]

Well considering the economy is in somewhat of a recession right now, I'm not surprised that many teams are underfunded...

We sell candy..................lots and lots of candy to people at school. Sponsering isn't the only thing. get lots of little donations and it all adds up. go to lots of local companies and see if you can make a deal with them. we put donors on a banner and on the tape we make so that tey get advertised.

[MBurr-Mecum]

My team has this whole powerpoint demonstration and video clips of us in the news and a demo of last year's robot for when we go to talk to companies, very proffesional-looking. See if any of the people who help you with engineering have contacts at local tech companies. One of our primary sponsors has been slowly dying but one of the engineers that got laid off from there convinced his new company to sponsor us. We've found that once we get to talk to the high muckety-mucks of a company and explain what it is we do, the money is usually forthcoming, the trick is to be organized and proffesional about it, and don't forget to hint that with all the media coverage of FIRST it's an advertising opportunity as well as a charitable donation.

[Solace]

Originally posted by MBurr-Mecum
My team has this whole powerpoint demonstration and video clips of us in the news and a demo of last year's robot for when we go to talk to companies, very proffesional-looking. See if any of the people who help you with engineering have contacts at local tech companies. One of our primary sponsors has been slowly dying but one of the engineers that got laid off from there convinced his new company to sponsor us. We've found that once we get to talk to the high muckety-mucks of a company and explain what it is we do, the money is usually forthcoming, the trick is to be organized and proffesional about it, and don't forget to hint that with all the media coverage of FIRST it's an advertising opportunity as well as a charitable donation.

If that fails, just tell them that it is so........much...........FUN!!