4 Essential Tips to Make Your Popcorn Fundraiser a Hit

Considering an edible fundraising idea? Popcorn has a lot going for it—it’s lightweight, popular, and offers classic and trendy flavor options.

As a snack, popcorn bridges the gap between health foodies and candy aficionados, ranging from a low-calorie treat to a vehicle for sticky sweet toppings like caramel and chocolate. That makes it a better bet than candy sales, allowing your supporters to pitch to a wider audience of hungry buyers—nationwide, over 238 million Americans consume popcorn each year.

But how do you ensure a successful popcorn fundraiser? Check out our popcorn fundraising ideas and tips below!

What is popcorn fundraising?

Popcorn fundraisers typically feature ready-to-eat gourmet popcorn in a range of flavors, although you can also opt to sell: 

• Bags of traditional or heirloom popping kernels
• Popcorn seasoning, coatings, or add-ins
• Microwaveable popcorn poppers or popcorn 
• Recipe booklets for homemade popcorn options

Like any sales-based fundraiser, the basic formula is to profit by selling items at a higher price than you pay. With popcorn fundraisers, you can choose to: 

• Partner with a fundraising organization that handles distribution 
• Purchase bulk popcorn packaged for fundraising resale
• Buy ingredients and engage volunteers to make your own popcorn products and kits

Sell popcorn online to save time

If you want to avoid taking on distribution and minimizing direct sales, work with a company that handles both aspects online. A digital popcorn fundraiser also means no money upfront. 

What’s still in your hands is marketing. Promote the sale to your community by: 

• Sharing it on your website, social media, at events, in newsletters—everywhere you can
• Offering samples to members at the campaign launch to encourage participation
• Providing flyers and digital banners for supporters to market the sale to their networks

To make the most money for your organization, combine an online storefront with in-person selling, particularly at events and gatherings where snacks are welcome.

Get creative with your popcorn fundraiser menu

Although you can position popcorn as a vintage snack, capturing the attention of buyers is easier when you have something new to offer. For this reason, you may want to: 

• Use food dyes to represent school or state color schemes 
• Package for both convenience and cuteness with shaped or decorated boxes or bags
• Use flavors, names, food dyes, etc., for a mix based on a hot new movie or game

You might also consider including trendy flavors inspired by:

• Global eats such as masala, elote, or Thai coconut curry
• Sugary cereals or specific candy mixes (i.e., Fruity Pebbles, M&Ms)
• Specialty salts like seaweed, vanilla, chili, or smoked

Don’t skip the classics, either! In order, the most popular popcorn flavors in the U.S. are: 

1. Butter 
2. Caramel
3. White cheddar cheese
4. Sea salt

And, make sure to highlight popcorn’s nutritional value and health—popcorn has no cholesterol or fat, is low in calories, and offers fiber, nutrients, and vitamins.

Combine popcorn fundraising with other events 

Just like extra butter for your popcorn, you can make your earnings that much better by building a popcorn fundraiser into a larger campaign. Consider: 

• Popcorn concessions – Add live sales of the gourmet popcorn at your organization’s events, games, or gatherings.
  
  
• Opening night – Pair your sales with a summer blockbuster release and include entry into a raffle for a block of opening night tickets at the local theater. 
  
  
• Lead up to an event – Time your sales to the Oscars to incorporate a theme and countdown. Then host an Oscar viewing party that includes ticket sales and a raffle or silent auction. 
  
  
• Outdoor movie season – Either plan and host your own outdoor movie nights, or partner with organizations near you that have an established open-air film series. This way, you can cross-promote between your audiences, establish a seasonal period for the popcorn sales around viewing nights, and add live sales to the events.

Run your popcorn fundraiser alongside a RaiseRight program 

Organizations with thriving fundraising efforts know that repeating what works and trying new ideas is necessary for long-term success. With careful decision-making and planning, traditional fundraisers like popcorn sales are one way to boost your bottom line. 

For the most effective, year-round fundraising efforts, consider adding RaiseRight's gift card and online shopping fundraiser to your strategy. RaiseRight is the perfect complement to other fundraisers and offers several benefits:

• Can run 24/7, 365 days a year
• Doesn’t require members, their friends, or their families to spend extra money or time
• Integrates seamlessly into routine shopping and everyday purchases

Instead of using cash or credit to pay for goods and services already in their budgets (think gas, groceries, coffee, clothing, home goods, etc.), supporters can purchase and use gift cards for payment or shop online with RaiseRight partner brands. 

Hundreds of brands are available on RaiseRight, offering up to 20% earnings for your group, with no caps. Anyone can use RaiseRight to earn money for your organization, no matter their lifestyle, shopping habits, or preferences.