County Fairs: Blue Ribbons and Non-Profits

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If you work with a non-profit organization, it’s easy to feel like sometimes you aren’t gaining any ground. Sometimes people don’t know what your organization is about, sometimes they suffer from “non-profit burnout”. One way to remedy this problem is to take advantage of the county fairs during the summer months. County fairs draw large crowds in a relaxing, fun family atmosphere. This provides many benefits to non-profits.

Setting up a booth at a fair tells the public, “We are here”. Having 10 or more feet of display space can send a message to the public about what your non-profit does. Having promotional items to give away, raffles or drawings, and games will guarantee people stop at your booth. This also allows staff to gather information about demographics and the need for the service offered by the non-profit.

Secondly, having a booth set up and staffed with actual volunteers and board members tells the public “This is what we do”. If anyone has any questions about how the non-profit works, who runs it, or what services are offered, there are live people that answer questions in real time. This interaction between the public and volunteers can be crucial to the public’s perception of your non-profit. If your non-profit benefitting children isn’t kind to a child visiting the booth, the family is going to make a mental note. If your booth workers go above and beyond for their visitors, that will go into the mental file as well.

The last message sent by a non-profit booth is “please work with us”. Hopefully, the public will understand, acknowledge, and believe in your nonprofit’s goals. If they do, they are more likely to volunteer, donate, or recommend, or use your nonprofit’s services. If nothing else, they will walk away with a new understanding of a need in their community.

When you set up for your local county fair, make sure to give ABR Print a call for t-shirts, Frisbees, cups, and signs. Whatever your non-profit, the team will be sure to make sure your promotional items are done right.