Pick our fundraising winner!

For the last three months, Popcorn Palace has been picking a monthly fundraising winner in our "Pictures are Worth a Thou$and Dollars" contest and now you get to pick our grand prize winner! Each month’s winner has won $250 for their cause and the winner you pick will win an additional $250!

Review the winners and pick your favorite!

OCTOBER: Fairmont Preparatory Academy

The Fairmont Music program is trying to raise $180,000 so that they can perform at the London Festival of Music in April 2012. ““Our biggest challenge every year is money. We do not receive financial support from our school beyond classroom necessities, so it is up to the students to raise money for their uniforms and competition costs.” - read more.

NOVEMBER: Port Huron Northern Bands

The band raises money so that everyone has the same opportunity to go to trips such as New York City, Disney World and Detroit’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. ”Our dedication goes beyond driving the band members to competitions, games, concerts, and community work.“ - read more.

DECEMBER: Midwestern Christian Academy Cheerleading


Located in Chicago, Illinois, Midwestern Christian Academy’s cheerleading team has been raising money to offset the costs of hotels room and travel expenses to their national competition in Maryland in February. ”It is group where children can come together to compete in the sport of cheerleading with a strong emphasis on having fun and developing self-confidence.“ - read more.

Click here to vote for your top fundraiser!

December's "Pictures are Worth a Thou$and Dollars" Winner: Midwestern Christian Academy's Cheerleaders

Chicago Mom, Lori Miller decided to head up Midwestern Christian Academy's fundraising efforts as a way to become more involved in her daughter's cheerleading team, the Lightning Junior Cheerleaders, "It is group where children can come together to compete in the sport of cheerleading with a strong emphasis on having fun and developing self-confidence."

Located in Chicago, Illinois, Midwestern Christian Academy offers excellent Christian educational curriculum for Jr. Kindergarten through 8th grade students. Serving as an educational ministry of Midwest Bible Church, MCA has provided a balanced traditional academic program with a Christian emphasis for over 50 years. As stated in their Mission Statement, MCA is focused on developing the whole child.

"We depend on outside resources, such as fundraising, to maintain our programs and make improvements to our school," said Miller. So the cheerleading squad started selling Popcorn Palace popcorn and pretty quickly had raised enough to offset the costs of hotels room and travel expenses to their national competition in Maryland in February. "The customer service I had received was absolutely amazing!" raved Miller.

For more information on The Midwestern Christian Academy, click here: http://midwesternchristianacademy.org/

Fundraising for a growing family - Pt. 1

Alabama native, Bonnie Silvey, wants to adopt a baby boy or girl and Popcorn Palace is helping her raise the money needed to make her family's dream a reality.

For more than a year, Bonnie and her husband, Kevin, had been looking for just the right adoption agency. After $30,000 of failed fertility treatments, they were leaving nothing to chance and wanted to be certain that the agency they went with would be a perfect match.

As the parents of an eight-year old girl (from Kevin's earlier marriage) working with an international agency was out of the question. In addition to the nearly $20,000 in fees, they would be required to travel out of the country for weeks at a time, something that they couldn't do. Thankfully they found Open Door, an American adoption agency that was a little more affordable and a lot more flexible.

They officially started the process in September and, because of the financial demands that adoption puts on families, decided to look for ways to raise some money for their cause. It wasn't long before an internet search brought her to Popcorn Palace and even though she's only been fundraising with it for a month, she's already had great success. "I started selling it at a local bank and the response has been amazing!" Bonnie told us.

While the whole family is very hopeful and positive, "our daughter can't wait for a baby brother or sister," they are realistic about the time involved. "We are not in a huge rush and are willing to be patient," said Bonnie in regards to both raising the money and getting their new family member.

Popcorn Palace will follow the journey of the family as they get closer and closer to their new baby.

For more information about Popcorn Palace's fundraising program, email us at fundraising@popcornpalace.com or call at 800-873-2686

November's "Pictures are Worth a Thou$and Dollars" Winner: Port Huron Northern Bands

Shannon Smith became a “band-mom” when her daughter joined the Port Huron Northern Bands. According to Shannon, the parents are a very close knit group and view the band members as ‘our’ children.

The band raise money so that everyone has the same opportunity to go to trips such as New York City, Disney World, and Detroit's Thanksgiving Day Parade (http://www.youtube.com/user/PHNMarchingBand#p/a/u/0/4LP_qMjwBfA).

"Our dedication goes beyond driving them to competitions, games, concerts, and community work," says Shannon, "We open our hearts and our homes to them, give them moral support in band and in life. We have ears to listen, shoulders to cry on, and arms for hugs."

For more information on Port Huron Northern Bands, visit www.phnbb.com or www.phnbands.org.

Thanksgiving Winners

Congratulations to our Thanksgiving contest winners, Twitter followers, 2doxies2, SLThrun3 and LoveMyVDub. Meet our Thanksgiving popcorn characters!

We hope that you and your family had a great Thanksgiving weekend!

Follow Popcorn Palace on Twitter for other great contests and giveaways.

It's All About Execution!

With the busy season upon us, execution becomes more important to ensure that your customers receive their order in time. Below are a few things to keep in mind to avoid delays:

Order Forms: Make sure they are filled out correctly before separating payment. Provide a correctly filled out sample to each of your sellers.

Tabulating/Ordering: Be sure that each order is double-checked for accuracy before it is forwarded to the fundraising company. Make sure you take a look at the order verification to double check your quantities as there may be some companies that will not offer replacement orders or returns.

Payment:The form of payment will determine when your order ships. If you pay with an organization check or electronic payment, be aware that your payment will be held for a few days until it clears the bank. If you are mailing your check, take into account the transit time.

Delivery: Consider the date that you would like to receive your order. Calculate the time your payment needs to clear, transit time, and order processing. For example if a company has a 10 business day policy and you place/pay for the order on December 2^nd, your delivery date will be December 16^th.

Force Majeure: There are instances that are beyond your fundraising company’s control that may delay your shipment. Especially during the winter season, blizzards may shut down offices and shipping carriers may not be able to pick up or deliver orders. Also note that once an order is picked up by UPS or Fed Ex, companies do not have control of how it is handled.

By having a flawless execution, you will able to have a stress free fundraising!

Comrades in Sweat

The San Pro Baker to Vegas relay team consists of many volunteers and runners who participate in the Challenge Cup Relay/Baker to Vegas Relay which is largest law enforcement event of its kind. The 120-mile running relay from Baker, California to Las Vegas, Nevada is endured annually by law enforcement officers around the world.

The original ideals of the race continue: teamwork, camaraderie, physical fitness and competition. In the beginning, 19 teams competed, mostly LAPD and LASD stations. Over the last 25 years, this cherished event has grown to include 277 teams from agencies all over the world. Nearly 100 thousand officers/runners have competed in this event since its inception. Categories have grown to include Probation Officers, District Attorneys, US Attorneys and full time civilian police personnel.

It takes a huge commitment from the runners and support personnel to even get the team to the race. All members of the team use their own time to attend the race. This means that if your regular days off don’t fall on the days of the race, you have to use vacation to attend.

“Officers maintain a physical fitness program to help them better perform their duties in providing community safety, reduce crime, and assist victims through offender accountability and rehabilitation. ” says Linda Yoakum-Latimer, “All fundraising profits goes toward the race expenses, entry fees, vehicles, gas and administrative cost. There are no monetary profits… just the ability to say WE DID IT.”

To view event pictures, visit http://sdprob.shutterfly.com.

October's "Pictures are Worth a Thou$and Dollars" Winner: Fairmont Music

Stacey Barta was hired in 2006 to develop a competitive music program for Fairmont Preparatory Academy. During her tenure, she started a concert band, concert choir, show choir, pep band, musical theater and a faculty dance team.

Despite being only 6 years old, the program has competed and earned many personal awards-1st place trophies, national rankings of gold and silver, and many other top honors. The program is extremely diverse with students from the United States, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Korea, and China. Invitations have taken the team to places such as San Francisco, New York, Hawaii and now London.

The organization is working aggressively towards the goal of raising $180,000 this year so they can perform at the London Festival of Music in April 2012. This is an inaugural event and they are hoping to upgrade their status from "National Champions" to "International Champions."

“Our biggest challenge every year is money. We do not receive financial support from our school beyond classroom necessities, so it is up to the students to raise money for their uniforms and competition costs which costs from $1,500 to $3,000 each year depending on where we are going for competition,” says Stacey.

“We raise a large portion of our funds from aggressive fundraising throughout the year. With so many challenges on an annual basis such as lack of instrumentation, lack of funding, and being a small program, I teach my students the most important thing of all for success – No Excuses!”

To see more videos and photos, visit Fairmont Music's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/FPA-Music/81361155942 or their website at www.fairmontschools.com.

Timing is Everything

When planning your fundraiser, the first question to ask is "when?" Timing is very important and depending on the kind of fundraiser you want to hold, certain times of the year of the year are better than others.

When planning the timing of your fundraiser, take the following into consideration:

· Make sure you do not plan your event on a big social or religious holiday or compete with an existing local event. Don't forget that final exam week is not an ideal time either.

· Take a close look at product delivery times, especially if you are having your fundraiser around the holiday season. Add some cushion just in case shipping is delayed due to weather and other causes beyond the fundraising company’s control.

· Avoid timing your fundraiser right after the winter holidays, when everyone is strapped for cash.

· Plan your fundraiser when you can reach the most potential consumers, so winter, spring or summer breaks are usually out. You also want to be sure that you'll have plenty of volunteers on hand to help.

· Your product may determine when you will have the fundraiser. For example, you don’t want to sell chocolate in the summer months.

Don't forget that your fundraising start/end dates affecs other areas:

· Announcement Date: Be courteous to everyone involved by giving an advance notice. The earlier, the better, so that they can mark their calendars.

· Marketing/Promotion: Your marketing needs will vary depending upon the fundraising type. Do you need the school’s approval to announce the fundraiser in the school marquee, perhaps need time for flyers to be created and printed, or need some time to create a website?

· Recruitment: Remember that the early bird gets the volunteer hours.

Your fundraiser will be successful if it is well-planned and well-attended: timing is key!

Holiday Bowl Cheer!

For over 15 years, Dream Dancers Studio has been offering dance classes from tap to tumbling. Their goal is to help build confidence, skill and an appreciation for the art of dance. The dancer's hard work paid off as the competitive dance team was invited to perform in the Orange Bowl in Miami, FL.

The dance team was very excited about the opportunity as this was a big deal to a small group of kids from Montana and they were the first team from the state to perform in a bowl game! Naturally the team was very proud to represent their state.

Fundraising coordinator Heidi Lamoreaux said, “We were looking for any fundraiser to do to help us achieve our goal. Your product looked amazing so we thought we would give it a try. We all made great money doing your fundraiser and will do it again because after people tried your product they told us to come back and they would buy more!!”

Heidi’s team has been invited back to do another bowl game and will be flying to San Diego, CA on December 25^th for the Holiday Bowl!

“We have done your fundraiser again already. It has really helped us reach our goal. We will do it again in the future to raise money for our dance competitions since so many people we delivered to loved your product. THANK YOU!!”

For more information about Dream Dancers Studio, visit http://www.dreamdancersmt.webs.com/

Meet our #Popcornmonsters!

Congratulations to Michelle, Sameer, Dan and Lisa for naming our #popcornmonsters!

We had a lot of fun creating them and got some amazing entries. We hope you enjoyed playing along as much as we enjoyed choosing their names from your entries.

Stay tuned, our popcorn creatures are sure to return soon!

Best Boo Wins!

Halloween is all about treats (and tricks) and we at Popcorn Palace want to share some of our treats with you. Share your best Halloween pics (costumes, houses, Jack-O-Lanterns, etc.) with us on our Facebook wall and you could win our Popcorn Palace 6-Flavor Gift Box!

The winner will be the photo with the most Facebook "Likes." So, post your photo and get your friends and family, ghosts and ghouls to visit our Facebook page and click on the "Like" associated with your photo.

Good luck!

................................................................

RULES:

• No purchase necessary to enter.
• You may only enter once.
• Photos must be posted by midnight (CST) on Nov. 7, 2011.
• Voting (liking) will close at 5 pm (CST) on Nov. 8, 2011.
• Winner will be announced on Facebook on Nov. 9, 2011.
• Winner will be contact via Facebook.
• Once notified, winner is responsible for responding with their postal addresses, email addresses and phone numbers (for our shipper).
• Postal addresses must be submitted within one week (seven days) of notification.
• This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Blogger or Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to Popcorn Palace and not to Facebook, Twitter or Blogger.
• Employees, interns, contractors and vendors, as well as their immediate families, of Popcorn Palace, its affiliates, and any representatives or agencies of Popcorn Palace or other persons professionally connected to the Contest are not eligible to participate.
• Judges' decision is final.

"Pictures are Worth a Thou$and Dollars" Contest

Does your organization have a compelling story to tell? If so, enter in our “Pictures are Worth a Thou$and Dollars" Contest.
We will be selecting a winner for the month of October, November and December! Monthly winners will receive a check made out to the organization for $250. Then it will be up to the Popcorn Palace fans to vote on which organization will receive the grand prize of an additional $250!

To enter, fill out this online survey at http://bit.ly/pkTcov AND send an organization picture to patty@popcornpalace.com.

If we do not receive a picture, your entry will be null and void.

As a token of our appreciation, every complete entry will receive a gift!
We look forward to reading your stories!

Rules
• Your entry is not complete until a picture is sent to patty@popcornpalace.com
• Only fundraisers that completed a fundraiser during 2011 are eligible
• All submissions become the property of Popcorn Palace
• You may only enter once
• October entries are due on the 31st. October winner will be announced Nov. 7th
• November entries are due on the 30th. November winner will be announced Dec. 7th
• December entries are due on the 31st. December winner will be announced Jan. 9th
• Voting for Grand Prize winner ends January 31st, 2012. Winner will be announced Feb. 4th
• Prize is non-transferable
• Winner will be contacted via email
• Once notified, winners are responsible for responding with their postal addresses, email addresses and phone numbers (for our shipper)
• Postal addresses must be submitted within one week of (seven days) of notification
• This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Blogger nor Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to Popcorn Palace and not to Facebook, Twitter nor Blogger
• Employees, interns, contractors, vendors, as well as their immediate families, of Popcorn Palace, its affiliates, and any representatives or agencies of Popcorn Palace or other persons professionally connected to the Contest are not eligible to participate
• Judges’ decision is final

Passing the Torch

It’s a common occurrence. One day you have a key point person in your organization and the next day he/she is gone and the organization is left scrambling trying to pick up the pieces. If you've ever been unlucky enough to take the helm of a group or its fundraiser with no preparation, no records, and no help, you know how important smooth leadership transitions are.

Find Your Replacement

• Recruit potentials actively! This will give you time to test the
waters to see how much the person can handle and quickly learn

• If your organization does not have a structured team in place, make sure you have a back-up in place even if it’s a family member

Train Your Replacement

• Invite successor to attend any ‘wrap-up’ meetings for current fundraisers. This allows the person to be involved in discussions pertaining to successes, improvements, and issues

• Assign a task that is important, such as recording and tallying sales or distributing orders to get their feet wet. Ideally go through a dry run so they are prepared for their upcoming role

Keep Good Records

• Include essential information and responsibilities which can serve as a check off list. Items can include an event calendar, guideline outlining each step of the fundraising process from beginning to end, and past fundraising sales figures

• Keep an address book of contacts that the new coordinator can use as resource

Be Courteous

• Alert your preferred vendors of the coordinator change

• Introduce the incoming coordinator to key contacts as often as you can, even if it's via email or phone

Guess and win!

Change is good and popcorn is delicious! We've changed some of the names of our delicious popcorn and you can win some just by guessing the new names to some of your favorite Popcorn Palace flavors!

The person who correctly guesses all 10 flavor names wins a bag of each. Thats 10 BAGS OF POPCORN! Five runners up win a bag of each flavor they get right (7 correct answers wins 7 bags, 3 correct answers wins 3 bags, etc.).

Click here to enter. Entries close in one month - October 27, 2011

RULES:

• No purchase necessary to enter
• You may only enter once
• Contest runs until October 27, 2011
• Winners will be announced on Facebook on November 1, 2011
• Grand prize winner will be user to correctly guess all 10 flavors first.
• Runners up will be judged by number of correct guesses. In the event of a tie, runners up will be decided by time entered.
• Only residents of the U.S.A. are eligible
• We will contact the winners via Email
• Once notified, winners are responsible for responding with their postal addresses, email addresses and phone numbers (for our shipper).
• Postal addresses must be submitted within two weeks (fourteen days) of notification.
• This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Blogger nor Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to Popcorn Palace and not to Facebook, Twitter nor Blogger.
• Employees, interns, contractors, vendors, as well as their immediate families, of Popcorn Palace, its affiliates, and any representatives or agencies of Popcorn Palace or other persons professionally connected to the Contest are not eligible to participate.
• Judges decision is final.

Fundraising with a Computer

The computer has allowed all types of organizations to elevate traditional marketing approaches and keep organizations on top of minds among donors, volunteers and the community, before, during and after our event. Best of all, many tools are free or require low investment. Whatever you choose, make sure that people stay connected to the organization throughout the year.

Internet

• Post reminders onyour Facebook page. Or create a separate Facebook business page dedicated to your event. Upload photos, post videos, and network!
• Choose a Twitter hashtag for your fundraiser or event. Use the hashtag to keep followers informed about how much money was raised, announce order pick up dates, recruit volunteers, etc
• Create a Facebook poll or survey. You never know what kind of interesting information you can discover!
  

Web Page

• Show what your organization does. The stories most likely to inspire action are those that leave feelings or create images in the audience’s mind. Illustrate the benefits your organization provides to the community.
• Create a blog using Google’s Blogger (it’s free). Have your volunteers, teachers,participants contribute an article pertaining to the fundraising experience.
  

Email

• Keep an email contact list (an excel sheet will do!) up to date based upon purchase date & item purchased. This way you can segment your email list and tailor your messages.
• Email a “Save a Date” for your fundraiser. This allows your recipient to save some funds for your fundraiser and share the information with their social networks. You may receive extra orders!
• Send a personalized “Thank You” email. Remember this is a bridge to future support. Don’t forget to include a link to your organization’s page!

Reduce Your Fundraising Noise

One of the biggest challenges that organizations face today is raising money in a weak economy. Unfortunately, multiple activities all generate fundraising noise. In today’s economic climate, it’s vital that your group reduce its fundraising noise. Supporters are already apprehensive about spending or contributing more money. Once your supporters develop apathy, it becomes even tougher to meet your fundraising goals.

According to the Association of Fund-Raising Distributors and Suppliers, “We learned that school groups that limit the number of fundraising projects conducted throughout the year tend to earn more money with a single fundraising drive. That’s probably because their supporters know they’re only going to be tapped a couple of times and, therefore, they’re more willing to reach into their pockets when it counts.”

Focus on programs that are most efficient and yield the most funds- while limiting the time-commitment from volunteers. If you are considering school wide programs, you should think twice about adding too many fundraisers to the calendar. By putting a greater effort into a fewer number of fundraisers with very specific goals, it is easier to successfully raise the money needed and get greater participation from school families and the community.

Moderation is key!

What did you do this summer?

Summertime is the best! Road-trips, water parks, museums, BBQs, bike rides, amusement parks, picnics, swimming pools and more are what make up summer. With school vacations and great weather, taking a trip (even to the next town over) with your friends and family to do and see new things is a must.

Old Fashioned Tin

Popcorn Palace took a trip to nearby Galena, Illinois (see below) for the weekend. Now we want to know what you did. Post your holiday memories in the comment section by September 23, 2010 and our favorite will win an old fashioned tin of gourmet popcorn!

HINT: Bonus points if you took our popcorn along. Double bonus points if you email a photo of our popcorn at your holiday destination to contests@popcornpalace.com.

The Contest Rules are at the bottom of this post, but first, here’s our holiday in Galena:

Home to the 18th President. Ulysses S. Grant, the historic city of Galena is situated in the lush Mississippi valley and was founded in 1826, primarily as a lead mining community with shipping access along the Mississippi River. The Galena port was the busiest between St. Paul and St. Louis by the 1850s. 

Now, nearly 170 years later, the streets are lined by gaslights and the historic Desoto House Hotel, where Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas once met, still welcome tourists like us! While there, we visited the local brewery (we all know how well popcorn and beer go together), the historic fire station, art galleries and went fishing in the Mississippi River.


Here are some photos from our trip to “The town that time forgot.” Now tell us about your summer vacation!

RULES

• No purchase necessary to enter
• Contest runs until September 23, 2011.
• Only residents of the U.S.A. are eligible
• We will contact the winners via Email.
• Once notified, winners are responsible for responding with their flavor choices, postal addresses, email addresses and phone numbers (for our shipper).
• Postal addresses must be submitted within two weeks (fourteen days) of notification.
• This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Blogger nor Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to Popcorn Palace and not to Facebook, Twitter nor Blogger.
• Employees, interns, contractors, vendors, as well as their immediate families, of Popcorn Palace, its affiliates, and any representatives or agencies of Popcorn Palace or other persons professionally connected to the Contest are not eligible to participate.
• Judges decision is final.

Answer questions, win popcorn

Popcorn Palace wants to see who REALLY reads our blog and so we are giving away popcorn to the first three people to correctly answer 10 questions about blog posts of the past.

So dig back through our blog posts and the first three people to email the right answers to contest@popcornpalace.com will win a six-way container of popcorny goodness.

1. What musical poster is the popcorn/snowball in front of?
2. How many breweries participated in this year's Pop Fest?
3. What year did President Nixon sign Father's Day Into Law?
4. Who is the leader of The Rich South Band?
5. How did Matt Weldon learn about Popcorn Palace?
6. Which member of the Popcorn Palace team was on Heartbeat Radio?
7. What percentage of profits to fundraisers get to keep?
8. How long has Janet Robin been raising money for the American Cancer Society
9. What other name was Emperor Claudius also known by?
10. After donating to schools, non-profits and churches, how many organizations reached out Pratin Kraisornkovit for more help?

• No purchase necessary to enter
• Contest runs until August 10, 2011.
• Prizes will be awarded to the first entrant to answer all questions correctly. 
• Only residents of the U.S.A. are eligible
• We will contact the winners via Email.
• Once notified, winners are responsible for responding with their flavor choices, postal addresses, email addresses and phone numbers (for our shipper).
• Postal addresses must be submitted within two weeks (fourteen days) of notification.
• This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Blogger nor Twitter. You understand that you are providing your information to Popcorn Palace and not to Facebook, Twitter nor Blogger.
• Employees, interns, contractors, vendors, as well as their immediate families, of Popcorn Palace, its affiliates, and any representatives or agencies of Popcorn Palace or other persons professionally connected to the Contest are not eligible to participate
• Judges decision is final.

Spot the popcorn 2 - Contest 3

In order to win, your comment must be the first one posted, include the location of the popcorn (in the picture) and your email address.

For more full details of the July Spot the Popcorn Contest, click here.

Good luck, and may the fastest commentator win!