Help needed with new business idea

kit

Hi all

I think I am going to start my own business. Not sure if it will work so am going to start it in my spare time and see how it goes.

I am looking for a bit of advice!

Ok, so the idea is that someone will come to me for help with fundraising for an event/charity etc. I organise events and raise money. I then take a % of what I raise.

Firstly - can I do this?! Anyone know of any reason why I wouldnt be able to do this?

Secondly - can i run it as a business or will it have to be a 'not for profit' organisation?

Thirdly - do i need to register with anyone seeing that I will be raising money?

Fourthly - I know there is a certain % that can be used for admin/costs out of money raised - what amount is this?

Finally - does anyone know of another business that does this? I'm thinking of helping individual people to raise money as well as groups, charities etc.

Thanks - any help would be great!

Savvy_Sue

Yes, other people do this for charities. I suggest starting by looking at the Institute of Fundraising website, I have no idea what's on it, but I work for a charity and if we wanted 'professional' fundraising done, we'd probably want an IoF member doing it for us rather than just anyone.

And yes, there are companies out there already doing this.

Brain too fogged to give a detailed reply ... bit of a minefield is my gut feeling because of the need to demonstrate transparency - there are some right scammers out there (not suggesting you are one, just know that there are!) who say they will raise £000s for a charity and nothing is ever seen except bills.

powerbase

Hi,
There's a lot of questions there. Before jumping straight into it have a think and get some good advice. Research is key to going into business.

Most local areas have some sort of free business advice. They will basically know a lot about starting a business in general and there will probably be someone there who will know more specifically about your area and it's free.

One thing all businesses need to know is your competitors. You don't know if this is possible yet (which it is from what I know) so that's a first, then find out other companies and do a lot of research. Get all the free local advice you can on business. They'll probably put you on some courses that takes you through everything from research through finances to law.

Good luck. Stick at it, there will be a lot of work before you even start with the business. One thing I've learnt is planning, research and knowing your market is key.

jelly123_2

" someone will come to me for help with fundraising " why would they come to you?

You have to think about what you have to offer, sometimes charities just have their own events as they have already been running for years.

Something is missing i cant figureout what

how will you advertise your services to the charities?

Astaroth

kit wrote:

Firstly - can I do this?! Anyone know of any reason why I wouldnt be able to do this?

Secondly - can i run it as a business or will it have to be a 'not for profit' organisation?

Thirdly - do i need to register with anyone seeing that I will be raising money?

Fourthly - I know there is a certain % that can be used for admin/costs out of money raised - what amount is this?

Finally - does anyone know of another business that does this? I'm thinking of helping individual people to raise money as well as groups, charities etc.

1) No reason why you cant do it - though there are many events companies out there

2) Can be run as a business, plenty of others do this. Given that yours will be targetted at Charities you will ultimately have to deal with a lot of bad PR - you are after all making profit from other peoples plight. As others have said, transparancy would be a key but I dont think that an uncapped % of funds raised would go down well - though a capped % may be considered more acceptable than flat rate fees (as long as the cap isnt significantly above what a flat fee would be)

3) I am not aware of any one though the Charities Commission would be able to confirm. As a business however you will have to register with HMRC for tax purposes and check with your local council/ home insurance/ mortgage provider etc on any changes you need to make to your council tax etc depending on where you are running your company from. Speaking to an insurance broker would probably be a good idea in general too as you will need to consider things like public liability insurance etc

4) You cant take a flat percentage off of your revenue and put them down to "costs" or admin but have to deduct the actual cost incured. Given the fines that can be associated with doing this wrong an accountant is worth their weight in gold for this sort of thing as they will be able to tell you exactly what you can and cant deduct as an expense.

5) Yes, many companies do this either as a dedicated company for charities or a more general events management company who happen to have some charity clients.

The Business Link is generally a very good resource both online and in your local area and is worth looking at/ talking to

kit

jelly123 wrote:

" someone will come to me for help with fundraising " why would they come to you?

You have to think about what you have to offer, sometimes charities just have their own events as they have already been running for years.

Something is missing i cant figureout what

how will you advertise your services to the charities?

I'm not really aiming at the large charities that have there own events department. I'm thinking more along the lines of individuals that need to raise money for something (like medical treatment - I had to do this recently for my daughters medical treatment) or a club (like building a new clubhouse for a childrens football club). I help a small charity that raises money for people with eating disorders.

I would advertise my services via papers/mailshots/website etc etc etc. They would come to me because i have experience in fundraising and know ways that work and things that dont. Some people would not have a clue where to start so its easier for them to employe someone.

Thanks everyone for your advice. I am the sort of person that jumps in and regrets it later so all your planning advice will hopefully help me!

powerbase

I see your point, you are providing a service/experience/expertise.

I've said it before and I'll say it again planning and research can make the difference between a success and failure.

You need to think about quite a few things. This is not to put you off, just make you think.

I know planning and research can be a real pain, that's why I suggest the free courses as they make you think and pretty much cover it all. They'll give you general courses and make you do a business plan and probably provide some individual one on one advice. It will be very comprehensive and they'll have a lof more experience with businesses.

Before you go to get free advice though, get the idea straight in your head and have a quick explanation of it (like you have done here) of what you wuld be providing and how you would do it and ideas. Try writing something on paper.

The more you go to them with the more you'll get out of it.

Kind regards