Are your events really making money for your organisation?
For many clubs, charities and volunteer-led organisations, events are an important part of fundraising.
Whether it’s an annual dinner, golf day, summer fete, awards evening, competition or fundraising event, the objective is normally the same: raise money while giving members and supporters a great experience.
But once the event is over, can you confidently answer a very simple question?
How much money did the event actually make?
Understanding the True Cost of an Event
It’s relatively easy to know how much money came in from ticket sales, sponsorship or donations.
The difficulty is making sure all the associated costs are captured against the same event.
Venue hire, catering, entertainment, equipment, printing, advertising, prizes and numerous smaller expenses can easily become mixed into the club’s general accounts.
The result can be an event that appears successful because it generated £5,000 of income — but nobody is completely sure what it actually cost to deliver.
And without that information, how do you decide whether to run it again?
Give Each Event Its Own Financial Picture
Clubtreasurer makes this much simpler.
An event can be created within Clubtreasurer and the income and expenditure associated with that event can be allocated directly to it.
That means the treasurer can see in one place:
- How much revenue the event generated
- The costs associated with organising it
- The resulting surplus or loss
- The event’s true financial contribution to the organisation
Instead of trying to reconstruct the figures afterwards using spreadsheets or separate records, the information is captured as part of the club’s normal financial management.
Better Information Means Better Fundraising Decisions
This becomes particularly valuable when planning future fundraising activity.
Imagine your club runs four different events during the year. They might all appear successful because they attract plenty of people and generate income.
But when you look at the actual numbers, one event might generate a healthy surplus while another requires considerable volunteer time and expense for relatively little return.
That information allows committees to ask better questions:
Which events generate the best return?
Which should we repeat next year?
Where could costs be reduced?
Which fundraising activities should receive more time and resources?
Over time, this can help a club build a much more effective fundraising programme based on evidence rather than assumptions.
Making Life Easier for Volunteer Treasurers
Good financial management isn’t simply about recording what came in and what went out.
It’s about helping committees understand where their money is being generated and where it is being spent.
By allowing income and expenditure to be tracked against individual events, Clubtreasurer gives volunteer treasurers and committees a much clearer picture of their fundraising performance.
Because knowing that an event was enjoyable is important.
Knowing whether it actually raised money is important too.
Connect Your Events With Your Members
And if your organisation also uses the Clubtreasurer Membership Module, you can take event management a step further.
Events and ticket sales can be linked to your membership records, helping you keep track of who is buying tickets and what tickets they have purchased.
That gives clubs a more joined-up view of their members, events and finances rather than having information spread across different systems or spreadsheets.
It means less administration for volunteers and better visibility of both the financial performance of an event and the members supporting it.
Find Out More
Clubtreasurer is designed specifically for clubs, charities and volunteer-led organisations, helping make financial management, membership, events and administration simpler.
Create your events. Track the true costs. Understand the return. And make better-informed decisions about your future fundraising.
Visit Clubtreasurer.com to find out more or start a free trial.