If the PTA was donated a higher end Chromebook, would you buy a raffle ticket for it?

[Ionut]

Chromebook is around £600, an Acer Chromebook Spin. So, flipping, touch screen and stylus etc. it was donated, so zero cost to a primary school PTA.

Would you want to win this, and how much would you think tickets should be? We're thinking £5? Is that too much?

School roll is 360

We're just wondering if it's worth pursuing.

I probably wouldn’t for £5 as that’s a bit steep for something I don’t actually want or need (I personally wouldn’t buy a Chromebook). I think the problem with selling tickets for something like this is the risk of not selling enough that you couldn’t have just sold it on marketplace and gotten more. I’m actually much more inclined to buy raffle tickets for a lower value item like a hamper or dc’s school is doing big chocolate Easter eggs. £1 a strip, all were donated and kids like chocolate so lot of pressure on parents to buy. Whereas my 7 year old wouldn’t know what a Chromebook is, so wouldn’t make me buy any.

It wouldn’t entice me as we both have good work laptops we use, and iPads. I’d pay £1 for a ticket though, but I wouldn’t care what the prize was, unless it was a nice bottle of champagne I’d probably donate the prize back.

Round here a Chromebook is a great prize because the local secondary insists all pupils have one, so I would enter for that but not so much for an iPad as we are all android household.

Does your local secondary have the same rule? If so you can sell it on that, if not then an iPad might speak more to more people.

But I think it should be £5 a strip of tickets (but don't sell individual ones, it's actually the same then but people feel they are getting more).

I think very few people enter raffles because of the quality of the prize, don't we just do it to support the cause? The likelihood of winning is so low it would be no inducement to me, and tbh I'd worry thst high value prizes are more likely to lead to ill feeling. Woe betide you if you make a mistake in how you mixed the tickets for example. Or if it is a friend of the organisers who wins, there will be Suspicious Mutterings, I can promise you!

The off raffle I donate to is because it is fundraising at events I am at. Occasionally have won something like dog treats or biscuits, more usually some random tat I have no desire to keep. Doesn't really effect if I drop a quid in next time or not though!

I’ve never bothered to find out what the prize is. It’s not a realistic thought (to me) that I’ll win it and just consider raffle tickets to be donations in another name

If you want to sell tickets in advance of the raffle draw you need to follow the Gambling Commission’s guidelines.

We do a big raffle every year for school with some quite big donated prizes. It's very well supported as the chances of winning something am quite good are high and there are LOADS of other smaller prizes as well.

It's £5 a book of 5 tickets or £1 per ticket which means all budgets can buy what they want.

The PTA and friends and family of the PTA often (but not always) win some of the big prizes but clearly not because it's rigged it's because the PTA as the organisers are doing the hard sell of tickets to the people in their immediate circle and probably buying a fair few themselves as well.

One year the head won the spa day and it was the biggest cheer of the evening.

It's usually combined with some kind of dominos night or similar as a double fundraiser.

If it is to raise money would you actually get more by selling it?

Depends on where you live. Our parents wouldn't say thank you for another device. Other places they wouldn't have much chance of it any other way. A pound a ticket will see you do better though. People still spend £5 but feel better about their chances.

An alternative would be if you do X eg raise £50 for the sponsored walk you get entered into the draw. I prefer option A though.

I think most parents buy raffle tickets out of duty, they don’t care what the prizes are. I think you should stick to £1 a ticket.

I would definitely prefer that to the usual "half price at the local £££ hair salon" or "buy one get one free at the local £££ pizza place" vouchers (ie vouchers I could redeem because even at half price I couldn't afford the prices 😁).
Definitely £1 per ticket. That's the standard.
If you want proof of a neutral draw get someone not connected to the school/PTA to draw it.
Local vicar or similar.

It does depend on your demographic to an extent.

However, if you’re in an affluent area…most people will already have a MacBook or laptop anyway, so would not want to bother with a ticket at £5 per ticket.

if you’re in a less affluent area then £5/ticket will be too pricey.

So I think the standard £5 for 5 tickets is reasonable. Especially as it has been donated so all sales = revenue.