Quiz nights are a familiar sight on the fundraising scene, but if you’re running this event for the first time, these tips will help make it the best it can be
1
Choose a date and time for your event, and book a venue. Confirm the format for your quiz – how long will it last, how many rounds do you want, and what themes will these have? In two hours, you can probably run about six to eight rounds, with ten questions in each. Decide whether your quiz will be for adults, children, or families, and agree how many people will be in each team – six to ten should be enough. Recruit volunteers to help compose the quiz and promote the event. You will also need a witty, confident quizmaster and a few assistants to oversee scores and arbitrate any disputes on the night.
2
Get a microphone or PA system, and a CD player if necessary, and confirm that you can borrow tables and chairs from classrooms in the school. Approach local businesses about sponsoring rounds and ask whether they can also donate prizes. If running a raffle or auction, seek prizes for these, too. Decide whether you will serve food, and if this will be prepared by you or delivered by a local restaurant. If serving food, include this in the ticket price and invite people to pre-order, noting any dietary requirements. Alternatively, ask guests to bring their own food and provide extra rubbish bags.
3
Create posters and flyers for your event and spread the word via letters and social media. Sell tickets for £3-5 each, and up to £10 if providing food. Encourage teaching staff to recruit the parents or relatives of children in their class. Find a scoreboard so that everyone can see who’s in the lead after each round – this should help maintain excitement and encourage some competitive spirit.
4
Prepare quiz sheets and source pencils – if you think you can get away with it, charge teams 50p for these. Finalise which refreshments will be provided, and who will be in charge of buying this and serving it on the night. Remember that any sale or supply of alcohol, even if included in the ticket price, will require a Temporary Event Notice. Submit an application to your local council at least 10 working days before your event.
5
Arrive early to set up your venue. If running a raffle or auction, encourage guests to buy tickets or place bids as they arrive, then announce winners at the end. Run interval games to boost profits, and encourage teams to complete a table quiz between rounds, with the incentive of earning extra points.
6
Have a post-event debrief with your team to discuss what worked well and what might need tweaking. Cultivate relationships with sponsors by sending them thank you letters detailing how much the event raised and how this has contributed towards your fundraising goal.
Tips and advice for running a quiz night
Licensing
If selling or supplying alcohol at your event, you will need a TEN (England and Wales). Allow at least ten working days between submitting your request and your event date. As a rule of thumb, if featuring live or recorded music (where copyright applies), your school should have PPL and PRS for Music licences (most already have these).
Quiz questions
Tailor your quiz to suit your audience. If running a family quiz, ensure that each round has a few questions that children can answer. Be imaginative when selecting topics – as well as the usual sport, history and geography, include spelling tests and a famous faces picture round. Run a table quiz, and give teams the chance to play a joker that will allow them to earn double points for the round in question. There are numerous sites offering quiz questions – try quiz-zone.co.uk. Make sure you’re confident of your facts and avoid any questions which may be open to interpretation. And remember to prepare a tie-break question.
Marketing
For a quick solution to effectively promoting your event, use the editable poster service provided by PTA Print Shop. Simply choose a design and input your event details. 10 x A3 posters cost just £9.95 (ex. p&p).
Boost profits
Increase revenue by serving food such as fish and chips or pizzas that can be pre-ordered and delivered. Interval games are also popular – not only will they provide a cash benefit, but should offer lots of laughs, too. Seek sponsorship for each round by relevant local businesses – a travel agent might sponsor the geography round for example. Encourage guests to take part in a game of ‘heads or tails’, and run a £50 grid.
More on events and activities
- Read more step-by-step event guides
- Virtual fundraising
- Earn while you learn – educational fundraisers
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The above is intended as guidance only. We recommend that you contact the relevant organisations with specific reference to insurance, legal, health and safety and child protection requirements. Community Inspired Ltd cannot be held responsible for any decisions or actions taken by a school, based on the guidance provided.