How to Increase Income
Dramatically Increase Income at Stores, Restaurants, Churches, Schools, Fairs, Conventions, Parties, and Other Events
While many Wells are placed in stores and other unattended locations where they passively generate coin revenue, consider the following ways to increase the income, especially at events where you have the added advantage of being there beside your Well. This page includes how thousands of dollars are raised in a day, a weekend, or over a 6-month contest period. For instance:
- A school raised $248,000 in 45 days
- A small church school raised $7,352 in one day
- A charity raised $1,200 in a weekend at a mall
Priming
One of the advantages of events is that you will have someone there attending the Well. They should have their pockets stuffed with coins, preferrably quarters, and drop in coins whenever people walk past. That "primes" the Well and demonstrates what the Well is all about. That same person can encourage people to experiment with the skill of trying to toss in a coin without the ramps to see if they can get it to roll.
A word of caution: Make sure the person doing the priming doesn't give their coins to the children. You will want parents to do that!
Make change with a lot of coins
As your cashiers hand people their change, have them cheerfully suggest, "Be sure to have some fun with the Spiral Wishing Well on your way out..." as they point to it.
Some stores are even more aggressive than that. When they give people change, they do it with a lot of coins, accompanied with that same suggestion to have fun at the Well. In other words, if someone is getting $1.50 back, they don't hand them a dollar bill and two quarters, they hand them 4 quarters, 3 dimes, and 4 nickels, or something like that.
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Hoody Secton, a 7-11 franchise owner, did that very thing with his customers...many of whom are daily repeat customers. In a sense, he "trained" them to toss in all the loose change he and his cashier's handed them. He sent in this report: "For the last eleven years, out of 8,000 Seven-Eleven Stores, I have been in the top five raising money for the Jerry Lewis Telethon. My Spiral Wishing Well is my number one fund raiser . . . at over $16 per day, almost $500 per month. We average about 2,000 customers a day and most of them come in regularly. Interestingly, those same people toss coins in day after day---even if it's only a few cents change from a cup of coffee, sometimes right down the middle of the funnel and they don't even watch it spiral. They just do it out of habit."
Event Promotions
Several days before the event begins, while announcing it from a microphone or in printed programs, be sure to encourage people to gather up all the coins in their house. It is estimated that there is over $10 billion worth of coins in jars and seat cushions in American homes. You will want to tap into that. Many people have been collecting coins with the plan that "someday" they cash it in. Encourage them to bring it to the event and donate it...and save all the hassle of counting and wrapping it!!!
Then while the event is in progress, if there is someone at a microphone, they can invite people to be sure to, "Have some fun tossing coins into the Spiral Wishing Well..."
We would love to publish your organization with a new one-day record. This section will explain how to do it.
Records are not set at retail locations from walk-by traffic. Even if you placed a Seven-Footer in a 50,000 seat coliseum, it would be difficult to set a record from walk by traffic. However, if someone at a microphone said, "Be sure to stop by the Spiral Wishing Well and empty your pockets..." then you might set a record with a large crowd.
But the most likely setting will be at an event where you are raising money for a cause or project and you encourage people to pass their bills and checks through the Well too.
The $7,352.39 record at Canyonville Academy was set on an alumni day when they were raising money for a grand piano. They came right out and said, "Let's try to set the one day record for the Spiral Wishing Well by passing all the coins, bills, and checks through the Well."
In fact, they had someone who said they would match what was raised that day, so when $3,676.19 was counted, a matching amount was added in one check and passed through the Well!
So records are set when the Wells are the focus of the event. It is amazing how people will step up and make some very large donations when the goal of setting a record is promoted.
Be sure and do as many of the promotonal ideas on this page as possible.
Remember, ALL THE MONEY THAT IS PASSED THROUGH THE WELL COUNTS! So if someone has pledged a $50,000 donation to your event, don't just accept it. Use it as a matching grant at an event with your Well. Use it to get a lot of other people to donate $5, $10, $100 or more. Promote your event as an assault on the record. Encourage people to bring all the coins in their home. The average home has about $50 worth of coins stacking up on Dad's dresser and in seat cushions. Give away the toy mini-Wells for a $25 or more donation (see that promo idea below). And at the end of the day, pass EVERYTHING through your Well!
We will publish your record and link to your website, even if your record is broken in the future.
Good luck.
Free Goodies
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Offer something in exchange for a quarter or dollar tossed into the Well. For instance, the American Heart Association placed a Well in a shopping mall for a weekend, right next to a cookie store. They arranged with the cookie store to give away a small cookie in the shape of a heart to anyone who tossed in a quarter. The charity raised $1400 worth of coins over the weekend and the cookie store had record sales because "nobody can eat just one!" This same concept has been done many times with other giveaways such as small ice cream cones, a Pepsi or Coke.
You can also line up some prizes such as bicycles, cameras, televisions, or other popular items that are provided by local stores. Then run a promotion such as, "Toss in a quarter (or dollar) and enter a contest to win a free television." Have everyone fill out a little entry blank and toss it into the Well or into a box. Additional revenue can be generated by getting a company to sponsor the contest. They will get their name on the entry blanks along with a tear-off coupon or something similar. Depending on the size of your event, that sponsorship alone can generate another $1,000 or more.
Some of the most successful events have been promoted on local radio (sometimes with a remote on-site broadcast) that encourage people to gather up all the coins in their house and go have some fun and win a prize at the same time.
Coins for a Dollar
Most parents run out of coins at a Well. But if you are attending the Well (standing there beside it) you can offer to give people, "$3 worth of coins for a $1 donation". In other words, they drop a dollar into the Well, and you scoop out a cup of coins that they drop right back into the Well! We have generated over $300 per hour doing this. But you have to be careful that they don't "pour" the coins into the ramps because they will jam in the "Drop Coins Here" area. If that happens, be sure to have pen or small poking tool to dislodge them.
Mini-Well Vortx Toy Bank Income
In addition to coin revenue in the large Wells, you can raise additional revenue by giving away the small Vortx Toy Banks “FREE for a $25 or greater donation” at various events such as pancake breakfasts, bingo, festivals, fairs, school events, church events, etc. In other words, any time you are there with your Well, you can offer the toys so they can "Take the fun home with you."
Kids love these interactive toys, and parents like the fact that they encourage saving money. So they are great birthday and Christmas gifts. They are also great for “show and tell,” and that happens every day in school as opposed to once-a-year birthdays. The large Spiral Wishing Wells attract attention, and you can offer the toys right beside them.
If you have purchased a floor-model Well, you qualify for wholesale pricing. Click here to read more about this extraordinary bonus income.
Big Contests
Toss in a Quarter - Win a Trip
If you have several stores or locations, you can benefit from a big contest. A 100-store regional chain gave away a free trip to the Bahamas at the end of a 6-month campaign using the "toss in a quarter and win a trip" entry blank concept. Since quarters are worth 25 times as much as pennies, they increased their coin-revenue dramatically and drew a lot of attention to their charity. They also instructed their cashiers to make change with a lot of coins and to cheerfully suggest to the customers to "...have some fun with the Spiral Wishing Well and be sure to enter the Bahamas trip contest on the way out."
Stores love it because they can't afford to conduct a contest like this on their own.
As a bonus, the sponsor received the entry blanks every week, and sent "thank you" notes to the contestants, along with a special offer to get a free month of service. This is a GOLD MINE for a sponsor.
So it is fantastic for everyone. The charity raises LOTS more money, the stores love it, and the sponsor gets great exposure and a valuable call-to-action device.
Churches and Schools
Churches and schools have two important elements in common:
1) The ability to communicate to members and students before and during campaigns (as opposed to depending on customers to stop by the Well as they walk in and out of stores), and
2) Members and students have a vested interest in the project (as opposed to store customers who might not have a relationship with the charitable recipient)
That means that schools and churches can raise much larger amounts of money with their Wishing Wells than store placements. Many have reported completely paying for their Well in one day or a week by using some of the suggestions on this page. This is discussed in more detail farther down this page.
But a downside of a church or school setting is that the same people will be passing by the Well on a regular basis, so the income often tapers off over time.
Therefore, we recommend a variety of ideas on this page (above this section and below it) that will maximize the advantages and minimize the disadvantages.
Loan/Rental Program
If you are a small church or school and have a tight budget, you will love this idea.
You can loan your Well to other churches, schools, charities, and fund-raising events in your city FOR HALF THE COIN REVENUE!
And your name can be on the sign over the door on the bottom as shown here, which can be a great advertisement for your church or school.
We receive rental requests on a regular basis from charities that just want to use a Well for a day or a weekend. But because of the shipping costs, that is impractical. We would love to be able to refer inquiries from your area to you.
To help spread the news that you have a Well to loan out, we have suggested wording for a press release that you can send to your local media to start the requests coming in. Additionally, there will be hundreds of people at these events who represent other charities and projects. When they see the Well, they will contact you to arrange to borrow it for their events. With athletic events and other school programs around the city, it is possible to have your Well loaned out all the time, or as often as you want.
Not only is this great exposure for you, the income will be very significant. One day events are always heavily promoted, and 50% of the coin revenue (not including any bills or checks that are donated) will be very significant. It is simple too. They come pick it up from you, bring it back, and hand you a check for half the coin revenue. It doesn't get any easier than that.
Said another way, this is a great way for you to let other people pay for your Well. This loan program makes it possible for a small church or school to be able to afford a Well that might not otherwise have enough members to justify it.
Click here to see suggested wording for a one-page "rental agreement". This document is also a great "brochure" to give to organizations that are still thinking about whether to rent a Well or not.
BONUS INCOME: You can raise even more money by "giving away the mini-Well toys FREE for a $25 or greater donation. Click here to read more about this extraordinary bonus income.
More about how to promote church and school income...
As discussed above, with a church or school you have the power of the microphone and printed material. This allows you to promote the campaign and encourage everyone to gather up all the loose change in their home...which is a significant amount of money. The average home in America has $50 worth of coins...most of it in a jar or other container. Men don't like to carry coins, so we toss them into a container. There are also lots of coins in seat cushions and other places around the house, and it can be turned into an adventure for children to find them.
The current one-day record of over $7,000 was set at a church school alumni meeting in a very small school in Canyonville Oregon. How did they do that? They used the Wishing Well as a focal point, specifically planned to set the record, announced that as their goal, and encouraged everyone to stuff their checks and bills through the Spiral Wishing Well. In other words, the various records that have been set over the years have all been at special events where the organizers had microphones and were able to encourage participation.
When Wells are placed in these kinds of settings, the initial income is usually MUCH higher than when placed in a retail store and it can be completely worth the cost. Some of these types of locations use the Well occasionally and generate significant "promoted income," but remove it between events or campaigns to avoid having it become boring.
Shared Usage
Whether you have a large church or a small church, we always recommend placing the Well in a nearby store or charity during the week, or loaning it out to schools and other charities for half the coin revenue, and bringing it to the church on the weekend. While you may not be able to raise money for missions or a building project in a public setting, you can certainly raise money for a community project...and the public relations for your church will be exceptional with a "Provided by" sign on the base.
Some churches let the stores choose the charity, and the church just gets the publicity. It is like a "billboard" advertisement saying "We are involved in the community" in a great public location.
The point is that if you do this, your Well will be generating income and/or public relations around the clock...every day.
Placing a Well in a nearby store or restaurant is easy if one of your members or constituents owns a retail store. But it is also easy to provide a Well for any store, even large national chains that already have a preferred corporate charity.
Wishing Wells always generate MORE money at events than simply being placed for passive revenue in a retail store. But is it enough to justify the cost for a short-term usage? In all cases, we encourage you to find a place to put the Well after or between events so it can take advantage of daily income and greater exposure for your project.
Some of our school customers have purchased a Well that is only used occasionally at school functions, but they place it in a store or restaurant the rest of the time, such as in a McDonald's. They split the revenue with Ronald McDonald Charities and everyone wins. McDonald's and other fast food restaurants are always interested in supporting a local school as the students are a major source of their income and employees.
The reverse of this is also done where a McDonald's (or any fast food restaurant) actually purchase a Well and then loan it out to local schools for varsity games and other events. We have suggested to many schools that wanted a Well to go to their local fast-food restaurant and ask them to purchase the Well with the plan of loaning it to the school, with the restaurant's "Sponsored by" sign on the Well. It offers great exposure for the sponsoring restaurant...in addition to raising money for their corporate charity if the income is split. Other local sponsor suggestions include car dealerships or any company that advertises a lot in local media.
See our Sponsorship page for more sponsorship ideas, including suggested wording about how to place a Well in a store that already has a preferred charity.
Use the microphone and printed material
Even if it is not an organized fund raising event, the microphone can help people empty their pockets. For instance, at a school athletic event, the person with the microphone can say, "We want to thank (name of sponsor) for providing the Spiral Wishing Well. Be sure to empty your pockets into the Well before you leave...have some fun...race coins with each other...and help us raise money for (the cause). By the way, dollar bills don't spin around the funnel, but we appreciate them too." This not only brings in more revenue, it increases the sponsor's benefit.
School Campaigns
One of the most successful campaigns was in Portland Oregon where a high school placed Wells all over town to raise money for a classmate that needed a bone morrow transplant. The local media picked up the story, promoted it heavily, and they raised $248,000 in 45 days. People also put checks and bills into the Wells...even $100 bills! Because of the media coverage, they received calls from stores asking for a Well. The life-saving transplant was paid for, with some money left over that matched up with other grants for other surgeries.
This kind of campaign can also generate quite a few prizes donated as it became very popular for stores to participate. The cost of the Wells for a project like this can be covered by asking the stores to purchase the Wells, and when the campaign is over, they can use them to raise funds for their own favorite charity.
In other words, when it comes to promotions, you are only limited by your imagination. The Wishing Well becomes the focal point for the fund raising event, but you are not limited to coins.
Vortx Spin-A-Thons
Some schools have conducted Vortx Spin-A-Thons where the students get pledges of $1 per hour for the continuous spinning of the same coin. This is similar to a "work-a-thon" or "walk-a-thon" and raise several thousand dollars. By moving the Vortx in a circular motion,* the inertia is maintained and the coin keeps on spinning as long as the student has enough coordination to keep it going. The record is 33 hours and 16 minutes by one person with the same coin! These kind of campaigns require more organization, but they can be very lucrative. If you want to put one together, we will help you from start to finish. Don't hesitate to ask.
| *Click here to view a little movie clip of how to keep a coin spinning by moving it in a circular motion. |  |
HINT: Change the name of the device to match your campaign.
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Shared-Revenue plan with stores that already have a preferred charity