Seven crucial casino fundraising steps and pitfalls to be aware of when organizing your next casino fundraising.
Being involved in the casino party and organizing business for a long time, I’ve heard from clients many sad tales of what happened at their casino fundraising event. I want to relay to you the seven steps to follow to ensure an enjoyable casino event and choose the best casino party service to host your event.
Step 1. The organizing committee. This is the most crucial stage in planning your event, and you should assign a person for each task to be completed for your event. These tasks include the Law and obtaining the proper permits, locating the venue and catering requirements for the event, securing sponsors to cover expenses, obtaining donations, locating the right casino, and determining who will handle the cash. One person can’t manage all of the above tasks. The most effective method is to assign one person in charge of each task and let them complete the task while reporting their progress regularly to the person to oversee the event. It will take a lot of time to complete each task. An ideal beginning time is about 4-6 months before the event date.
Step 2. The Law and getting your township’s permit and fundraiser permission. Remember that gambling is not legal, and playing casino games at your event is gambling. This is crucial since a casino-themed fundraiser isn’t the same as organizing a car wash to raise money. Since gambling is illegal, there are authorities from the state responsible for prohibiting gambling, which means your casino event will fall within the scope of an exemption to gambling laws. Let’s consider New Jersey as an example. The state organization ABC (Alcoholic Beverage Control)is responsible for identifying and stopping illegal gambling. However, their handbook doesn’t mention illegal gambling or any exceptions to gambling laws. It simply states gambling, and there were instances where ABC’s investigators tried to block a casino’s fundraiser by claiming it was gambling. The issue was resolved before the event was scheduled due to the second thing I want you to keep in mind. Although your casino event is gambling, and gambling is not legal, you are within the exceptions to the state’s gambling laws by statute. In New Jersey, the state legislature made a law to permit casinos to gamble and established the Casino Control Commission to oversee the event. They also made a law that allowed casino-related fundraisers and established the legally-authorized Games of Chance Control Commission to supervise casino fundraising. The main point I would like you to learn from this is to ensure that your casino event is legal. You need to know the Law and obtain the appropriate permits and township approval to hold the fundraiser. Even if you’re a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a tradition of having an auto wash to raise money, it doesn’t mean you can hold an event at a casino because it seems like an excellent idea. At this point, you must realize that it’s an excellent idea to contact your state’s Office of the Attorney General to learn about the regulations in your state that allow an event at a casino.
Step 3. Step 3. Best casino business. The requirements for licensing in your state might also require the casino to have a license. There have been instances in New Jersey where a non-profit company was referred to as a casino party company. Still, neither of the participants knew about the Law, which led to the event being shut down and penalties. Every state is unique; however, in New Jersey, the casino company and all dealers must be licensed as casino fundraisers. The most important thing to remember is to learn about the requirements by contacting the state authorities and then calling the casinos and asking about the requirements for casino fundraising. A reputable casino party service will inquire if you are licensed and can send you the necessary forms to get the license. They will guide you through the steps to obtain your license and the township approval. If they don’t help you understand the rules, they might not be able to comprehend the rules, and it could result in an accident waiting to happen.
Step 4. Who will be responsible for your event? Be aware that there are casino-themed party businesses that advertise locally and others that do it nationwide. My experience is that the local businesses are the most suitable for you as the national ones may not know the laws that apply to your state. And even more importantly, the national corporations won’t be able to host your event. They will call local businesses, request an estimate from them, and then add hundreds of dollars to the cost to answer your phone call. The local business will be hosting your event and will provide you with a lower price than the national one. When you visit each business, you’ll see photos of celebrities and others enjoying themselves in casinos on their site’s homepage. Please don’t bother with all the material designed to entice you, and it’s not necessary. If you get price quotes from companies that host casino parties, you might get three or four quotes within the same general price range and one or two higher than the rest. Let’s take an example. suppose you receive quotes for $1000 1, $1100, $1200, and $2000. It isn’t logical that three quotes were within the same price range. Still, one quote was higher, and this is because the very high quote comes from a national business that won’t be able to host the event as they are likely to contact the local business that gave you the lower price initially and then add the additional amount to the total.
Step 5. The tables at the casino. There is a standard rule to adhere to, which is that you should want around 70 percent of your players to have the ability to play. It is possible to modify this rule. However, I wouldn’t go lower than 50 percent to be able to play. The casino should inform you about this. They should be in regular contact with you throughout the weeks leading up to the event to adjust the tables as needed. Let’s say your event had 300 people; however, during the final week, you find that only 200 people will attend. A reliable casino would suggest reducing your tables to a minimum. A bad casino will prefer you to stick in the initial suggestion as they’ll make more.
Simply put, the best casino company will ensure that you have the right number of tables, and not too many or not enough, and should not make their profits higher than the needs of your fundraiser. Let’s talk about the tables at the casino which will be used at your party. My opinion is based on my experience as an authorized dealer. However, the top casinos have modern equipment that does not include folding legs made of metal and employ skirting underneath the table to conceal the legs made of metal. Find out why a legitimate casino does not have metal folding legs for their tables. Roulette or craps table is extremely heavy, with up to 14 players moving their weight across the table. Perhaps that’s why you should not have folding legs made of metal on the table since you don’t want to risk the table will collapse. I would never play roulette or craps on tables with steel folding legs. One thing I would like you to keep in mind is that you must have the casino company that hosts your party write in writing that they will be the one who is responsible for the event and will not subcontract to a different company. It is also important to ask the casino to supply photos of the tables they will use at the event. It’s acceptable if they display tables on their website. However, I’d like to know why a casino does not include photos of the tables on their website. Please don’t accept the casino with a picture of the table’s top with people having fun, because it doesn’t show the table’s legs which I believe to be the most important aspect.
Step 6. Costs of the Casino company, and any suggestions. The casino party service should be able to offer suggestions regarding the appropriate tables for casinos and the table size you will need for your event. They should follow the general rule that 70 percent of your guests are capable of playing. However, they must also constantly contact you before the event and be prepared to cut tables or increase the number when needed. Keep in mind that the casino will be there to assist you, but they also want to earn profits. A reputable casino will guide you through cutting down on the number of tables initially suggested based on the number of guests in attendance, allowing them to be an excellent resource for you while still making profits. Casinos that are not as good will insist that you stick to the same plan as they did originally because they can make more. The reason is that when you are playing with too few tables, your guests won’t be able to participate, which means they aren’t able to donate funds to the event. If you’ve got more tables than you can accommodate, they will not be utilized, and you’re spending more than you need to, and you may be at risk of losing money to the charity. One last thing I want to make is that some casinos that offer to fundraise require a portion of your earnings. Do not hire a company that requires a portion of profits since that is your money. Take a look at the casino business like a caterer or DJ. They get paid a flat rate and not even a cent more for their service.
Step 7. Who will manage the funds? A fundamental rule in a casino fundraising event is that you should never permit the casino to handle the funds. Be aware that there could be hundreds of thousands in the world, and you must avoid temptations or charges. A reputable casino will guide you on how to create a “bank” and also how only your employees will be able to touch the cash. There are some aspects of the evening when the casino’s pit boss can help increase donations. This includes giving special chips to your guests who donate more cash at each table; however, this should be limited to only one table at a given time, with one of your representatives sitting right next to them.
