How To Get Yeti To Donate Products To Your Nonprofit

I was at a charity auction for a nonprofit recently and noticed they had a few Yeti items for up for bid. I asked someone running the auction if they had received the cooler and thermos for a reduced price and they informed me that the items were actually donated by Yeti. After hearing about this, I had to look it up for myself and here is what I found.

How can you get Yeti donations for your nonprofit? Yeti will offer products at a reduced rate to nonprofits. They used to offer sponsorship and marketing deals as well but it appears as though the forms to request these have been disabled.

Yeti Donation Requirements

To request donated products from Yeti, your nonprofit will need to fill out a form that can be found here: https://www.yeti.com/en_US/fundraising-program.html. The first thing to note is that the form needs to be filled out at least 30 days before the event. The form has a few requirements so you will want to make sure you have the following before you start:

Details about your nonprofit including its overall purpose
Event details, ideally including a link to a webpage
A digital flyer for the event in PDF format
A copy of your IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter
A list of what products you want
A high-resolution copy of your nonprofit’s logo.

After you fill out the form, someone from Yeti will reach out to you to go over details and pricing. Unfortunately, you are unable to see the pricing of the items in advance.

Ideas For Using Donated Yeti Products

If you decide that buying discounted Yeti products is the direction you want to go, you will need to figure out how you want to use them. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

Auction

Charity and fundraising auctions are a common occurrence. With Yeti coolers and thermoses being high value items, you can expect a good return from either a traditional auction or a silent auction. You may consider creating a bundled offering along the lines of an ultimate camping package to auction off.

Raffles

If you have enough attendees at an event, you could raffle off your Yeti products. Selling raffle tickets for $1-$5 depending on the value of the product could yield significantly more revenue than an auction at the right event and provide a fun experience for your guests.

Prizes

There are a few different ways that you could use your Yeti products as prizes. First, you could use them as door prizes to incentivize guests to come to your event. Another option, especially for events involving youth, would be to have a competition of some sort with a nice thermos as the victory prize for the winner. You could also give a Yeti product to individuals that work or volunteer at your nonprofit that have earned some time of internal award.

Gifts

Depending on the size of the venue and the type of attendees, you may consider giving each attendee a gift. For higher end events a nice gift can often be expected. Yeti, being a higher end name in the thermos and cooler industry would be a great option for your guests. You can personalize the items with your organization’s logo to make them even more relevant.

Other Companies That Donate Products To Nonprofits

While Yeti is a great option for receiving donated or reduced price products, it is far from the only organization that offers this. Here are a few more organizations to consider.

Grizzly Coolers

Similar to Yeti, Grizzly Coolers offer reduced price products to nonprofits. The also offer to be a sponsor to some events. If you have a larger event such as a concert or sporting event, Grizzly Coolers may be an options worth looking into. You can apply for a donation or sponsorship here: https://www.grizzlycoolers.com/sponsorship.

Professional Sports Teams

Many NBA, MLB, NHL, and NFL teams offer donated or reduced price tickets and merchandise to local nonprofits and charities. Tickets to events can be a very hot item for actions and prizes. You could also consider bringing your staff or volunteers to a game as a way to thank them for all they do.

Grocery Stores

If your nonprofit is the area of fighting hunger or improving educational opportunities, many grocery stores offer small grants or gift cards. Gift cards are great thank you’s to your employees and volunteers and gift cards work great for raffles.

Retail Clothing Stores

A number of retail clothing stores are willing to donate clothing to nonprofits and events that are focused on youth. This helps their branding and your event. Depending on the brand and price tag of the clothing, you may want to use the items differently.

Restaurant Chains

Many restaurant chains are willing to donate gift cards to for auctions or raffles hosted by nonprofits. Your best bet when reaching out to chains is to first visit their corporate website to see if they have specific policies or forms. If you don’t find anything there, simply going to a store and speaking with a manager should give you the information you need.

Amusement Parks

A few amusement parks such as Disney, Six Flags, and Sea World offer to donate a couple of tickets for fundraising events. These are especially popular for nonprofits that work with youth and young adults.