1. 10 Ways
to Modernize
Your PTA
We talk to PTAs everyday (and we love it). Those that are innovating are collecting more and
increasing participation. Find out how.

2. #1
Eliminate paper
at all costs
Nothing slows down a PTA more than
paper.
Let’s face it, paper is the antithesis of
efficiency. Planning a fundraising or school
event?
From start to finish, from marketing to
payment, think about how you can eliminate
paper from the mix. Send out electronic
communications, promote it on Facebook,
accept payment with Cheddar Up. This not
only makes managing the project easier
(read: no more spreadsheets, data entry, or
trips to the bank!), it will also increase
participation.

3. #2
Consider a direct
donation fundraiser
Nothing says buzz kill like the arrival of a fundraising packet
Never before have parents and kids been busier. Whether its candy bars, wrapping paper, magazines or butter braids, most parents
fall into the same pattern to get the job done. Call the grandparents, email the aunts and uncles, and write a personal check for the
difference.
PTAs are wising up and making changes to better suit today’s lifestyles. How? By offering simple, direct donation fundraisers – also
called annual giving campaigns. It saves everyone time and usually produces better results. Really savvy PTAs are moving all
payments online with Cheddar Up, because:
+ Who still carries a check book? Online payments get the job done in just a few clicks.
+ Collecting money online is more secure than collecting cash and checks.
+ Marketing the fundraiser is easier when people can pay online.
+ The whole “I forgot my checkbook“ excuse is out the window!
+ Schools that offer online payment collect significantly MORE.

4. #3
Collect PTA
dues online and
boost parent
involvement
If you give a human an excuse... they’ll
take it!
Any school that only collects PTA dues in-
person or via cash or check is handing
parents an excuse on a silver platter.
Give parents an online way to pay and you
will see an instant boost in membership. Not
only is it easy to pay, it’s also easy to market
– you can promote membership via email,
Facebook, or your school website.
Need to collect contact information? If you
use Cheddar Up you can do this by
seamlessly adding custom fields to your
payment pages.

5. #4
Sneak in fundraisers that don’t
seem like fundraisers
Public, private, charter…in all cases, parents can be sensitive to the
number of fundraisers that happen.
This is why we’re a huge fan of what we call “micro fundraising”. This sneaks fundraising into activities that
don’t feel like fundraising! When done well, this is a winner. Some of our favorites include:
+Family restaurant night. Select a popular restaurant that gives back to schools. Pick a
date, market the heck out of it, and voila. A fun night of dining with the community turns into
instant proceeds. Everyone needs to eat, right?
+Grocery cards. If your school doesn’t sell grocery cards it should. We all buy groceries,
why not give 3+% back to your school. Schools tell us that in-person payment limits these
programs. Use Cheddar Up to sell your cards and participation will go through the roof.

6. #5
Use Facebook
to stay in touch
with your
community
Chances are that most school parents
use Facebook regularly (weekly, daily,
maybe even hourly) – use that to your
advantage!
Facebook is a great way to engage your community
and keep them posted on news and events. If your
school doesn’t have a Facebook page, set one up
today! Here are some tips:
1.Check with the principal to make sure a page
doesn’t already exist. If it does, volunteer to take it
over so the PTA can update and monitor it.
2.Make sure to create a Facebook fan page and not
a Facebook group. A group requires permission to
join and a fan page doesn’t. You want to encourage
involvement for this school-community page and the
fan page
will do this.

7. #6
Turn teacher giving into
a fundraiser
We know teacher giving is normally not a PTA activity, but this idea is so
brilliant, it’s worth collaborating with the room moms.
Teacher giving usually happens at least twice a year – around the holidays and at the end of the school year.
Let’s face it, teachers don’t like receiving mugs. Thus, the latest trend is a group class gift – usually in the form
of a gift card. Teachers love this; instead of 25 mugs, they receive a gift that can make a real difference in their
lives.
Some schools take this to the Nth degree. They use Cheddar Up to create one big payment page with every
member of the staff listed. This makes it easy for parents and hassle free for volunteers. Cheddar Up does the
work for them. Once collected, the teachers select a Scrip gift card with their collected funds.
Boom! The epitome of a win-win. Great gifts for the staff and an instant fundraiser for the school.
Find out more about how this works >>

8. #7
Find the BEST
tech tools to
simplify PTA
admin
The job of the PTA comes with some
arduous tasks. Automate them to make
lives easier.
Take the time to find the BEST tools for each task. If you
pick the all-in-one tool, chances are you won’t find the best
and most affordable option. For starters, make sure you have
tools to help with:
+Volunteer Sign Ups. We like BringIt. It has a
clean user interface and great functionality.
+ Online payments. Call us biased, but
Cheddar Up was created to solve PTA pain
points. It not only helps with paying and
collecting, but also does the tedious task of
tracking and reminding.
+ Scheduling. Lots of meetings and
submeetings happen in a PTA. Save your
inbox by using Doodle.

9. #8
Boost parent involvement with
flexible PTA meetings
Need some fresh faces in your PTA?
This is a common concern among PTAs…how to get others involved. Busy working parents
often sit on the sidelines when it comes to PTA involvement, because they don’t want to over
commit and under deliver.
You can solve this. Incorporate technology into your meetings that allow even the business
traveler to participate. Make sure there’s an online or virtual component for every meeting.
Skype and Google Hangouts are two popular tools that will do the trick.
Don’t penalize parents with busy schedules and work commitments. Advertise your flexible
arrangements and you’ll be surprised by the diversity you can draw to the group.

10. #9
Implement
multiple
communication
channels
In case you missed the memo, people
don’t always read their email.
This is a huge frustration for school administration,
teachers, and PTAs. It’s not that people never read
their email it’s that things get missed. And if
something gets missed, the odds of them going back
to it are slim.
How do you combat it? Multiple communication
channels! Our society is on information overload and if
you have something important to say, your best bet is
a one-two…or even a one-two-three punch. If your
school will allow it, encourage them to establish a
mobile communication channel. This can be done by
putting together an SMS distribution list or by creating
a school app. Between mobile, email, and Facebook,
your odds of exposure, and hence participation, are
significantly higher.

11. #10
Sign your school up for the
BIG Cheese program
Make money on the money you make. We’ll explain…
If your school and PTA is like most, you collect money for hundreds of different activities – for
everything from band uniforms to annual giving campaigns to after-school chess club. The list is
long. Chances are you’re still doing this collecting via paper methods.
If you use Cheddar Up and sign up for our BIG Cheese program, your school can earn money
back based on the number of people that pay and the amount of money it collects.
Take it one step further and your PTA can also make money on ever dollar that parents collect –
be it for their fantasy football league or soccer coach gift – by simply adding a special link to your
school’s website. Referring back to tip #4, this is our favorite micro fundraiser of all! Find out
more.

12. Get hours of
your life
back
CREATE PAYMENT PAGES IN SECONDS
SEND FRIENDLY, AUTOMATIC REMINDERS
AT-A-GLANCE TRACKING OF ALL PAYMENTS
TRACK BOTH ONLINE AND CASH/CHECK PAYMENTS
EXPORT PAYMENT INFO TO EXCEL
FAMILIES PAY IN 3 CLICKS VIA CREDIT CARD OR E-CHECK
SCHOOLS DECIDE WHO PAYS THE PROCESSING FEES
CREATE CUSTOM BRANDED PAYMENT PAGES
PTAs that use Cheddar Up see results and collect more.
ABOUT CHEDDAR UP
www.cheddarup.com | How it works Need help? Contact us at info@cheddarup.com.