Prize-led fundraising, especially charity lottery, is on the rise... and with good reason.
In today’s uncertain economic environment, charities are turning to lotteries and raffles as dependable, engaging income generators.
Drawing on insights from Woods Valldata’s Individual Giving Fundraising Survey and The Lowdown webinar, this article explores how integrating lottery into your marketing and fundraising strategy can support sustainable growth, deepen engagement, and attract new supporters.
How Prize-Led Fundraising Fits a Winning Marketing and Fundraising Strategy
Across the UK charity sector, prize-led fundraising is experiencing a remarkable surge. For the first time in the 6 years the Woods Valldata’s annual Individual Giving Fundraising Survey has been running, charity weekly lottery has emerged as the top individual giving product.
35% of responders listed lottery in their top three individual giving fundraising products, with regular giving and appeals coming next at 28% and 26% respectively.
Raffle also made an appearance rated as the 5th most important product. This is more than a passing trend: it’s a strategic move by fundraisers seeking income resilience, diversification, and new supporter engagement in a challenging fundraising environment.
That’s why lottery deserves a place in your broader marketing and fundraising strategy.
Prize-Led Fundraising on the Rise
The latest individual giving fundraising survey data and The Lowdown webinar discussion paint a compelling picture: prize-led products have become an anchor for regular, unrestricted charitable income.
This is a trend not only seen in research conducted by Woods Valldata but also other leading voices in charity fundraising, not least the AAW/CIOF Benchmarking report released in 2025.
The Gambling Commission also report growth in FY2024/25 with large society lotteries growing 4.7% year-on-year at a value of £1.1billion.
Why Prize-Led Appeals Work: The Panel's Perspective
The strength of prize-led campaigns was a recurrent theme in the Woods Valldata The Lowdown Individual Giving 2025 webinar:
1. Engagement and value
“Lottery is an added value product, a bit like all prize-led fundraising. It’s a bit of a give-and-get… it might be resonating with a different type of supporter and resonating with them quite well in the current climate,” explained Helen Daw, Head of Data Strategy and Insight at Woods Valldata.
2. Income security and regularity
Sally Bownes, Head of Loyalty at Save the Children, shared, “Regular giving is the cornerstone of our income... shoring up that base of regular givers is critical for us, giving that unrestricted income. But we have also been looking at how we can diversify as well, and particularly looking at how prize-led fundraising could be part of that mix.”
3. Reaching new supporters
“It’s really exciting to see how the lottery regular giving product is working... you can make a small adaptation to something already working well and attract a new type of supporter, or a supporter that might not be willing to set up a standard, regular gift,” said Jade Dealey, Head of Individual Giving at Samaritans.
These reflections highlight a sector-wide recognition: lotteries and prize-led products are not just “nice to haves”; they are tools for income stability and supporter diversification as part of your marketing and fundraising strategy.
What Makes Prize-Led Fundraising so Powerful?
1. Regularity and predictability
Panelists on The Lowdown agreed that prize-led products add “predictable income” to charity income—a critical advantage in today’s uncertain environment.
2. Engagement and motivation
Prize-led fundraising offers donors a tangible win alongside the feel-good factor of giving. “Prize-led, that is more of a value exchange ... is another option for people to be involved, which doesn't necessarily cannibalise on your other core products,” explained Sally during the webinar.
3. Acquisition of new and different supporters
Lottery, as a value exchange product offering the chance to win as much as £25,000, can attract a different type of supporter. There will be those who are playing the lottery, enticed by the amount they could win, those who are playing as a different way of supporting your charity and those who are in it for both reasons.
They all represent an opportunity to engage with the players and build a relationship with them towards loyalty. Lottery is a great opportunity to speak to people who otherwise might not support, and build a strong relationship with them.
Your fundraising marketing plan should therefore allow for supporter journey planning in relation to lottery players – bringing them in with messaging and communications that resonate with them.
Woods Valldata Services: The Lottery That's Right for your Charity
At Woods Valldata, we make launching and scaling prize-led campaigns easy, compliant, and cost-effective. We're a registered external lottery manager and have been helping charity fundraisers raise more unrestricted income with lottery for 20 years.
- Bespoke lottery and raffle setup—from concept through to launch.
- Response handling—for payments, entries, and supporter communications.
- Thanking and fulfilment—ensuring timely, personal recognition by post, email, or SMS.
- Data strategy and insight—enabling smarter segmentation and more effective supporter journeys.
- Compliance is at the core of everything we do—key in a regulated prize-led environment.
Our full-service approach means you can focus on acquiring and engaging your supporters, while we handle the operational practicalities.
The Future: Prize-Led Products as Part of Every Fundraiser's Toolkit
With record-high cost-of-living pressures and ongoing uncertainty, durable, engaging fundraising products are more important than ever. As demonstrated both in Woods Valldata-led panels and independent third-party benchmarking, lotteries and raffles are here to stay—and to grow.
Add Lottery to Your Fundraising Marketing Plan!
Prize-led fundraising delivers what charities need now: income, engagement, innovation. As you plan for the year ahead, consider how lotteries, raffles, and prize-led products could transform your marketing and fundraising strategy, diversify your supporter base, and protect for the future.
Ready to Strengthen Your Fundraising?
To explore the difference a prize-led strategy could make for your charity, speak to a Woods Valldata specialist today. Our depth of experience—across setup, data, fulfilment, and stewardship—means we’re ready to help you succeed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why should I include a lottery in my charity's marketing and fundraising strategy?
Including a lottery in your marketing and fundraising strategy offers a reliable and engaging way to generate unrestricted income. It appeals to a wide supporter base through a value exchange model—supporters give to your cause with the added incentive of a potential win.
With rising cost-of-living pressures, lotteries provide predictable, regular income while attracting new and diverse supporters. Woods Valldata can help you design a lottery that integrates seamlessly into your wider fundraising goals.
How does Woods Valldata support charities running prize-led fundraising?
Woods Valldata is a trusted External Lottery Manager (ELM), offering end-to-end support for lotteries and raffles. From concept development and compliance to fulfilment and data insights, we handle the operational complexities so you can focus on supporter engagement.
Our lottery services are bespoke, scalable, and designed to deliver long-term fundraising success. Learn more about our lottery services here.
What makes Woods Valldata different from other fundraising partners?
With over 20 years of experience in charity lottery and prize-led fundraising, Woods Valldata stands out for its sector expertise, data-driven approach, and commitment to compliance. We’re not just a service provider, we're a strategic partner.
Our in-house experts work closely with you to create tailored supporter journeys, maximise income, and protect your brand. We're proud to partner with leading UK charities, including RNIB, Samaritans, and Save the Children.
