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Fun Source Rentals

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Fun Source Winter Specials

Just a few ideas for Winter Special events:
1) Parents Shopping Night Out – Many churches, schools, YMCA’s use their gym and charge parents $20 per child or $30 for upto three children — this allows the parents to drop their kids for some cool fun while they go for uninterupted Christmas shopping
2) Dinner with Santa — Fun Source Party Rentals has about 10 schools that use the decreased prices to raise money for their PTA… complete with the big man himself
3) New Years Eve Youth Lock-in — every year hundreds of people lose their lives on New Years Eve due to drunk drivers.. what a better way to bring in the New Year with your youth group than by praising our Savior…
4) Car Dealership Holiday Sales – Many automotive sales company use the Party Rental discounts to bring in a Christmas car buying crowd… a few attractions for the kids… maybe Santa there as well and you have the perfect reason to get the car buying parents on your lot.

Any way you look at the Winter Party Rental Specials it is a win for you. Please call Fun Source Party Rentals at 205-854-2022 to inquire about our great low prices!

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Fun Source is giving away 5 tickets to Alabama Adventure

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The New Disney's Princess and the Frog Moonwalk

 answered… “The Princess and the Frog” moonwalk will be available for rent starting Tuesday, July 6th.  This is the first African American Disney princess and we have her. Plan way in advance for this item as it will be hard to come by.

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Having a Blast at Her Birthday

Wow… sorry for the long delay on announcing the birthday party winner. We were so overwelmed by the response we received that we decided to review each of the responses to our email blast and our blog entries to choose a winner. After review, there were sveral awesome emails and comments, but one was chosen to be the best. The following is the winning email and picture that was submitted.

Sincerely,
Teri Cardwell
Alabaster, AL

Thank you all so much for your responses; without you there would be no us, and I can not express to you our gratitude.

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NO ANCHORING ON LOCAL RENTED INFLATABLE!! Improper set-up of party rental inflatables can cause injury due to tipping or increased winds. Make sure the party rental company you choose is insured and that they set-up your equipment properly!

Another issue that adds to the problem of potential injury is the lack of proper set-up of party rental items. Because many party rental companies are operated on a part time basis, there is limited training of delivery personnel which leads to improper securing of party rental items. The lack of rental liability insurance has become such a problem that many states are enacting legislation to regulate and require proof of insurance. Be sure your rental company has insurance by requiring proof of insurance and calling the issuing company to make sure the insurance is valid and not fabricated. This will protect you in case of an unfortunate event.

http://www.cpsc.gov/LIBRARY/inflate2007.pdf

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/safety/2009/07/inflatable-slides-toys-accidents-cpsc-.html

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1. Cause Related Affiliations – In order to draw a crowd you must give them a purpose to be there. It’s not enough to just set-up some rides or attractions and expect people to come out in force; you must have a cause. The cause you choose could be as simple as helping the high school band pay for instruments, or raising money for breast cancer research or too increase funds for a youth mission trip, but you need to think charity first. People need a reason to spend their money at your event, and a good cause helps everyone’s conscious.

2. Choose a Good Location – The location you choose to hold your event must be visible. If you are a municipality then block off a main street or use a prominent city parking lot, a local school may use the football field, or a city park to be seen, but whoever is coordinating the fund raiser has to choose a location that is very visible. If the people can’t see your event they may not come to your event.

3. Marketing Your Event – How do you get the word out? This is where your marketing plan comes in, and YES you must make a marketing plan. First, decide who is your target audience that may attend your event? Because you have chosen a charity or cause to support, you should use this in your marketing efforts. For example, if you are having a food drive for the United Way, then use the local media including TV and radio to push the food drive. Most local media will give you free airtime when you are supporting a charity through your event. Incorporate flyer handouts at the local schools and neighboring city schools to get the children excited about the rides and attractions that will be available. Incorporate local churches, businesses, civic organizations and politicians to take part in and promote the event to their followers by way of social media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook. Make your event more than a small outing; turn it into a community event.

4. You Must Have a Hook — The final piece of the puzzle is in the way of a hook or an additional draw that will keep the people engaged in your event. This will serve to keep the attendance high throughout your carnival, fair or fund raiser. A hook consists of several elements such as vendor participation (also, an excellent way to raise funds through entry fees), local bands or youth group performances, road running/bike race, cheerleading competition, ugliest dog competition or learning experiences such as the police and fire departments. It’s also a good hook if you can choose a date that is close in proximity to a holiday such as Easter (egg hunt), St. Patrick’s Day or 4^th of July. You can use these holidays as an added draw. A silent auction is another proven method for raising monies for your charity. Many local businesses, professional sports teams, local radio and TV personalities are eager to donate items to your cause. This not only helps your event, but it also promotes them as well. Think out of the box when looking for hooks and when the people arrive, you will have an added incentive to keep them engaged.

While these methods are not guaranteed to create the largest event you’ve ever drawn, they are proven methods to take your event to the next level. Fun Source has been in business for many years and we have seen events done  successfully and events done poorly that were extreme failures. Brainstorm with your fellow event coordinators, and come up with unusual ideas to draw a crowd and keep them focused on the fun they are having. Many people in this economy are staying home for their vacations and your event may be just the family time they need.

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The Mind Winder is a top money maker for fund-raising events. We recommend charging $2-$3 per ride / 2.5 minutes per ride.

A carnival fund raiser is an excellent way to raise large amounts of revenue for your school, chamber or charity event, but if not done properly your event can turn into a nightmare for all involved. The following is a list of 7 common mistakes event organizers make that cost them money and frustrate everyone involved.

1)      No real person in charge. When organizing an event there has to be one person in charge with a plan and delegation authority. Event rental companies despise pulling up to a carnival site where nobody really knows what’s going on. This slows down set-up time and jeopardizes the event starting on time and flowing smoothly.

2)      No layout of the carnival items. This is another thing that slows down the carnival set-up process, and drives the rental company crazy. Most rental companies are on a time schedule, and the truck has additional deliveries. When there is no layout or map drawn up in advance showing where items go, it causes confusion and debate about the best place to situate your carnival items.

3)      Don’t ignore the event planning professional. FunSource recently met with a city official who was planning a city wide event. The party rental event planner suggested a small change in the date of their event to ensure large crowds and a profitable city event. Suggestions were made about how to attract people, a hook or draw that would keep the people engaged, again this was ignored. The outcome? The city’s carnival was a complete failure. The city ignored the event planners suggestion of a hook and as soon as the running race was over within 20 minutes every person that was attending was gone leaving their carnival items standing there with no revenue. DO NOT IGNORE THE PARTY RENTAL EVENT PLANNER! In most cases the party rental event planner has years of experience and has seen every type of event.

4)      Make sure you have power. It must number in the 500’s the time FunSource has shown up at a park to set-up a carnival, birthday party, church event etc.. and there has been no power . Make sure your event venue has power available or rent generators.

5)      Make sure you have volunteers to work your event. All event rides must have supervision to make sure the kids do not go crazy. In 100% of cases the renter of the equipment will have to sign a contract stating that there will be supervision. When you have no volunteers and an injury occurs because the children are not controlled, be sure your ready to pay your attorney to defend yourselves.

6)      Your rental company has no insurance. In today’s economy everyone is looking to save a dollar, but when you do so with a company that has no insurance, you’re playing with fire. Recently, FunSource showed up at an event and there was a moonwalk there from another company that we knew had no insurance. The bounce house had no anchoring or stakes to secure the item in place which increased the chance for injury. When the youth pastor was asked about insurance or proper securing of the unit he just wanted to save $15. When you are throwing a carnival/ fundraiser, it is irresponsible if your rental company has no insurance.

7)      Ask for referrals. Don’t just assume the company you are contracting to make your event a success is reputable. There are many companies that promise you the moon, but if you can’t get in touch with them when your event has an issue this could be disastrous. If the company shows up and there equipment looks as if it has been in a sandstorm without cleaning or the equipment doesn’t work properly this will leave you, the coordinator, with egg on your face and people talking behind your back. Ask for referrals from like sized events.

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