Quiz nights are an excellent way to raise money. They are relatively cheap to set up, the prizes can be donated and most people enjoy the evening.

Quiz nights are an excellent way to raise money. They are relatively cheap to set up, the prizes can be donated and most people enjoy the evening.

Get the right mix of questions:

When writing a quiz I always try to keep the questions as varied as possible. There is always a quiz round and the questions are from all eras to make sure no age groups are excluded. The subjects should be as interesting as possible, including subjects such as science and nature, TV and film, music, art and literature, etc.

Try not to include too many questions that people will either know or not " make sure all questions can be guessed. Also, try not to have too many really tough questions. Remember, this is a night you want people to enjoy, so dont make them feel stupid with ultra hard questions.

I aim for 20 percent of the questions to be easy, 60 percent of the questions to be medium difficulty and 20 percent of the questions to be hard. This enables most people to answer the majority of the questions, but also includes enough tough ones to separate the winners out.

If you are planning on writing your own quiz there are plenty of free online resources to do this - however, this can be time consuming as you need to make sure there are a good range of questions, for all ages and of different difficulties and it may be better for you to buy a quality quiz pack from a decent supplier - it should set you back only a couple of pounds but could be well worth it.

Be organised!

Plan in advance!! Make sure the accommodation is adequate, with enough tables and seating for all. On the night ensure there are enough pens and that you have printed enough answer sheets for participants. If necessary, ensure the PA system works and make sure you have spare pens and answer sheets.

How much money can a fundraising quiz raise?

When thinking about how much it could raise obviously the more people involved the better. A quiz night with 100 people attending for example could raise as much as 500. Charge 3.50 for entering (350), lay on some sandwiches and beverages and you could make at least another 200, minus the cost of the hall and prizes. The numbers could look even better if you get people to donate the prizes!