The lowdown on Omaze
If someone approached you on the street and told you that, for just a tenner, you could win a mortgage-free, multimillion-pound dream house while raising money for charity, you’d assume there was a catch, right?
But this improbable offering is Omaze’s core business.
What is Omaze?
Launched in 2012, Omaze is an American for-profit organisation that raises millions of pounds for UK-based charities by offering people the chance to win once-in-a-lifetime experiences and dream prizes.
Where did the idea come from?
The brainchild of Ryan Cummins and Matthew Pohlson, the concept of Omaze was born on the way home from a charity fundraising auction.
At the auction, Ryan and Matt watched someone win courtside tickets to watch a basketball game with the legendary Magic Johnson. The winning bid was $15,000.
Two things occurred to them: How could such an epic prize only raise $15,000? And why should amazing experiences like this only go to the highest bidder?
They came up with the idea of creating an online platform to auction off high-value prizes to everyone at an affordable price …
The rest is history.
How does Omaze raise money for charity?
Through their ‘Million Pound House Draw’.
For as little as £10, people can win a range of mind boggling prizes, from luxury cars, and hefty cash prizes, to multi-million-pound (mortgage-free) properties.
How does the draw work?
Open to anyone over the age of 18, people pay for entries in batches. The minimum is 15 entries (£10) and the maximum is 320 entries (£150). However, there’s no limit on the number of batches people can buy.
Each draw runs for six weeks. During that time, Omaze dishes out a series of ‘early bird’ prizes in the run up to the closing date, where the ‘grand prize’ winner is revealed.
Early bird prizes include cars – think Mercedes SL Convertibles, Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismos, and Jaguar I-Paces; and cash – we’re talking £100,000 - £250,000.
As for the grand prize. How does a £3,500,000 house in the Cotswolds sound? Or a £2,500,000 farmhouse in the Lake District? The prizes are mind-blowing, right?
How do charities benefit?
Since launching in the UK in 2020, Omaze has raised £15m for a number of UK-based charities, including RSPCA, the British Heart Foundation, Teenage Cancer Trust, and The Prince’s Trust.
From the net proceeds of each draw, 80% goes to the charity (with a guaranteed minimum donation of £100,000) and Omaze retains 20% for its day-to-day running costs, salaries, and overheads.
What’s the catch?
There isn’t one. There’s no cost to the charity, as Omaze sources and buys the prizes, organises the draws, and runs the marketing campaigns.
At the end of each campaign, they divvy everything up. After recouping the cost of the prize and marketing, they give 80% to the charity partner, and keep the remaining 20%.
Wondering how Omaze is able to cover their costs and have hundreds of thousands left in the kitty?
It’s testament to the brilliance of their business model. The low cost of entry attracts tens of thousands of entrants. And they’re willing to pay top dollar for a money-can’t buy prize.
The amount generated covers all the costs - and more. If you consider there’s no limit to the number of batches people can buy, each draw can generate millions.
What sort of charities does Omaze work with?
To attract enough entrants, the charities Omaze partners with need to have a substantial reach (and influence). So, they focus on household names for the prize draws.
However, they raised £750,000 for small charities through their partnership with Global’s Make Some Noise, (an aggregator charity that makes donations to hundreds of small charities).
They also provide funding to smaller charities outside of the prize draws.
How much has Omaze raised for its charity partners?
Here are just a few examples:
In January 2023, widower Grant Carson scooped a five-bedroom farmhouse, set in eight acres of the Lake District. The prize draw raised £850,000 for Dogs Trust.
In March 2023, construction worker Kevin Johnson won a £3m Islington town house and £100,000 cash in Omaze’s London House Draw. It raised £2million for the British Heart Foundation.
In May 2023, June Smith, 74, from Essex, won a six-bedroom, three storey house overlooking the picturesque Fowey Estuary in Cornwall. The draw raised a whopping £2,100,000 for Marie Curie.
Want to be Omaze’s next charity partner?
Take note of the following and reach out.
“We’re looking to partner with well-established charities who have a strong supporter base and celebrity brand ambassadors willing to promote the partnership. We ask that any organisation that fits this description reaches out to us at team@omaze.co.uk, so we can pass the relevant details along to our teammates internally for review. If they feel it would be a good fit, a member of the team will reach out to discuss a potential partnership.”
Looking for a creative fundraiser to implement a lucrative fundraising campaign for your charity? We can help. Call us on 0203 750 3111 or email us at info@bamboofundraising.co.uk for an informal chat.