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Are you stuck in a rut when it comes to distributing door prizes?
Do you use the same door prize distribution method at every women’s ministry event?
Would you like some fresh ideas to help your team give away door prizes?
While it is easy to just pull out those rolls of numbered carnival tickets, there are a lot more creative and exciting ways to give our door prizes!
Try one of these 15 fresh, fun ways to distribute door prizes at your next Women’s Ministry event.
15 Creative Ways to Give Away Door Prizes
1. Place stickers on the back of their name tags.
2. Utilize the Double Duty Door Prize Slips.
3. Hide stickers underneath their chairs.
4. Play “hot potato”. Whenever the music stops the person holding the door prize gets to keep it. This can be a lot more fun if you have several prizes moving around the circle/table at the same time. If you are at tables, you’ll want one prize per table.
5. Put stickers on the bottom of plates.
6. For an event that requires registration, print out all the names and place them in a basket.
7. Use a unique item to draw names from such as a beach hat, Christmas stocking, Easter basket, bucket, teapot, or any other item that ties into the theme for your event.
8. Sneak a sticker onto the backside of your event programs or hand-outs.
9. Play Bingo. Amazon (affiliate links) has an inexpensive Bingo game
10. Play Pass the Package. Click the link for detailed instructions.
11. Give the door prizes to the Icebreaker Game winners.
12. Have the attendees pull colored chips or playing cards. Note: This can be complicated. It requires rigging the number of colored chips or playing cards prior to the event and knowing how many people are in attendance. I.E. If you have 3 door prizes only include 3 cards from the deck that have diamonds on them.
13. Use index cards – have everyone write their name on one side – use the other side for an icebreaker game or to get input (such as what night of the week is best for you for fellowships).
14. Ask questions to which there can only be one winner (we hope!).
- Whose birthday is the closest to the event date?
- Which person drove the farthest?
- Who has been married the longest?
- Who is the newlywed in the room?
- Who got up the earliest/latest that morning?
15. The early bird gets the worm! Give a prize to the person that arrived first (after everyone else has arrived). If you do this often, women will usually make more of an effort to arrive on time.
Personally, I love when door prize winners are chosen randomly (not that God can’t have a hand in how the winners are selected!).
The random distribution of door prizes removes any signs of favoritism.
Something you may want to think about… Our team decided to exclude ourselves from participating in any door prize drawings. Not only can it be awkward when a team member wins, but it keeps the focus on the attendees.
Your turn to share: How do you give away door prizes at your women’s ministry events?
You may also want to read:
Double-Duty Door Prize Slips
The Door Prize Basket
Door Prize Idea
This is how our Master Gardener Assoc. does it: We have the doorprizes lined up on a table as people enter, each with a container in front of the item (because we are gardeners, we recycle those 1 gallon black plastic pots). Scatter pens on the table. Folks get blank slips of paper (give them 3 or 4 as they enter – depends on the # of prizes, they can have more if they ask if less that the total #). They write their name on the slip and place ONE in the pot in front if the items they would like to win. This way you don’t win something you don’t want. BUT you have to keep an eye on them and remind them that Ballot Stuffing is NOT allowed. Said with a smile but….Mean it! No one gets to win more than 1 prize except we always have a MYSTERY that anyone can win —it’s wrapped up and under the table so it’s an unknown but sometimes funny, mostly very usable. Part way through the meeting, you draw names and ask if they want it or pass in hopes they win something later they want more – that part is like “Let’s Make a Deal”. BTW, all our doorprizes are donated by our members – often things they just can’t use any more or re-gifts or even just bought for the pleasure of giving it away, all with a garden theme.
Thanks for sharing! I like that they can win a gift they really want.
This was so helpful! Thank you!
You’re so very welcome!
I like your ideas how to hand out door prizes at our Women’s church breakfast.
Thank you, Joyce! I’m so glad you found these ideas helpful!
The one with the smallest feet? Or vise versa.
Who cooked breakfast this morning?
Who exercised? How long to break a tie
Newest Mom
Newest Grandma
The tallest one and shortest one?
Thanks for the suggestions! I might stay away from the newest mom and newset grandma just because that could be triggering for some of the women in the room.
Thank you for some clever ideas. I like to encourage guests to RSVP by giving a prize to the first person to reply.
Hi Margie, you’re welcome! Thanks for the additional idea! 🙂
At our monthly ladies church meeting, we fill out a prayer card with our name and our prayer request. I use these to draw for the door prizes. Before each lady leaves, they draw a card and pray for that ladies request.
Frances, thanks for sharing! Do you ever have women who do not want to share a prayer request?
The ladies that sign before the event get their name in a drawing.
Yes, that’s another good suggestion. Thanks, Alice!
I have had Bible drills to determine door prize winners. Whoever finds the Scripture reference first stands and reads it–gets the door prize. It works pretty well!
Luan, I appreciate your heart for wanting women to know where books of the Bible are located when so many women have not grown up in the church.
Cyndee, thank you for this wonderful resource. It is soooo helpful to find ideas to help with providing great fellowship for women. When budgets are so tight, sometimes it only takes a suggestion or two to make a really nice event for some wonderful women that look forward to being together and having fun. We use our women’s ministry as an outreach program. Showing that God is about fellowship, fun and loving on them is a great ministry for us as a church. God Bless You.
Judy, thank you for your kind words and encouragement! I love that you use your women’s ministry as an outreach! I pray more groups will do the same. God bless!
On e I glued little jewellery closures on the back of dimes. Told the ladies if they brought a friend they would receive a diamond pin. Boy did I ever have a great turn out.
I use to go to a funeral home and they often gave me bouquets of flowers to cut down for centre pieces. Once there was a Chinese funeral and there was over 100 bouquets so I was able to get a lot. At that time I was doing a Hawian event so it was perfect. Had a blue tarp for a pool look and literally lined all the edges with flowers. I also lit torches but it got so smokey so snugged them out. Now all the ladies wanted to know how I got this perfect misty effect. All the ladies sat around the pool under umbrellas tables . Upon entering they received a punch with a pineapple slice on edge of glass .. Had a greeter dressed in a stewardess look who gave the leis and welcomed the ladies by saying ” Aloha, welcome to Hawii” This was an amazing meeting. ?
I often give the centerpiece away as a door prize. I will do up creative centre pieces like maybe hand cream or a jar of preserves and do the box or bag up real extravagant to match decor and that becomes centre piece for each table .
Just to add …for a neat idea for a centre piece , I had a goldfish in a rose bowl,a candle and a fancy salt shaker.
This was a reminder to be fishers of men,the light of the world and the salt of the earth. All the fish were later given to a lady who had an aquarium.
I love your site. Have followed it for years. Great ideas for meetings. I have been doing WM since 1990 so all your perks are helpful.
The ladies never know what I am going to come up with. Blessings….Fenna
Fenna, thanks for sharing so many creative ideas! I can imagine your women were surprised to see real fish on their tables! I love how that all ties into the scripture you were focused on. So creative!
Thank you! Such great ideas!
Thanks, Brandy! So glad you found them helpful! 🙂
How to incent members to bring visitors to monthly programs of lunch and entertainment at a Presbyterian Church?
Hey Tom, I’ve got several ideas you may want to try. 🙂 1. Offer a discount when more than 1 ticket is purchased. Like Buy One Get One 50% off. 2. Give your attendees invitations to take with them for the next event. 3. Encourage attendees to invite friends next month. Sometimes folks don’t realize guests are welcome and wanted! 4. Give all first time guests a welcome gift. A church near us gives first timers to their Bible studies a mug filled with info and chocolate. 5. Give away door prizes. It’s also great opportunity to share Christ – stock up on some $5 Christian movies, etc. 6. Make sure your event is published in every local newspaper and radio station. I hope these ideas help!
This is so helpful, Cyndee! We have an event coming up this weekend and you have some great ideas for drawing names. I don’t know which one to use!!!
Thanks Gina! Praying for your weekend to be a huge success!
I love these suggestions!!
Thanks Lisa! 🙂 Would love to hear what you try and how it goes!