Optional: collect pledges first
If you want to gauge demand before printing, create a public reservation page and use pledge totals to plan your first print quantity.
Cookbook fundraiser platform
Choose the Fundraiser Path That Fits Your Group
Create your cookbook, then choose what works for you: optionally measure demand with pledges, print and fulfill in bulk, or sell online through a storefront.
Collect recipes
Optional copy pledges
Bulk print and fulfill
Paid storefront sales
Useful for PTAs, churches, teams, schools, clubs, nonprofits, and community groups.
Example fundraiser plan
Books
50
Markup
$10
Goal
$500
Use the calculator below to tune pages, binding, color, quantity, and markup.
Three Ways to Run Your Cookbook Fundraiser
There is no required sequence. Choose one path, or combine them: use pledges only if you want to measure interest before printing, fulfill a bulk order yourself, or sell through a paid online storefront after a successful print order.
Optional before-printing pledgesBulk print and local fulfillmentOnline storefront sales
| Path | Best use | What you need | How payment works |
|---|---|---|---|
| Optional pledge campaign | Measure interest before you print. | No printed book, Order ID, Seller account, or Stripe setup. You can later choose bulk fulfillment or a storefront. | ReciScan does not collect payment; the organizer follows up and collects it offline. |
| Bulk fundraiser | Order books and distribute them through pickup, events, or local delivery. | Place your print order. You do not need a pledge campaign, Seller account, or Stripe. | The organizer handles payments and distribution. |
| Online storefront | Offer ongoing print-on-demand sales without holding inventory. | A successful printed order, Seller setup, and Stripe payouts. You do not need a pledge campaign. | Buyers pay online through Stripe checkout. |
If you choose pledges: a pledge is not a purchase. The campaign price is an estimate, no card is charged, and the organizer must communicate the final price, payment method, delivery timing, and any changes.
Print and fulfill in bulk
Skip pledges if you prefer. Order a proof, place a batch order when you are ready, and distribute books through pickup, events, school, church, or community delivery.
Sell through a storefront
After a successful print order, add the book to a ReciScan storefront. Buyers can then pay online and order printed copies—whether or not you ever used pledges.
Contributors can submit recipes
Collect recipes from families, members, players, parishioners, students, or supporters.
Organizers can measure demand
Use the Portal to run multiple campaigns, monitor copy pledges, track offline payments, and export supporter details.
A product people actually keep
Supporters buy a printed cookbook filled with recipes and stories from the group.
See the finished product
A Fundraiser Cookbook People Will Want to Keep
Flip through a real team cookbook and see how contributor recipes become a polished product supporters can use, share, and feel proud to purchase.
A 1:44 look at the custom covers, binding, recipe pages, sponsor content, photos, and back cover. Watch on its dedicated video page.
- Team-branded covers
- Contributor recipes and photos
- Sponsor and coupon pages
- QR codes and custom styling
This is a real fundraiser example: Your group can personalize its own cover, chapters, recipe pages, photos, acknowledgments, and custom content around the story you want the cookbook to tell.
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Set a Goal and Estimate Profit
Before you dive into creating your cookbook, use our calculator to set a goal and estimate how much profit your group can raise. HOW TO USE: Simply input the number of pages, your target total profit and whether your book will be printed in color or black-and-white and click "Calculate". Tune the number of books you think that you can sell OR alter the markup per book to see what it will take to meet your fundraising goals in different scenarios.
The free app is a good starting point. Some fundraiser features, including custom covers or contributor workflows, may require a ReciScan subscription ($4.99/mo).
When estimating the number of pages in your book, consider that each page will probably include 1 or 2 recipes and additional pages for content like a title page, table of contents, preface, and an “About the Authors” section. These features may affect your total page count, so be sure to factor them in as you plan.
Estimated Sales & Profit Summary
Book Sales Required: 0
Base Price Per Book (Plus Pages): $0.00
Suggested Sale Price Per Book: $0.00
Total Printing Cost: $0.00
Total Revenue: $0.00
Profit Per Book: $0.00
Total Profit: $0.00
For an optional pledge campaign, use this estimate as the expected campaign price, then compare it with actual pledged copies before committing to a bulk quantity. If you are not using pledges, use the estimate to plan the quantity you expect to sell or distribute. A pledge page does not collect payment. If you later sell through the Seller Portal, storefront buyers pay for printing and shipping at checkout, so Total Printing Cost and Total Revenue are most useful for bulk fulfillment.
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Start Your Cookbook
Download the free ReciScan app from the Apple App Store or Google Play. Open the app and create a new cookbook, add a title and description. You can also include your group or organization’s name as the author.
Invite Contributors
Tap the Menu button and use the share icon next to your Share Code. Contributors can use that code in ReciScan or submit through its public Add Recipe URL. Later, you can enter the same Share Code in the Portal campaign's Recipe Collection tab so supporters can reach recipe submission from the campaign page.
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Add Recipes
Add recipes yourself or invite contributors to share theirs. There are a few easy paths:
Step 3a: Add recipes yourself. Type recipes directly into the app or scan handwritten cards with the ReciScan scanner.
Step 3b: Invite contributors by email. Ask contributors to send you text or photos, then add everything to the app manually.
Step 3c: Let contributors submit directly. They can use the ReciScan app with your share code or submit on the web with your Add Recipe link: https://reciscan.app/addRecipe/<your share code>.
Customize Your Cookbook
Sub-step 1: Upload Custom Covers and Add Details
Upload custom covers, include a preface, or add an About the Authors page to highlight your organization and cookbook contributors.
Sub-step 2: Review and Organize Recipes
Review and add the submitted recipes into chapters for your cookbook. Personalize every detail to make your cookbook special.
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Optional Pledge Campaign Walkthrough
Use this section only if you want to collect no-payment reservations before printing. If you are ready to place a bulk order or sell a completed book through a storefront, you can skip directly to those paths.
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Optional: Create Your Pledge Campaign
If you want to measure demand before printing, sign in to the ReciScan Portal, open Preorders, and choose New Campaign. A campaign can exist before your cookbook has been printed, so no Order ID or Seller account is required.
- Start in Draft while entering the campaign name, expected price, copy goal, deadline, welcome text, and campaign image.
- Add a public contact email and customize the acknowledgement supporters see after pledging.
- Decide whether to email confirmations and receive a notification for each new public pledge.
- Use an expected price you can explain. It is not charged or guaranteed by the pledge page.
Change the status to Live and save only when you are ready for supporters to reserve copies.
Connect Recipe Collection and Share
If your group is still gathering recipes, open Recipe Collection and enter the Share Code from the ReciScan app. The Portal generates the same public Add Recipe URL used by app sharing and adds an Add a Recipe button to the campaign page.
After saving the campaign, open Share Page. Copy the permanent public campaign URL for email, text messages, newsletters, QR codes, and social media. Preview the page before announcing it.
The public campaign link remains the same when campaign wording, goals, deadlines, or status are updated.
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What Supporters See
The public page shows the organizer, expected price, public contact email, campaign story, copies pledged, optional deadline and progress bar, and optional recipe contribution link.
Supporters enter their name, email, optional phone number, and requested quantity. ReciScan records the pledge but does not ask for payment information or charge a card.
Each email address can submit one public pledge per campaign. A supporter who needs a change should contact the campaign email so the organizer can edit the existing pledge.
Manage Pledges and Offline Payments
Use the Pledges tab as the organizer's working list. Summary cards show supporters, copies pledged, money recorded as collected, and the estimated amount still due.
- Add phone, cash, check, or in-person pledges manually.
- Edit quantities, notes, payment status, and amount collected.
- Use bulk actions to mark selected pledges paid, unpaid, waived, or cancelled.
- Export the table to CSV for campaign administration and fulfillment.
Payment fields are organizer-maintained records. ReciScan does not receive or verify money collected outside the platform. Protect exported supporter information and use it only to run the campaign.
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After a Pledge Campaign: Close, Print, and Fulfill
If you ran a campaign, its pledge form closes automatically at the end of the selected deadline date while the public campaign page stays online. The Portal status remains Live until you change it, so set the campaign to Closed when you are finished collecting pledges.
- Confirm quantities and payment arrangements with supporters.
- Finalize the cookbook and order a proof copy in the app.
- Use confirmed demand to place the appropriate bulk print order and plan pickup or delivery.
- Keep pledge records updated as payments and books are distributed.
For ongoing sales, with or without a pledge campaign, complete Stripe Seller onboarding, save a storefront, and add the finished cookbook using the Order ID from its successful print order. If you used pledges, you can also enable the campaign's optional storefront handoff.
Get Started Today!
Create the cookbook in the free ReciScan app, then choose the fundraiser path that fits your group: pledges, bulk fulfillment, a storefront, or a combination.
