Advice Request - Running to Fund Raise for a Nonprofit

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4 years ago 01/16/2020 7:25pm EST

Hi LRC,

Does anyone here have good experience with fund raising for charity? I have been part of an organization for a while (on and off since 2011) and I really want to start fund raising for them. I haven't done any running charity work before, but I know it is a large part of running now (at least at major marathons). Given that I love to run and I am involved with this non-profit, it seems like a perfect fit. The only problem is that I have no clue what I am doing.

I don't really have any social media presence, but I am decent hobby jogger (68 half, 2:24 full - hoping to better that time this Sunday!). Maybe I can use that? Get people/companies to match winnings?

Any good ideas to for promoting a charity?

Some other thoughts I have:

- Talk to my local running store to see if they would help promote me/the organization in one of their races

- Try to get a social media presence started and promote there. Not even sure if I am willing to do this because this(if it counts) and strava are my only two platforms and starting now seems terrible. Would start a website though.

- Do the old "cents per mile run" and ask individuals/friends

- Help this organization do its own 5k/10k race to raise money. Chase me down and get a cash bonus ;)

I read a "verywellfit" article (among others) and found that immensely helpful, but still looking for more. Any advice is much appreciated.

4 years ago 01/19/2020 8:20pm EST

re: Shane33

4 years ago 01/21/2020 1:40pm EST

re: Shane33

Shane-

My only experience has been as a race director for small running events (300-500 runners).

Any fund raising means you have to solicit donations of some kind so get ready to be a salesperson!

1. It's a LOT of work. Even a small race takes time and effort. If you have a small group of 3-5 friends who will help you and actually put in time because they care about the charity, that makes it more feasible.

2. Social media is extremely important so if you partner with a sponsor (running store maybe) that already has a strong social media presence, that would be the best way if you don't have a personal presence.

3. Before you jump in and do your own thing, see what volunteer options the charity already has. Maybe you could be an important piece to their existing projects.

4. Be prepared for anything you do to take time to develop. A first year race rarely makes much money. (if any) Any new fundraising venture needs time to gain momentum and patience is key.

Good luck and thanks for making an effort to help out others!

4 years ago 01/21/2020 2:22pm EST

re: Shane33

https://abc13.com/5862542/

Cal Neff started Houston Half in last and raised money based on the number of runner he passed.

Putting on a local race is not a good way to raise funds unless you already have a big donor base that needs an opportunity for some public exposure. When I was a RD, I had a 5k with @800 participants. The entry fees were just enough to meet expenses. The only money the nonprofit pocketed was from sponsors. We did not have a lot of sponsors willing to put up good money and only would net @$25k. By comparison, a local nonprofit for Down Syndrome kids had a board comprised of all the big commercial real estate landlords. They put on a 5k with about 300 participants and raised about $300k.

4 years ago 01/22/2020 11:32am EST

re: Precious Roy

Thanks PR for sharing, it was a fun experience to be Last Runner Starting. Agree it helps to work with pre-existing NFP's that have existing structure and netwrok. Based on last week's leanings we could have started the outreach much much sooner and also improved the donation/pledge method (the online system was discouraging due to complexity). So keep it simple, run it for a good time period, and leverage multiple networks to increase awareness. About to kick off my main project for 2020 which will be raising funds for St Jude, they have a very good system but also looking at using another platform, Reason2Race, that allows others to also get involved so that might be a good option as well. Above all, be transparent. Running for someone/something else is a very rewarding experience. Good luck!

4 years ago 01/22/2020 11:45am EST

re: Shane33

It’s spelled “advise request”

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