Growing participation and increasing donations don’t always go hand in hand. But for an established charity walk or run, it can be difficult to find new ways to fundraise.
To learn how you can uplevel donations, we sat down with some of Eventbrite’s race director partners. These directors are also fundraising pros —they’ve cumulatively raised upwards of $5.3 million for charity through their races. Check out the 5 creative fundraising tricks they swear by to increase donations.
Download the free tip sheet to learn how to:
- Get more donations per participant — both in advance and on race day
- Attract sponsors that align with your cause
- Make local connections for support and inspiration
Check out the first tip sheet in this series on race management here.
PREVIEW
Runs and walks for charity are a great way to motivate more participation in your race — all while supporting a good cause! But adding a charitable aspect to your race may also creates some new complications.
Step 1: Build local relationships
“Make local connections. When we first started, we met with a friend who is a race director, and another friend who owns a local running store. Those are critical first steps for something of this nature. So many NPOs will try to do it on their own, but it’s key to find the right people to support your cause and your race.”
— TAMMY ELLIS, Special Events Coordinator of Drumstick Dash
Step 2: Make it easy for participants to fundraise
“Eventbrite’s integration with Crowdrise is very simple and appeals to our diverse demographic. We have participants as young as 12 and as old as 70 or 80. Not everyone is inclined to transact online, but the transition between registering on Eventbrite and fundraising on Crowdrise, and vice versa, makes it simple for people to register and create a fundraising page, or just help with fundraising.”
— PAOLA TORNABENE, VP of Corporate Affairs at Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation
Step 3: Choose sponsors that believe in the cause…
“Get sponsors that you believe in and that make sense for your race. You must have buy-in from your sponsor on your mission and cause. Don’t depend on sponsors for money, because you may end up catering to the needs of your sponsors and not your runners. The Santa Rosa Marathon has amazing sponsors, but make sure you can put on the race without them.”
— ORHAN SARABI, Race Director of the Santa Rosa Marathon
Step 4: …and keep those sponsors happy
“Keep your sponsors happy. You must deliver and be creative. It’s important to keep your race sponsors in the loop and have them be a part of the big ideas of the race, even if they have a preference on t-shirt color. If you have more than one sponsor, make sure there are no existing conflicts between products, businesses, or brand identities… In 30 years, I have never seen any major conflicts between sponsors because, in the end, it’s for the benefit of the charity.”
— CHUCK GEORGE, Race Director of the New Orleans Jazz Half Marathon
