GiveForward

One of our users on GiveForward.org recently had a great idea on how to raise a TON of money in a single day.  Erica Flament had a GiveForward fundraising page for her friend’s daughter Maddie who was battling Leukemia. In total, Erica raised over $10,000 to help with Maddie’s cancer treatments.  One of the more creative strategies Erica had was to hold a birthday fundraiser for Maddie that raised over $1500 in a single day.  Here’s how she did it.

To celebrate Maddie’s 6th birthday, Erica sent out a request to friends and family on Facebook asking that they each give $6 to Maddie’s GiveForward fundraising page to help Maddie beat cancer.  Through the amazing power of Facebook, word spread and over 85 people ended up donating on Maddie’s birthday.   Many of the donations were for $6 but many more were for $16, $26, $56 and even $106.

One thing that was helpful for Erica was that she was persistent.  She didn’t just send one Facebook message and hope that everyone would remember to donate.  She sent a couple reminder emails as the date approached and asked that people share it with their friends.

Holding a fundraiser on Maddie’s birthday was a really creative way to get people to give, buy you don’t necessarily need a birthday for this strategy to work.  You can pick any date on the calendar and then ask for donations for the amount of money that corresponds with that date.

For example, you could send a message to your friends and your Facebook group that says: “Let’s help raise $1000 for Joe on the 10th of the month.  If you can afford it, please donate $10 to Joe’s GiveForward fundraising page here [insert your URL here] and tell your friends as well.  If we get 100 people to donate, we will reach our goal!”

People have called GiveForward a “social networking site for fundraising,” and whenever they do, we’re pretty quick to correct them.  Our main reason is that most social networking sites are comprised of predominantly passive users…i.e. people that only half-heartedly contribute to the community.

With fundraising, the last thing you want to see is 12,000 supporters but only $150 in donations, which is what you get on other sites (ahem Facebook Causes).  That’s why we really encourage our users to actively ask their friends and family for money…not support.

Sure, you might use the language “please support me in my efforts.”  But at the end of the day what you really need is a donation.

Here are a couple of tips from Joanne Fritz, author at about.com, on how to get a donation vs. support:

• Create a sense of urgency by citing a deadline , or tie your request a particular holiday. Repeat your argument for urgency both in the text of the email but also in a P.S. and follow up emails.
• Be explicit when asking for money. Example: Send a special gift today of $25 or more. Be clear and repeat some variation of the message throughout the email.

Other ways to get your friends to donate include:

• Making a goal of $1 per friend and following up with those that haven’t given…who can’t afford $1?
• Promising to do something crazy/funny/ridiculous if you get to a certain goal by a certain time
• Offering prizes for donors who give within a certain window of time

The goal here is to get everyone you know to open their hearts and wallets for you.  You know what motivates the people you care about…use that knowledge for good!

If fundraising was easy, everyone would do it.  The truth is It’s hard. It takes practice, humility, perseverance, and creativity.  It’s kind of like…Foosball.

Remember when you first attempted Foosball?  Most likely you just frantically spun all of the players, jammed the table and prayed for a couple of balls to roll in when the other player was distracted.  That’s kind of like mass emailing people to give to your fundraiser.  You have no strategy…you’re just praying for a few kind souls to give you a break.

But as you get better at foosball…or table football for our friends on the other side of the Atlantic…you realize that you have to be a lot more mobile yourself.  You need to react to the other player, leave some of your men standing at attention, and pass the ball to yourself.  Basically, you need to diversify your game and recognize where your strengths are on the table. read more…

They usually say in fundraising it takes 5 points of contact to secure a donation.  Because of this, non-profits usually do a combination of direct mailings, phone solicitations, in-person solicitations, emails, and advertisements.

Most of us do not have the time or money to push our fundraisers that hard.  But, there are a few inexpensive ways to create multiple points of contact with your potential donors.  We have discussed them in previous posts, but here’s a brief recap and some new ways to contact your donors:

read more…

Meet James Faith, 21 year-old Marine, husband and father. His goal? To climb seven of the highest mountains in the world all while raising money for cancer research. He started a fundraiser on GiveForward several weeks ago, and we wish him the best of luck. I recently got a chance to ask James a few questions about his goals and plans.

• Climbing one mountain is no easy feat, not to mention seven! Can you tell us a little more about why you want to do this?

James: Well to be totally honest. I was watching You-Tube videos one day. I came across something about Mount Everest. The videos caught my attention, and I started doing a lot of research about Everest and the

Seven Summits. The more I looked into it the more I wanted to climb.

• Wow. That’s pretty adventurous! Why is this important to you?

James: My Goal, when I first set out to climb the Seven Summits, was just to climb. I realized one day what potential my goal could have to make an impact on other peoples lives. So I set out to start raising money. I lost my Grandfather to cancer some years ago. A very good friend of the family also passed away recently. One of my lifelong friends back home is only 21 years old and he is also suffering from cancer. This is probably my greatest motivation to climb. Knowing that I can help someone, or a lot of people, is a great feeling.

• It seems like you are very motivated and goal-oriented. Can you tell us a little bit more about yourself?

James: When I was young. I lived back in the woods. I guess my love for the outdoors came from being surrounded by it from a young age. When I finally hit the legal age to hunt in PA, I spent most of my time after school and on the weekends hunting, fishing, and photographing wildlife. If you ask any of my family or friends where you can find me, they will tell you the woods. I also love to race motocross with my ATV.  I was 18 right before I joined the Marines. I had two pets. One was a raccoon that I bottle fed, and released into the wild close to my home in PA. The other was a Canadian Goose that I rescued from a nest that was destroyed. I made an incubator in my bathroom, hatched it, and raised it till it could fly. I have 5 sisters, and 3 brothers. I live in New Bern NC with my wife Theresa, and my two year old son Jimmy.

• Have you ever done anything like this? Any plans for preparation?

James: No I have never done anything that can compare to this. For preparation I usually do weight training for about an hour a day. I also do a lot of cardio training. I am in Iraq right now so my options to train are limited. When possible I walk on the steepest incline on the treadmill with at least a 55 pound pack to simulate as much as possible what the climbs will be like. When I get back home I plan to use my leave from the Marines to travel to some smaller mountains, and train with some professional mountaineers.

• Can you tell us a little bit more about your plan once you raise enough money? Which mountains would you like to conquer?

James: Well most of my equipment, travel expenses, and fees for land permits to climb will be coming from family and personal sponsors that I already know. I am trying to use the bulk of the money I raise to give to people who are currently suffering from cancer. My website will be up shortly, and I hope to have people refer me to family or friends that fit the category that I am trying to help out. Once they contact me and tell me a little more about the friend or family member in need, I hope to take a trip out to visit/ interview them and give them a check for an amount that I think will be helpful to them. I will also post pictures of them, and their family on my website as well as give some information on how they have been helped by donations.

For more information and to help donate to James’ cause, visit his page at http://www.giveforward.org/faithsclimbforcancer

The original article can be found here, at Youthnoise.com

Imagine running 26.2 miles. Now imagine doing this same thing for seven consecutive weeks on seven different continents including Antarctica. Sounds pretty insane, right?  Well that’s what the 30 global team members in the Hope Runs 777 Challenge will be doing in 2010 as they push themselves to their personal limits to raise money and awareness for the AIDS orphans in East Africa.

I recently had a chance to interview Julianne Chai, one of the 777 team members, and ask her about her experience so far in this Guinness World Record breaking endeavor.  Here’s what she had to say:

PC: From everything I’ve read, Hope Runs 777 sounds like a remarkable challenge.  Can you tell us a little bit more about the organization?

JC: Hope Runs is a non-profit NGO working in Kenya and Tanzania, using athletics, education, and social entrepreneurship to empower AIDS orphans. What Hope Runs is really doing is helping children (who are survivors of desperate poverty, abuse, drug addiction, rape or the death of their parents) to equip orphaned and vulnerable children with the tools to escape cycles of poverty and conflict to become productive and empowered adults.

PC: That’s awesome! So how did you hear about it?

JC: I found it on a fellow runner’s blog, she was promoting the challenge for other runners to either financially support or apply to be a runner.  When I read the blog post, I was really inspired. Btw, they are still recruiting for more runners!

PC: So seven continents in seven weeks huh? Is there a continent you look forward to visiting the most?

JC: ANTARTICA!!! Seriously, when do you ever get an opportunity to run a marathon on THAT continent??

PC: Yeah, good point.  Which leads me to my next question, what possibly possessed you to do something as crazy as this?

JC: I’ve always wanted to run a marathon on all 7 continents but never thought I’d do it in 7 consecutive weeks. (Hello, #1 on bucket list!) On top of that, it’s for such a great cause. It’s not just about me running 7 marathons but I am also doing it to raise awareness for Hope Runs children in Kenya and Tanzania. And, I wanted a real good challenge. Raising $3000 would have been easy compared to something like this. But shoot, I might as well go all out and raise $45k!

Julianne and her husband Duane at the Kaiser Permanente Half Marathon

PC: $45,000 is a ton of money. How much of that goes to Hope Runs?

JC: All the Hope Runs 777 Challenge runners need to raise at least $26,000 and the additional $14,000 is for travel costs. But I’d also like to raise additional $5,000 more for the charity for a grand total of $45,000. Right now, I am only 3% there. So I need all the help I can get.

PC: How you plan on raising all the money?

JC: I am counting on lots of support from friends and family, my social media networks, such as Facebook and Twitter. I have done a few happy hour events to raise money but while these have been successful, it’s not bringing in the large amounts that I am hoping for. I am also planning on contacting some corporations around me for corporate sponsorships. A few other ideas are to have a local charity race, virtual runs and even car washes.  I am also hoping for some media exposure on the Internet and TV! And maybe some readers of Play City will be inspired to give!

Charity guest bartending in S.F. to raise money for Hope Runs

PC: So in addition to the fundraising component, how is the actual training coming along?

JC: The official training has not started yet; however, I have been doing my own training where I am running intensely and racing (shorter distances). I am also training for the Big Sur Marathon on April 26th and the Rock n Roll San Diego Marathon on May 30th.

California International Marathon.  Julianne sets a PR by 10 minutes at 3:58!

PC: Wow, that’s a lot of running.  I read that you plan to run seven marathons this year.  What is the farthest you have ever run before?

26.2 miles! And maybe a few more yards after that…?

PC: Okay, so you’ve done the marathon thing. Do you have a favorite?

JC: The San Francisco Marathon! It was my first marathon ever and has a very special place in my heart. Besides, it’s my hometown marathon so I guess I’m a little bias. This year, they asked me to pace the 4:45 finish group. My best time on the course is 4:09 so I won’t be breaking any personal records this year but still, very honored that I will be a pacer at my fifth SFM! Oh, I still have Chicago Marathon, Nike Women’s Marathon and California International Marathon for 2009.

PC: Seven marathons in seven weeks makes you a pretty big inspiration to the rest of us mortals. Let’s turn the tables.  Who is your biggest inspiration?

JC: I don’t have any particular inspirational figure… When I hear about my running buddies or friends breaking their personal records at a race, I am truly inspired.  Because these runners are real people who run. For theses runners to break their personal records, that means they really put their heart and soul into the training and during the race itself. That to me is really inspiring. I have friends who are currently running some crazy mileages to break their personal records at the upcoming Eugene Marathon and at San Diego!

Helping a friend PR by 11 minutes at the Race for Roses Half in Portland.

PC: Okay, last question.  I know I’m totally inspired by what you are doing and I’m sure others are too.  How can people/sponsors get involved to help you reach your fundraising goal?

JC: Mainly, monetary donations!! Every dollar counts and as I have mentioned earlier, I need to raise a lot of money. Of course, any ideas for fundraising or corporate sponsorships (and beyond) are more than welcome! And if anyone is interested in keeping up with my fundraising progress, they can visit my Hope Runs blog: http://www.bicoastalite.com and my giving site is http://www.giveforward.org/hoperuns

PC: Cool. Thanks for the interview and best of luck with everything.  We’ll definitely be rooting for you and will try to catch up with you again as we get closer to 2010.

—–
From the Hope Runs Website:

“Hope Runs grew out of a marathon training program in a Kenyan orphanage. Since that time, school performance among the runners is up, disciplinary action is down, and no one is telling us that ‘girls can’t run.’ The kids have now competed in more than ten races from 5-42km in both Kenya and Tanzania, and they are still going strong.”

If you would like to get involved in Hope Runs you can visit their website at www.hoperuns.org

Perhaps this year’s Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8k should have been renamed the Shamrock Shiver. Despite the freezing temperatures, blinding snow, and wet, slushy city streets, 13,000 of the 32,000 registered runners braved the conditions and completed the race. Because of the tough conditions, most runners made neccessary adjustments to their running attire. Most racers were dressed for the weather, sporting ponchos, hats, gloves, and banana suits. Oh, wait, that was just GiveForward’s very own Ethan. Yes, he ran in a banana costume.

A big congrats to all 25 of the GiveForward Team who raised over $8500 for their personal fundraisers. One group of runners raised money so underprivileged high school juniors in the East Village Youth Program could go on a college tour this spring, another raised money for the Tree House Animal Shelter.  One group raised money to re-build a house for at-risk teenage mothers in Phoenix Arizona called Maggie’s Place, and others raised money a group called Keiran Conway’s Running Roadies, who were rising money to give directly to their friend battling cancer to help cover medical expenses. An extra shout-out to the 11 team members who braved the snow and completed the race!

Overall the race was a success and a great kick-off to running season in Chicago. If you plan on running in any events this spring and summer, think about raising money for a cause you care about. That way, you can feel good body and soul.

One good way to boost your fundraising totals is to get your story into the press.

Here’s how:

Prepare a short email with background information on why you are fundraising and make sure to include the link to your GiveForward personal fundraising page, as well as your contact information.

Once you’ve prepared the email, call up your local newspaper, radio or TV station and tell them you are fundraising for a good cause and that you would appreciate if they could help you out.

Tell them your story on the phone and then ask if you can send them a little more info in an email so they can pass it along to the appropriate editors.  

Usually, this is all it takes.  If you ask nicely, most local newspapers will do a story on your fundraising efforts. read more…

Here’s a quick and easy way to create a little extra awareness for your fundraising campaign.

Add a link to your personal fundraiser page to your email signature.  You never know who is going to see it and decide to donate.

To add a signature in Gmail, click on the “Settings” link.

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Fundraising Tip of the Week #7

You can add a lot of dimension to your personal fundraising page and raise more money by adding a YouTube video.   If you are a little hesitant about writing producing and starring in your own video, trust me, you don’t have to be Steven Spielberg to do this.  It’s pretty simple. Here’s how to do it in three easy steps.

read more…