Dammitall

My lady and I are signed up for our second year in the LiveStrong Challenge this summer. We're both doing the 100 mile bike ride this time and have upped our fundraising goals considerably.

I plan to formally kick off my fundraising efforts on February 1st, a nice clean date that will give me a little over six months before the ride in August to reach my goal (in comparison to the two months I had last year). I know it's going to be tougher this year to raise more in the current economic environment, where people will be less willing to part with their cash for charity than they might otherwise be. Because of this I'll be investing much more time and effort this time around and am trying to come up with some good tactics beyond the mass email and Facebook solicitations I made to friends and family last year. My ideas so far include performing in a solo recital and auctioning or raffling off the bike jerseys that I will be designing for us to ride in.

Anyone have any personal charity fundraising experiences and/or suggestions they would like to share? I'm all ears.

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If one million people replaced a two mile car trip once a week with a bike ride, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 50,000 tons per year. If one out of ten car commuters switched to a bike, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 25.4 million tons per year. [2milechallenge.com]

genuinegirly

My fundraising experiences have been limited to girl scout cookie sales. I sold wayyy more as a 5-year-old Daisy than I did as a 10-year-old Junior.

Yeah, that's really not helpful, is it.

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Dammitall

Maybe not, but now you've got me craving Thin Mints.

__________________
If one million people replaced a two mile car trip once a week with a bike ride, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 50,000 tons per year. If one out of ten car commuters switched to a bike, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 25.4 million tons per year. [2milechallenge.com]

dlish

when i did the Mt Kinabalu trek in Malaysia a year and a half ago now, i approached sub contractors that worked for me and told them what i was doing. some obliged and gave me money. i guess i used my position within the company to my advantage, but i've never been unethical in my dealings and they were always above board. my company were aware of it. so you could use that approach.

i also approached Hilti - they produce power tools, and they offered me a hammer drill that i auctioned and made some good money there.

i made more than my quota so i gave some of the money i raised to another trekker who was having difficulty raising enough money for the same trek.

in saying that i initially did have a lot of trouble starting off, but in the end i stopped being polite when i asked people.

just out of curiosity, how much do you need to raise and what is the money going towards? its a good idea that you do some flyers so that people arent skeptical about your intentions. theres a lot of haters out there that tell you that ythey are paying for your holidays.

heres the thread to my trek to Mt Kinabalu

http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/general...13-2007-a.html

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Plan9

Sending out cards to your friends got you a little $$$ last time, didn't it?

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Whatever you can carry.

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Anormalguy

Did being pushy, or even rude, work better for you? Is it surprising that people thought you were scamming them?

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In a society where the individual is not free to pursue the truth...there is neither progress, stability nor security.--Edward R. Murrow

dlish

people just dont want to part with their money for a stupid reason. they'd feel like geese if they got duped. that's understandable. thats why you should be ready with as much info as possible. flyers, website of the charity organisation etc.


as for being pushy, i didnt say pushy or rude. i just wasnt polite. instead of asking whether they would consider giving their money for a cause, id tell them that they should be giving their money for charity.

__________________
An injustice anywhere, is an injustice everywhere

I always sign my facebook comments with ()()===========(}. Does that make me gay?
- Filthy

Anormalguy

Dlish, cool, that's clears things up a bit for me.

I live in an area of Houston when scams & sob stories are common, & being a MAWGWG I am frequently targeted. I'd be one of the people asking why you need to leave the country, especially on my dime, in order to raise money for a charity.

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In a society where the individual is not free to pursue the truth...there is neither progress, stability nor security.--Edward R. Murrow

cj2112

MAWGWG??

I have done a bit of fundraising while participating in Relay For Life. I approached this a little different. My team did their fundraising as a team, we did very little individual fundraising. Last year, w/ approximately 6 active members, we raised over $10,000.00, I'd call that successful.

We had a great time, that was the key. We held yard sales, we did a couple bake sales, we did Christmas craft fairs. We enlisted the help of a local restaurant and did an all you can eat rib night.The restaurant donated 20% of their take. By far the most fun for me was the pub night we did. Our pub night took place at a local bar. We did a Karaoke competition where contestants donated $5.00 to compete, then the audience "voted" by placing money in their favorite singer(s) jar. The top 3 got prizes, the money was our fundraiser and everybody had a blast. Most of our fundraising required help from local businesses, but we found many willing to help.

dlish

my concern is the current financial situation where people and businesses would not be willing to give up the penny because theres so much uncertainty.

ill be fundraising for my own trek to peru later in the year....hope things get better soon!

whats a mwagwg???

middle aged white guy with gonorehea?

__________________
An injustice anywhere, is an injustice everywhere

I always sign my facebook comments with ()()===========(}. Does that make me gay?
- Filthy

Dammitall

that was to thank them

The cause is cancer research and patient support through the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which is a well known and reputable organization. The LAF actually provides fundraising mentor services and they supply participants with plenty of material to get them going: pamphlets, flyers, bracelets to give out, etc.

My personal goal this year is to raise $2,500. I raised $1,590 last year. It may be a modest goal by some standards, but it's a jump for me and I want to make sure I meet it.
-----Added 30/1/2009 at 01 : 34 : 57-----
This is great stuff. I would think that working as team might give you a little more credibility than just being on your own. I had wanted to try to recruit some folks who had donated last year to actually participate in the Challenge this year as teammates; that hasn't yielded anyone yet, but there is still time.

__________________
If one million people replaced a two mile car trip once a week with a bike ride, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 50,000 tons per year. If one out of ten car commuters switched to a bike, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 25.4 million tons per year. [2milechallenge.com]

dlish

i need to raise approx 5000 USD for my trek.

good luck. let us know how you fare. whens the deadline to raise the money?


as for getting the guys who contributed last year to join you, wouldnt you be reducing the donation pool if you did that? just saying.

but its a great cause.

__________________
An injustice anywhere, is an injustice everywhere

I always sign my facebook comments with ()()===========(}. Does that make me gay?
- Filthy

Dammitall

If they joined up on my team, they would help towards our total team goal, which stands now at $5,000. If we maintained that team goal, we could each lower our inidivudual goals.

The deadline is August 20th. Lots of time

__________________
If one million people replaced a two mile car trip once a week with a bike ride, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 50,000 tons per year. If one out of ten car commuters switched to a bike, carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by 25.4 million tons per year. [2milechallenge.com]

Anormalguy

MAWGWG = Middle Aged White Guy Wearing Glasses.

Around my 'hood' it makes me a target for scammers and bums.

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In a society where the individual is not free to pursue the truth...there is neither progress, stability nor security.--Edward R. Murrow

World's King

I don't like giving money to charity.


I'd much rather give my time.

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