We get it, fundraising can be hard.
But if you raise money as part of a workplace team, you could raise more money for your chosen charity whilst making a big impact for your company.
Raccoon Media Group is a multi-platform media business that serves health and well-being communities. Their exhibition and media portfolio includes the multi-award-winning “National Running Show” which is proudly sponsored by RaceNation SportsGiving.
Raccoon’s CEO Mike Seaman, along with Portfolio Director Nathalie Davies and Account Manager Rachel Marsh (“The 3 Raccoons”) ran the 2022 TCS London Marathon raising money for Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Having spent the last 6+ months raising hundreds of pounds for their Company Charity Partner, the team have shared 5 of their Top Tips for Successful Fundraising:
1. Tell your story. Rachel says: “One of the first steps you can take to maximise the amount you raise is to explain why you are supporting your chosen charity and why you have chosen your particular challenge.” For you, this could be:
- A “once in a lifetime” challenge – eg London Marathon
- Something that pushes you well beyond your comfort zone – eg your first 5km
- Something else – eg minimising your carbon footprint by participating locally
“Remember, your story doesn’t end here! Whether you’ve had a bad run or are heading out in the rain, continually post honest accounts of your experience online so that people can see how hard you’re training and that it’s worth them sponsoring you. This will help you to maximise the number of donations that are made in the lead-up to the event.”
2. Set a Target. Setting a clearly defined fundraising goal will help keep you on track and can also help donors choose how much to sponsor you. The benefit of using a platform like SportsGiving is that you can set targets and clearly display them at the top of your fundraising page.
3. Tell EVERYONE! (Not just your friends and family). The more people you tell about your intentions to fundraise, the more money you will raise for charity. Not only will you find more donors, but you may also find others who wish to join your challenge, or inspire someone’s future fundraising activity. If you’re able to rally together a few colleagues to participate in a workplace team, you may find that:
- The company has more connections (ie more donors) than you as an individual.
- The company may be able to support the marketing of the fundraising activity.
- You are more likely to receive a higher volume of donations from colleagues at a higher value.
Mike says “Put your link in your email signature, plaster it on social media and badger your friends as often as you can. Don’t forget to post on social media on the day – people will often sponsor you during the race when they see how hard you are working!”
4. Achieve Milestones. Nathalie decided to enter a shorter race in the lead-up to her main event. She says: “This is a great way to stay motivated, get some race day experience and also drive additional fundraising!” One of the key benefits of using the SportsGiving platform is that you can attach all of your activities to a single fundraising page.
5. Incentivise Donors with Additional Value. Encourage your contacts to help you hit your target by offering them something extra in exchange when you reach certain milestones and/or your overall target. Rachel has committed to running in fancy dress if she hits her target and says “My friends enjoy laughing at my expense and are often willing to pay for the privilege – the more ridiculous the outfit, the better!”
Inspired to organise a Workplace Fundraiser? Simply fill in THIS FORM and our team will help set up your team page.
Alternatively, you can create your own individual page in just a few simple steps:
1. Create or Login to your MyRaceNation account.
2. Create or Select your Fundraising Activity.
(eg Create “My 10k” or Select “London Marathon”)
3. Set your target, customise your page and START FUNDRAISING!
PS – If you’d like FREE TICKETS to the National Running Show in January 2023, CLICK HERE!
