This year’s Brighton Half Marathon is only around the corner, but there’s still time to fundraise in preparation for race day.
Whether you’ve hit a brick wall with your fundraising efforts or only just started your giving journey, here’s our tips on how to raise money if you’re running for charity.
Set up a JustGiving page
One of the most important first steps to take, is to create a way in which supporters can easily donate to your charity online.
Start off by setting up a fundraising page of your choice, such as JustGiving. Make sure to add photos of yourself in training, information about the charity you’re running for, a bit about the event (such as how far you’re running) and a background story of why you’ve chosen to run for your particular charity.
Make sure to also include updates on your fundraising page, as well as social media channels. Updates act as a gentle reminder to potential donors, as well as keeping supporters informed about your half marathon training progress.
JustGiving also provide some fantastic tips and advice on how to fundraise effectively:
Share on social media
Once you’ve set up your fundraising page, make sure to share the page on your social channels. Provide some more information within your post as to why you’re running for charity and who for. For example: “In 4 weeks’ time I’ll be running the Brighton Half! I’m running for @thesussexbeacon, a local charity supporting people with HIV. If you’d like to donate, I’m aiming to raise £300. Every donation, no matter how big or small counts – thank you: justgiving.com/donate.”
In addition, many people may just post their fundraising page on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, but don’t be shy in sharing your fundraising goal with colleagues on LinkedIn too!
Check with your charity
A majority of charities provide their own fundraising tips and advice. Once registering to run for a charity, they will usually send you a fundraising pack via email or in the post.
Fundraising packs will typically include the following:
- Fundraising tips
- Guidance on how to fundraise safely
- Information on where donations are going to
- Information about how to spread the word
- Information about how to gather both online and offline donations
- Assets including branded social media templates, leaflets
- Frequently asked questions
Charities will also usually provide a list of common donation ask amounts, which you could include on your fundraising page, such as £10 could go towards medical equipment and £30 could support three patients. When supporters have an idea of what the money is going towards, they are much more likely to donate.
If you’re running for a cause close to your heart, you can usually enquire with the charity’s fundraising or events team about whether they’re open to sharing your story. Quite often fundraising teams are looking for stories to share on their social channels or in the local press.
Let your family, friends and colleagues know
It’s an obvious one, but something that can often be missed when you’re busy preparing for a half marathon.
Make sure to share your fundraising page with all your closest contacts by letting them know in person, over text, Whatsapp or via email.
At your workplace you could enquire with your HR department about whether they can send a company wide email, or feature that you’re running for charity in their internal newsletter. You could even print off a poster with a QR code to your fundraising page. Make sure to stick your poster up in communal areas (with permission) in the office kitchen area or by your desk. QR codes are now really easy to create, and there are many sites where you can generate one for free such as Adobe Express.
Bake some delicious goodies
Everybody loves some delicious treats – both at work and at home. If you work in an office, why not let your colleagues know that you’ll be bringing in some tasty homemade brownies or sausage rolls to the workplace, and ask whether they would be willing to donate a small amount to your charity.
Fancy dress
Fancy dress not only grabs the attention of the crowd, but it also creates a great talking point when collecting donations.
Many potential donors will view wearing fancy dress whilst running a half marathon as an additional accomplishment (running while dressed as a rhino or even carrying a fridge is no easy feat!)
Fundraise after running
Haven’t reached your target? Don’t sweat it! You can still fundraise after completing your race. In fact, a large amount of donations are made to fundraisers after they’ve completed a half marathon.
Make sure to post an update and reminder on your fundraising page and social channels that supporters can still donate. When people can see you have completed an impressive milestone, they are much more likely to click on the “donate now” button.
From all of us at the Brighton Half, good luck with your fundraising efforts, we know you can achieve your goal! If you’re still yet to register on behalf of a charity, you can do so by visiting all our charity partners here.
