It’s never too early to start fundraising
Starting your fundraising now will not only help you earn some fabulous Heroes swag, you’ll also be glad you did come June. Set a goal to reach your minimum fundraising commitment by the start of training. That takes the pressure off and lets you focus on the training. Sure, you can still post that #sweatyselfie on social media and secure more donations as people see you killing your long runs. But that should just be the thing that gets you over your minimum and earning incentive prizes.
When I say start now, I don’t mean you necessarily must be asking your entire prospect list now. I mean that you should start with some prep work that will set you up for success. If you haven’t yet read our 8 Steps to Charity Running Success, do that first. Working on just the first two steps over the next few weeks will be a big accomplishment.
Just like the marathon can’t be achieved overnight and takes months of preparation and following a step-by-step training plan, so does fundraising. So, let’s just start with the basics.
Learn everything you can about Mercy Home for Boys & Girls. Our Stories featured on our website offer a glimpse into life at Mercy Home, why children come to us, and the difference this program makes in their lives. Each story–and there are many–takes less than 10 minutes to read. Take a little time to read some of them. Make a note of those that particularly resonate with you and tie well into why you chose to run for the children of Mercy Home.
Prefer videos? Mercy Home’s YouTube channel also has a great selection of videos including residents’ stories, tours, and there’s even a Marathon Charity Team playlist that will get you even more excited for race weekend. All these stories and videos can be shared along with the link to your fundraising page in emails and on social media.
In addition to Mercy Home’s story, you must also tell your prospective donors your story and what has led you to choosing this marathon journey and supporting Mercy Home for Boys & Girls. It should be a clear and concise statement that answers the question “Why am I doing this?” and will serve to motivate your audience to support you in this endeavor.
Begin by thinking about your personal values; what’s most important to you. What life experiences have helped shape these values? How do they tie in with what Mercy Home does? Next think about your audience. What is important to them? Why should they also support Mercy Home?
Lastly, write a “why statement” that includes your core values that align with Mercy Home’s mission, and how running a marathon as a Mercy Home Hero is a priority for you and something worth spending your time and energy training for all summer. Now keeping what’s important to your audience in mind, add an ask.
Once you have all this written down, you can begin to become more and more familiar with is so it becomes your pitch when you are speaking with people and shared in emails or in social media posts, Next month we’ll talk about creating your prospect list.