This time I choose to discuss the recent popularity of walkathons for raising funds for charities, community projects and schools. They are reasonably easy to organise, easy to raise awareness in the local media and can also serve as a fundraising opportunity at a low cost to the organisation, who wish to plan them. Here are a few observations of how to make a successful walkathon:
1. Focus on volunteer recruitment
Define necessary volunteer roles, and be relentless in hiring talent to make your event successful. A few useful roles may include:
-Logistics Volunteer: someone to obtain permits for the event to go ahead, with an interest in controlling traffic for the area used for the walkathon, insurance and handle general logistics of the event
-Corporate Sponsorship Volunteer: someone with an experience in sales and building partnerships to gain sponsorship from businesses and donors, who might believe in the cause
-Events & Hospitality Volunteer: this is basically an event cheerleader, who organise pre and pro-event meals, activities and coordinates any entertainment. They may also serve as volunteers, who stand at different points of the track to cheer on volunteers.
-Marketing & PR Volunteer: a volunteer with a communication background, who do a lot to raise awareness of the event, and boost participant enrolment by: pitching stories to the media, writing press releases, creating print and promotional materials and any other ideas that they feel will help
2. Pinpoint a specific cause within overall goals
Encourage people to donate by specifying where the funds will go. For example, Friends of ANCHOR did an event, where they raised funds for a gene machine, to detect if they had the gene that gave them cancer.
3. Set timelines, plan, plan and plan some more!
Set a guideline of when specific tasks need to be completed, and what is required to be done by staff and volunteers involved.
4. Leverage technology
Use technology to help speed recruitment of volunteers by allowing them to select their roles and availability via an online form. However, with enough technical knowledge, it is a great benefit to consider the use of an online tool for collecting donations and/or setting up a social media plan to publicise the event.
5. Don't go overboard!
You have a lot to hand out already including registration forms, sponsor packs, publicity flyers and instruction sheets. Therefore, don't create even more materials to bombard participants and volunteers because this can confuse the audience, instead of gaging their interest.
6. Failure Prevention Team
Have people to help with mistakes that might fall through the cracks, while the planner can be left to keep sane at this hectic time, and make sure everything else is able to keep on track!
7. Celebrate every success
Be sure to point out every piece of great work completed in the team, whether it is volunteers, staff, media or anyone involved in helping the event become a success. Consider organising prizes for key milestones such as biggest fundraiser, fastest walker, team players, social butterfly, and what-not.
8. Help participants prepare
This can be done by providing them with goals and helping them to set their own individual guidelines and priorities. Help them by providing them with relevant materials including a list of potential supporters, a draft pitch to be used to help them raise their funds and a guide of common courtesies (e.g. thank you letters to supporters and donors). Providing participants is a great help to fundraising. I know this from experience, where I have needed to write donation request letter or email requests to local businesses.
9. Make it easy and personal
Set up guidelines of how every £5, £10, £20, £50, £100, £200+ can be raised, by showing sample events that have raised a lot of money in the past. Show unique fundraising to engage with participants and keep them interested. Show an interest in every participant by regularly checking on how their fundraising is going, and how you can help them raise more funds. Don't allow them to feel like they have to do it all on their own! Also make it feel relevant to them by allowing them to vocalise their motivations for fundraising for this particular cause, or finding out how the cause has benefited them. Their stories can then be used in further promotional material, and encourage more people to participate. This is helpful to the charity and participant, who feel special and more included.
10. Motivate all!
Keep participants, volunteers and staff motivated by awarding them for doing well at specific tasks, and giving prizes for particular things. Send participants and volunteers regular weekly newsletters on how money benefits the organisation. For example, a newsletter may inform those who are interested of big funds raised. "Mary Anne raised £5000 by climbing kilimanjaro, this was raised by doing x, y and z events. Her money has been used to ensure that there are more sanitary conditions in Eastern Africa. The funds raised have helped build shower blocks in local towns and 3 more water pumps, so residents don't have to travel so far!" This is just an example.
On Wednesday, I have my induction for my next volunteering opportunity, and with give you a more personal update about it then or Thursday evening! Look forward to hearing your thoughts on my posts, Jodie :) x
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