hey....is anybody else finding that donations are very slow in coming in? I've e-mailed 64 people and only 12 responses. My wife and sister have both e-mailed their business contacts and I've only received $20 from that. I suspect that in todays economic climate, people are more selective in the where their money goes. If they donate at all. Add to that the fact there are 3 other cancer fundraisers happening now as well, there seem to be too many fundraisers vying for 'cancer' dollars all at the same time. I'm really concerned that I won't make the $2500 required to ride. Is anybody else experiencing this?
I also sent out a bunch of e-mails and didn't receive anything for a bit. I noticed that on my "follow up" list it looked like people hadn't even opened the e-mail. I have a feeling the e-mail may have gone directly into some peoples junk mail. I ended up sending a follow up letter from my own e-mail address and added a link to my page. That seemed to work. Good luck and if I think of anything to help I'll let you know!
Another thing I did was to suggest to people wanting to pay by cheque (or cash) was to write the cheque out to me and I'd in turn put it on my credit card. That way you're not waiting the 4-6 weeks for it to be processed and you have a better idea of how much you have. Oh, one more thing, I also mentioned in my letter that getting the money in sooner rather than later would help. I think alot of people think it's still a while away so they don't have to rush.
-- Edited by LMB123 on Wednesday 1st of April 2009 12:42:47 AM
I too had a hard time at first but with a little creativity you can bring more attention to what you are trying to achieve. I bake cookies/brownies on a regular basis for the people I work with and put out a collection tin stating what the money goes to. The response has been impressive. Some people are not comfortable giving large amounts but on a hard day at work they will put in several toonies in the bucket for those cookies.
If you have a large network of people, may I suggest doing a pub night. Most pubs will do all the work for you. All you have to do is sell your tickets and get your friends together for a night of fun. The pubs have a lot of good suggestions on how to make your event more successful.
Good luck! Be persistant. The donations will start to come in!
Thanks for the suggestions and encouragement. Unfortunately my job was eliminated back in December, so I lost that source. The Team is working on a pub night. I'm also thinking of donating my time to a local bike shop for a donation in lieu of pay. That would be a win win situation. I get a donation and they get free labour and a tax deduction.
I found a certain level lf success by approaching the businesses where I spend money. Try asking your dentist, you doctor and your car mechanic about sponsoring you. Other places where they know your face, like the local coffee shop or the barber that you go to are also good sources. Also, meet your prospects in person, giving them your business card, with the instructions on navigating the website printed on the back. People tend to ignore e-mails. Hang in there and I'm sure you'll do fine.
-- Edited by erniek on Friday 3rd of April 2009 03:03:32 PM
