Creating your Potential Donor List is a crucial step in becoming a successful 4K fundraiser. To start, try to think of at least 100 people – you probably know a lot more, but 100 is a good start. As you assemble the list that will make up your potential donor list, ask yourself the following questions:
» Who are you going to ask?
» Why?
» What is your connection to them?
» How will you communicate with these people?
(Email, Physical Letter, Facebook, etc)
Record the answers to your questions in the spreadsheet of your choice. Make sure to take notes on when you asked them and how much you asked for. This information will be helpful when you follow up with either a reminder or a thank you note. Once your list has everyone you know you might think of asking others if they know other people or businesses that would be interested in supporting you on your trip.
Possible donors include:
» Family and friends (this is where the majority of support will be found)
» Social groups and clubs you belong to at school
» Your classmates and instructors (give a presentation to all of your classes)
» Community members (find a place to hold events to meet community members)
» Private business owners (bike/run stores, grocery stores, pizza shops, etc)
Sometimes it can be hard to ask for donations from friends or family that you know don’t have a lot of disposable income. But even small donations can make a difference, feel free to be specific, “Would you be able to donate $10?”. Also giving them simple, but frequent reminders will encourage donors to contribute. Tagging friends on Facebook and asking them to donate $5 can be very effective.