One of the best parts of working with non-profit organizations is getting a front row seat to all the amazing work they do. In an effort to share the good news with more people, we do monthly roundups of great upcoming events to celebrate those organizations and help drive a little more awareness.
Cycle of Hope
Customer Snapshot
- Location: Pleasanton, CA
- Fundraising goal: $300,000
The Cycle of Hope is a fundraising initiative that has been making a substantial contribution to Habitat for Humanity’s mission of building, repairing, and advancing equity in affordable housing. Since 2018, riders have collectively raised over $1.6 million, directly supporting the construction of homes for families in need.
To encourage participation and maximize fundraising efforts, Cycle of Hope offers a variety of incentives, resources, and support. These include fundraising tools, personalized guidance, and direct access to a dedicated support person for those seeking to improve their fundraising strategies.
What we love about it:
- Beautiful website – Their website is incredibly well-designed and packed full of a ton of useful information for visitors. With GiveSignup’s Website builder, organizers have a ton of options to make on-brand, professional looking websites.
- Fundraisers – They’ve utilized the power of their community to bring in more dollars for their cause. GiveSignup gives organizers options for fundraising. They can choose to do individual, team fundraisers, or both. It’s easy to set up, and events using peer-to-peer fundraising options tend to significantly out raise those who don’t.
- Teams – Their use of fundraising teams further taps into the social aspect of fundraising that can be incredibly powerful for events. Having teams can bring new people into the fold who may not have otherwise participated and helps create a memorable and positive experience for participants. Joining a team is simple to do and interested folks can do so directly through the event website.
Vermont 50
Customer Snapshot
- Location: Brownsville, VT
- Fundraising goal: $35,000
The Vermont 50 is an annual endurance event that combines mountain biking and ultra running. Held during the last weekend of September at Ascutney Outdoors, the race benefits Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing adaptive sports programs and activities for youth and adults with disabilities.
By participating in the Vermont 50, individuals can contribute to a cause that empowers people with disabilities to gain self-confidence, independence, and a sense of belonging. The event’s organizers have made it easy for participants to fundraise by providing clear messaging, donation options, and the opportunity to earn free registration.
What we love about it:
- Fundraiser incentives – Getting people excited and motivated to fundraise plays a big role in how well their efforts go. Vermont 50 gives people clear insight into their donation options and even incentivizes them to earn free registration by raising $500 for the cause. Those actions are probably why more than a month out, they’re already $20k past their goal.
- Informational website – When people feel connected to a cause and event, they may be more willing to support it. The Vermont 50 website offers tons of information about their event and the charity they support. With Websites you can add multiple pages to one site, helping keep information organized and easily accessible to site visitors.
- Engaging emails – Vermont 50 sends a number of different emails to keep their community informed. They sent out emails for registration open and reminders about closing dates. With GiveSignup Email marketing is 100% free, with no send limits. You can even automate emails for things like price changes, reminders for people who started signing up, but didn’t finish, and more.
See Spot Walk
Customer Snapshot
- Location: Boise, ID
- Fundraising goal: $150,000
The See Spot Walk is a community event that brings together animal enthusiasts for a day of fun, food, and fundraising. Featuring food trucks, animal costume contests, and a shared passion for animal welfare, the event supports the Idaho Humane Society’s mission of advocating for the responsible care and welfare of animals.
This year, the See Spot Walk has leveraged online fundraising tools to create a visually appealing and user-friendly event page. By utilizing these digital resources, the organizers have been able to streamline the fundraising process and encourage greater participation.
What we love about it:
- Store/ merchandise – Merchandise is a great way to generate additional funds for an event. With GiveSignup setting up a store is easy to do. It’s a free tool and gives organizers the option to have a standalone store, sell merchandise during the registration process, or both. We also have tools for giveaways, and even a giveaway estimator to help optimize ordering for future events.
- Beautiful website – Similar to others on the list, See Spot Walk has a fun and engaging website that perfectly matches their overall brand. With GiveSignup you’re able to set a custom color theme for your event website, helping keep things cohesive. You can also add rich media, like pictures and video to offer a more engaging experience for visitors. Both of which the See Spot Walk team did.
- Fundraiser incentives – Supporting a cause is often a reward in and of itself, but having a little extra incentive never hurts. The See Spot Run team is offering the chance to win an iPad to any fundraisers who exceed $1000. With GiveSignup it’s incredibly easy to keep track of how much everyone’s raised, which helps reduce administrative work. They even have their leaderboard public, which could help fuel a little more competition and bring in even more dollars.
Looking forward
It’s always encouraging to see the different ways people use events to positively impact their communities. If you’re interested in getting a monthly dose of good news, feel free to subscribe to the GiveSignup blog. And if you’re ready to get your own event going, you can create one for free here.