Let’s start with the bad news: no matter how good the cause you’re fundraising for, and no matter what bike ride you have planned, people are fed up with someone asking for some money, because they’re going for a bike ride.
Did someone going to go do some mountain biking in Peru, or cycle the Great Wall of China, “for charity” ever approach you for a donation? However good their intentions may be, the reality remains they’re asking you to cover their adventure holiday costs, by painting it as “for charity”. And that has really soured fundraising for so many people.
I once read the daily updates of someone who did LEJOG on a Brompton, “for charity”. Their fundraising covered the cost of the Brompton, as well as their B&B accommodation throughout. In reality, it was a “Hey, please buy me a Brompton, and pay for my LEJOG”.
So is cycling for charity a lost cause?
No, it isn’t, and it speaks volumes about the generosity of the British public that so many people are still doing sponsored bike rides. Just be very aware that, from the outset, you’re up against it.
Remember, tales of daring, and enormous athletic achievements don’t hold much value these days. YOU may find enormous pride in having Everested a local hill, for charity, but most people would simply respond with “Meh!”
What’s the secret?
Ah, you came here looking for a silver bullet. A simple sure-fire recipe that will result in you raising millions for doing 300 laps of the local park. If so, you’re in for a huge disappointment!
There simply isn’t a single magic solution. And even if there were, it would only work for a very short while, before the novelty wore off, and you’re back to square one. Remember all those sad TV ads, with suffering donkeys, or teary-eyed children? Remember how hard they punched when you first saw them? Contrast that with your response to similar ads today, to see what I mean. In the end, what those charities achieved was to make the public far more jaded towards the suffering of others. Don’t do that!
Some suggestions
These may, or may not work for you. Also, if everyone tries this, then sooner or later, it will stop working.
1. The Hunt
This fundraiser will need very good publicity, and I suggest you put up posters everywhere, and leaflet-drop entire areas. That’s simply to get as many members of the public involved as possible. As a side-effect, it could just help teach people to look out for cyclists.
The premise is simple: people will hunt YOU.. All your publicity must show highly distinctive clothes you’ll be wearing. You will set off from a point in the middle of whatever suburb, town, or city you’re targeting, at a pre-announced time and date. You will set up a premium-rate text number, which members of the public can message to report seeing you. Obviously, you need to be clear throughout that sending a text to that number will cost a set amount.
The details
Setting off an hour (or some other time period) after you will be one, or more other cyclists. They will be hunting you, and they will receive information left by the public. The member of the public who left the last bit of information that leads the hunt group to “catch” you will win a prize. That’s how you incentivise the public to get involved.
You can choose whether or not you want to set up a geofence. If you do, the whole hunt must remain inside that. I would also suggest getting a local radio station involved. It can boost their listener numbers, and engagement, while widening awareness of your event.
The fundraising
Contact businesses in the area, offering them the chance to sponsor “safe refuges” for you. Such refuges are where you can hide and rest, for up to a 30 minute period. Other business can sponsor having their employees secretly being on the lookout for you.
Finally, people can sponsor you per mile you cycle without getting caught, or perhaps per 30 minute period you remain uncaught.
By turning your fundraiser into an enormous interactive game, I expect you’ll be far more successful than simply asking people to sponsor you to cycle an Inca trail “for charity”.
2. The Group Ride
An excellent example of a group ride as a charity fundraiser is the LEJOG ride in memory of Tim McKenna, organised by Anna Hughes.
To do fundraising as a group ride, you need to involve as many people as you can. In the Ride for Tim, people are free to join Anna, and a few core riders, for an hour or two of cycling, for a full day of cycling, for several days of cycling, or for the entire LEJOG.
The fundraising
In the case of the Ride for Tim, there are three charities that benefit: MIND (50%), Sustrans (25%) and Flight Free UK (25%). All three charities were close to Tim’s heart, and he fundraised for MIND himself.
The principle of fundraising via a group ride is simple: hopefully, each person joining the ride will make a contribution, and will further spread the message, asking others to also contribute. After all, you don’t have to join the ride to support the cause.
Payment
In the UK, charitable donations can benefit from Gift Aid, which is a tax break that effectively sees individual donations increased by 25%. While it’s possible to do so offline, you really want to avoid the mess of having to deal with cash and paperwork. Save yourself the hassle, and make use of an online service. In the Ride for Tim case, the Givewheel platform handles all of that, so you know everything’s above board, and in safe hands.
The British public is kind-hearted, and always willing to support good causes. What level of fundraising success you have can vary greatly, but mostly due to how you approach it all.
Make it clear to people why it’s a good cause to support. Tim McKenna was a hugely popular, and extremely humble, likeable man, so fundraising in his name is likely to be widely supported.
Your cause might not be so widely known, or understood, and it’s your challenge to change that. Simply planning on doing an immense athletic achievement will, by itself, not achieve much. After all, the round-the-world cycling record is well below 3 months, and it’s exceedingly unlikely that you’ll better that. And even if you did, how many people will be moved by your accomplishment?
But there’s something else that you need to remember: in this world, you get what you give. You cannot expect other people to donate to your chosen course, if you never donate to the causes of others. So next time, when you learn of a worthy cause to support, and you’re able to afford it, please make a donation?